First time doing a blog here, so please bear with me : ) Sparta is pregnant! This plan has been in the making for years, at least 3.5 actually. It all started with Gane. He is an amazing boy, with an amazing temperament. I decided to try and find a girl that would be my ideal, from pedigree, conformation & temperament. I found her and her name is Sparta! This is our first litter. Gane has been used at stud, but this is much different. Both dogs are indeed worthy of breeding and we did not make this decision lightly. There is a lot that goes into making such a life effecting choice. We also have the best support from truly wonderful people.
Sparta was bred naturally and I also did progesterone testing to determine when she ovulated. Gane of course told me when this was, as he ignored her until a Sunday evening when the time was right. I wanted to know the most accurate date of whelp. This helps decide when I should take time off of work, not to mention being a tad anxious with my first litter!
Anyway, they bred and Sparta acted like normal. After the first week, Sparta was so hungry! She even tried to eat Gane's food by pushing him aside lol. Sparta has been a very picky eater since I've had her, so this was a noticeable change for her. Then 3 days later, she was sick. Still eating though.
We did an ultra sound on day 30 for her. We saw puppies! The repro. vet said she saw at least six but was being conservative with that number. There was a seventh pup but it was being reabsorbed. It was much smaller than the other six. Reabsorbing is a fear of mine and we did a progesterone test to check her levles. They need to be at a higher level to maintain the pregnancy. Her levels came back at 18.8 which is good. Her whelp date is June 10-14.
Back to being sick. She stopped eating or when she did try, she would throw it all up. Poor girl. I felt so bad for her & of course, I was worried about dehydration since this was day 11 of this morning sickness. We tried anything & everything to get her to eat. Chicken broth, tripe, canned puppy food, table food. It just didn't matter. Then, the clouds lifted and she is feeling better! She was just famished. She ate about 6 times a day for two days. I made her some brown rice & ground meat. I also was giving her Honest Kitchen, which she really loves. I included some grilled chicken with the Honest Kitchen.
She is back to eating just about three times a day. She is also getting pretty thick around her rib area. She does a lot of sleeping, more than her normal but still enjoys her favorite treat toys, car rides & walks : )
Sparta was bred naturally and I also did progesterone testing to determine when she ovulated. Gane of course told me when this was, as he ignored her until a Sunday evening when the time was right. I wanted to know the most accurate date of whelp. This helps decide when I should take time off of work, not to mention being a tad anxious with my first litter!
Anyway, they bred and Sparta acted like normal. After the first week, Sparta was so hungry! She even tried to eat Gane's food by pushing him aside lol. Sparta has been a very picky eater since I've had her, so this was a noticeable change for her. Then 3 days later, she was sick. Still eating though.
We did an ultra sound on day 30 for her. We saw puppies! The repro. vet said she saw at least six but was being conservative with that number. There was a seventh pup but it was being reabsorbed. It was much smaller than the other six. Reabsorbing is a fear of mine and we did a progesterone test to check her levles. They need to be at a higher level to maintain the pregnancy. Her levels came back at 18.8 which is good. Her whelp date is June 10-14.
Back to being sick. She stopped eating or when she did try, she would throw it all up. Poor girl. I felt so bad for her & of course, I was worried about dehydration since this was day 11 of this morning sickness. We tried anything & everything to get her to eat. Chicken broth, tripe, canned puppy food, table food. It just didn't matter. Then, the clouds lifted and she is feeling better! She was just famished. She ate about 6 times a day for two days. I made her some brown rice & ground meat. I also was giving her Honest Kitchen, which she really loves. I included some grilled chicken with the Honest Kitchen.
She is back to eating just about three times a day. She is also getting pretty thick around her rib area. She does a lot of sleeping, more than her normal but still enjoys her favorite treat toys, car rides & walks : )