How hard is it for a dog to nurse twelve pups?

I have a German Sheppard that had a litter of twelve today.....They all seem to be in great shape but will she be able to nurse that many?

My dalmation gave birth last summer to a litter of 10 puppies. They were small but healthy. We had to make sure each had a turn at "ninny". It takes time and alot of love,but they survived. We kept two of the puppies. Wow. Good luck.

You will need to supervise the feedings for at least 2 weeks to rotate the puppies during the feeding so they are all getting enough. Be sure you are weighing the puppies DAILY to see if anyone is not gaining well. Those that aren't will need some extra help and you may need to supplement with a bottle for some. The stronger more dominant ones may also push the weaker ones out of the way.This is not the time to be feeding the mom crap food either. Get something like Iams puppy...not the large breed...and feed her at least 5 times a day. At least one haed boiled egg daily is good too as is yogurt or cottage cheese. Her milk supply depends on the proper nutrition she should be getting.It will be a lot of work or you may end up losing several pups.The first 2 weeks are critical.

Good grief!! You may have to help her feed them.. take a different few each feeding so that you and she are both feeding all of the pups. You can also give her special feed designed for lactating females. Ask your vet about it and how much to give her..let them know how many pups she is trying to nurse.. Good luck to you all!!

You will have to watch the puppies and try to find the ones who need the most help and hand feed them so they don't miss out on feeding.

It'll be tough. If she's a trusting sort, let her have six to nurse, and take the other six away. Once the first six are done, give her a rest for an hour or so, then bring in the other six. If she rejects some of them, you may have to bottle feed them, which is a lot of work but it is worth it to know that you helped those little precious babies survive. Tiny puppies are just about the most special thing in the world.Call your vet, a couple of other local vets, the local German Shepherd Rescue group, if any, and your local humane society. Sometimes, a female dog will have a tubal pregnancy, or will lose her babies or only have one or two, and she'll have excess milk. Many vets will recommend that that unfortunate mommy nurse another litter of puppies to help with the excess milk and to help her mental state return to normal.Good luck to you. I hope all the puppies turn out great.