Whelping Equipment and
Supplies
These lists lay out the equipment and supplies that we prefer to have on hand for whelping and the
days following. We have provided links to some products so you can see what they are and/or
purchase them. This information is provided for your personal use as a client of Avidog International.
Unless the information is on a public website, it is not intended to be shared or distributed in whole or
part, except as noted. Please support us in this effort.
Equipment
 Camera/video camera with film/tapes/cards
 Clock/watch (smart phone will work)
 Fetal Doppler—for monitoring fetal heartbeats and counting puppies. Sweet
Beats rents their digital premium Doppler for $49. Well worth the price!
 Floor covering for household carpets (plastic sheeting and/or linoleum)
 Grooming equipment to clean your bitch up afterwards
 Heat source, preferably a heating pad without an automatic shutoff or a
microwaveable disk
 Kennel lead or leash and collar—to take your bitch in and out, once she is in labor
or a pup has been born. You will NOT be able to move her without these.
 Plastic laundry basket—put towels or sheepskin in for bedding and use this to
hold pups.
 Rectal thermometer, ideally mercury, otherwise a calibrated digital—to take your
bitch’s temperature before, during and after whelping
 Digital Food Scale, Oxo Good Grips is by far our favorite choice because it weighs
up to 11 pounds and has a pull-out display—for weighing puppies
 Fake Sheepskin, that fit your whelping box—Sterilon is the best we have found.
We recommend you get 6-10 so you don’t have to do too much laundry every day
 Hemostats, 5 ½”, curved—for clamping umbilical cords if the floss will not stay on.
Get both straight and curved since one will stay on better than the other.
 Hemostats, 5 ½”, straight—for clamping umbilical cords if the floss will not stay
on. Get both straight and curved since one will stay on better than the other.
 Surgical scissors—multiple uses during whelping.
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Whelping Equipment and Supplies
 Thermometer, room—to help you monitor the room temperature for mom and
pups.
 Towels (15-20 washcloth or hand towel size or 10 large)—clean and used is fine.
They will get stained!
 Whelping Box, with a pig rail
 Video Baby monitor—so you can monitor the pups when you are away from the
box
Supplies for Whelping
 Alcohol, rubbing not drinking 
 Calcium supplement alternatives. Having all on hand will give you many options
during and after whelping.
o Calsorb—to maintain bitch’s calcium during and whelping. NOT BEFORE!
Absorbs faster than Tums.
o Tums, Regular Strength (for Calcium during and after whelping. NOT
BEFORE!!)
o Vanilla ice cream, natural—mix with chicken broth for a pick-me-up for
your bitch during and after whelping. Provides energy and calcium.
 Chenille Yarn—to mark the puppies as they are born. Has a low tensile strength
so is very safe for puppies. Comes in dozens of colors. See Marking Puppies
handout.
 Disposable Chucks--for use in the whelping box during the whelping. Makes
cleanup easier.
 Delee Suction Catheters--for clearing puppy airways. Much better than bulb
syringes!
 Dog shampoo--for clean up after whelping
 Organic Chicken or turkey stock, low sodium--mix with vanilla ice cream for a
pick-me-up for your bitch during and after whelping. Provides energy and
calcium.
 Exam gloves (at least 5 pairs)—for vaginal exams and other gooky tasks
 Iodine Tincture, 2%--for
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Whelping Equipment and Supplies
 KY Jelly—for vaginal exams and lubrication if you have a stuck puppy. KY is much
safer than petroleum jelly
 Large trashbags—to dispose of chucks and paper towels during whelping. It gets
messy.
 Paper and pen/pencils, with a clipboard—to track contractions, puppy births,
temperature, etc for your records and those of your vet
 Paper towels, lots and lots
 Pitocin/oxytocin (3 pre-filled syringes, from your vet)—to trigger contractions
AFTER a puppy has been born and to clean out the uterus after whelping
 Unwaxed dental floss--to tie off umbilical cords, if needed
 Vet wrap, 2-3 rolls—for wrapping her tail to keep it cleaner and keep her tail
feathers out of your way
Additional Supplies for Neonatal and Dam Puppy Care
 Eye droppers, medicine, glass—for supplementing weak or struggling puppies
with Karo-pedialyte mixture
 Light Karo Corn Syrup— for supplementing weak or struggling puppies with Karopedialyte mixture
 Dr Brown’s Baby Bottles—for supplementing or bottle feeding puppies
 Dr Brown’s Level 1 Nipples—for supplementing or bottle feeding puppies
 Nail clippers, adult human not dog!—for trimming puppy nails to help avoid
mastitis
 Unflavored Pedialyte
 Canned condensed goat’s milk (or condensed or evaporated unsweetened cow’s
milk), 10-oz cans
 Raw calf or beef liver
 Eggs
 Mayonnaise, full fat
 Plain yogurt, full fat, the best quality possible
 Light Karo syrup
 Baby vitamins (from any drug store)
 Liver Water—see Supplementing Newborns handout for receipe
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Whelping Equipment and Supplies
 Myra Savant Harris’s Puppy Formula—see Supplementing Newborns handout for
recipe
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