My dog is pregnant! How do I care for her and what should she eat?

Well that is quite simple actually. Pregnant dogs only require puppy food which is higher in calories and provides exactly what she needs to maintain a good milk supply and muscle mass during her last trimester. You should start about halfway through her pregnancy and continue this food daily until she has completely weaned her puppies (at 3-4 weeks of age). You don't really need a daily food chart, just feed her the normal amount of food that you would feed her on a regular basis an she should be just fine. It is also a good idea to get her examined around day 45 by a veterinarian to find out how many pups she is having (via x-ray) and also for a general health exam to make sure mama is in good medical condition for her upcoming labor. Here is a website link with lots more tips and recommendations on how to care for a pregnant dog http://www.veterinarypartner.com/Content.plx?P=A&S=0&C=0&A=678 http://www.veterinarypartner.com/Content.plx?P=A&S=0&C=0&A=1459

At six weeks of pregnancy, she should be getting a third more food than her normal amount; for example, if she was getting 1 cup of food twice a day before she was pregnant, she should be getting 1.3 cups of food twice a day. It's important to stop giving her puppy food 10 days before her expected whelping date, and then I would feed her an adult formulated food. She can go back on the puppy food after she gives birth to the puppies. A dog's normal pregnancy is 58-68 days, so I would stop the puppy food when she is 48 days pregnant.

A dog's pregnancy typically lasts around 63 days. Pregnancy is divided into trimesters. A healthy, pregnant botch will usually gain around 15 -20% beyond her weight at breeding. You should neither over- nor underfeed your dog during pregnancy, as overfeeding will cause obesity past the pregnancy and underfeeding can cause thee puppies to be underdeveloped, abortion or stillbirth and a small litter size and/or low birth weight puppies. During the first two trimesters (approx. up to the 40th day of pregnancy) you should feed her her normal amount of feed, observing whether she is losing weight or condition. If so, increase her food as needed, During the third trimester, after about day 40 of gestation, the puppies wil start growing rapidly and exponentially and so the bitch will need extra nutrition. Feed her an about 30-60% higher ration depending on the size of the litter and general condition. This may mean you have to feed her several times a day as she will have less and less room in her abdomen due to the space the growing puppies are requiring. So, if her normal amount of food is around 400g/day and she now eats 700g, that should be plenty provided she does not start getting fat (from feed) nor lose weight. Feeding a good quality dog food ensures proper development of the puppies as well as keeping their mother healthy.

I don't normally recommend giving pregnant females any kind of extra calcium supplementation during pregnancy, since there is evidence to show that this can actually increase their risk of post-birth complications such as eclampsia. Instead, feed her a high-quality puppy food such as Royal Canin or Purina Pro Plan during her pregnancy and while she is nursing her puppies - puppy food has a higher calorie content than normal adult dog food, and will meet all of the mother's nutritional needs during this time without the need for any additional supplements.

Genetics of coat color are complicated in dogs so we can’t help much in that department. I do have some comments about the rest though. First, from an ethical perspective, I feel compelled to let you know that about 40% of dogs and puppies in shelters nation-wide are pit bulls and pit bull mixes. Breeding pit bulls is highly discouraged by most veterinarians since we know that a lot of them end up euthanized or in shelters. If you do decide to proceed, here are some medical suggestions: Female dogs should not be bred until at least 2 years of age to slow them to achieve complete maturity. They are more likely to birth without complications if allowed to do so. They should be fed puppy food while pregnant- unrestricted in the last trimester and while nursing. She’ll need an X-ray at about 45-55 days to determine how many pups she is carrying. That way, you know when all of them have arrived! (Or when to worry if they have not all arrived.) Always have an emergency vet in the back of your mind as well as about $3000-5000 saved in case she needs an emergency C-section. Best wishes to you and Linda!

If you're already adding in wet puppy food to her diet, she's likely getting the boost she needs, but if you feel it's still not quite enough, you can slowly mix in some puppy kibble in as well. I would gradually add it in over a week to avoid any digestive upset this close to her due date.

Great question! Check out this article on what to feed a pregnant dog and when. To switch Lilyth over, you need to mix together her old food and new food, and over the course of a week, increase the amount of new food and decrease the amount of old food until she is eating the new food only. https://vcahospitals.com/know-your-pet/feeding-the-pregnant-dog