what can you do for a pregnant dog besides set up a box and give her puppy food?

what are some ways to prepare for my dog to have puppies and what can and should I buy?

Ask your vet. He or she will be of great help. Good luck!!

That's about it. I would keep a close eye on her when you think she's due. Especially if this is her 1st litter. She could go out to potty & instead, have a puppy. You'll know when she's about to start whelping, she may eat less and when she starts licking herself be prepared to help open the sac. Good luck!!

Give her privacy, they get a little nervous when there's people around or someone is watching her all the time.

You need to read a book about what to expect , FAST !! Or you can see the vet and have them do it but it will cost you ! I wish people would know what they are doing before doing it . That is why there are so many unwanted dogs in the world !!!!

You are right about using puppy food to feed her, the white stuff that they coat the dog food with is milk replacer for giving to pups that have no mother and it has a lot of calcium and fat in it. You can go to the vet and get her some vitamins and they will help with her milk production and keep her from losing too many vitamins and producing inferior and acid milk.Keep on feed ing the puppy food after she has the pups and it will keep it very nutrious.you will need a heating pad that has variable controls for setting how warm it is and cover it with garbage bag to keep any wet from getting on it, cover with old pillow slip. The place where she has the puppies will need to be really warm and quiet with no other dogs any where near her, or she will go bezerk thinking they want her babies.You can't really do much more than that for her except jusut wait with her and be there with her IF she wants you there when the puppies start coming.I don't want to alarm you or anything but sometimes it takes a long time to get a litter on the ground and if she gets tired or needs a little energy, my vet always told me to give my dogs a tablespoon of white syrup and I keep a nutition gel in a tube that gives them a instant boost. No name brands mentioned here but you can get it from your vet or from most pet stores, that are large chains.one other thing to watch for is if while she is starting labor she is going to have a discharge and if it is green in color , you need to get her to the vet right away because something is not right.

Give her lot of love be there for her when she gives birth it be so cool so beautiful to connect to ya dog make her comfortable .....relax it wonderful to love be there for ya faithful friend .... it joy to see alive birth it high........ SPACE QUIET TIME RELAX ENJOY HER PRESENT STATE OF PREGANCY IT AMAZING BREEZE SHE A DOG DO YA BEST GIVE HER THE BEST >>> TALK TO HER ! DOGS LIKE IT WHEN WE TALK TO THEM LET HER KNOW YA THERE BE READY WHEN SHE HAS HER LITTERS OF PUPS

Give her a warm private area for whelping her pups but keep a close eye on her. Put lots of towels and/or blankets and put a hot (but not too hot) water bottle in there if you have one. When she starts to give birth you may have to help her with cleaning the pups. Have plenty of clean dry cloths/towels that you can rub them with. Rubbing and cleaning the puppy will stimulate them to breath on their own. She may start to pace and look uncomfortable when she is ready, or she may simply go some place private. If she is looking uncomfortable for a long time and no puppies, or there has been a long time between pups and she is still uncomfortable, call the emergency vet clinic in your area, she may need to have a Cesarean. She may only be carrying one or two pups or there might be as many as 8, so you need to stay with her and watch her carefully to ensure that neither she or any of the pups are in distress. If you are concerned at all call the clinic, it's always better to be safe then sorry when it comes to whelping puppies. Besides they may have some tips for your specific situation and are generally willing to give out advice in these kinds of situations.Good Luck!

Hi,Below is a great weblink I used when getting ready for my dogs puppies, it answers a lot of questions. My Golden Retriever just gave birth to 13 pups, our Bakers Dozen.Good Luck...