Just wanted to pass along a bit of information for those of us that tend to have one or two litters of pups each year, I found what may be the best material for the whelping box flooring yet, I’m sure most of you have seen it at your local feed / tack store, a horse stall matt, they come in six foot by four foot sizes, and about three quarters of an inch thick, they are solid rubber with a pea size, very shallow, textured on the upper surface.
My whelping box is 4’ x 4’ so I cut the matt to fit, it was pretty easy to cut with a sharp matt knife, the whole thing weighs about 60 pounds which makes it impossible for the female to tear up by digging or nesting as they normally do.
The best thing about this matt is that, not only is it very easy to keep clean, by both you and the dog, but that it provides traction for the female when she is whelping and for the pups as they scoot along in their early days. The traction helps pups develop leg muscles as they try to stand and helps from developing problems with their feet later on in life, when a pup is sliding around on a whet, slippery floor, they will tend to spread their toes, when they have traction they will keep their toes tight and high.
These mats are not cheap, about $55 or so, but it will probably last for years to come if you keep it out of direct sunlight.
Tommy, in this instance, because of the warm weather, I have not had to use the heating pad, but I only use it when I’m separating the very young pups from their mom for any length of time and if the room temperature is too cool for them to bear, in the whelping box I normally use a clip-on shop light with a flood light bulb in it, (do not use an infrared light, like they use to keep burgers warm, the spot lights set up within 24" or so work just fine), if you notice in the picture with the female and pups you can see the light right over her, if she leaves them, the pups will migrate to the light where the temperature is warm, the last couple of nights and mornings the temperature has been cool here, and because of their young age, I have left the light on all night, in the mornings I usually find the pups right under the light, once the temperature starts to warm up during the day, they scatter away from the light to a cooler spot in the box, if the temperature starts to dip to dangerous levels for the pups I will use two lights, which keep most of the box good and warm.
Hey Tony, I was wondering if the mats you use have a heavy petroleum odor to them. I bought some from a farm store here in Montana to cut up and use for the floor in the kennels on my dog truck. The odor was so strong that my dogs smelled like it when they were not in there. I took them out since I worried it could be unhealthy for them. I'd like to find some that did not smell like that since I'm sure they are more comfortable to lay on than the metal floor when it is warm outside. Soon I'll be using hay for their bedding and it won't matter. Thanks
Mitch, actually that was one of my concerns as I looked for the flooring material, this mat did not have any heavy odor, other than a very slight rubber smell when new, right now at two and a half weeks in use it has no odor at all, and the finish does not rub off on the pups, which was another concern of mine, by the way, just an update on the development of the pups, at 17 days old they are all walking around without any problem, I was watching them nurse last Saturday and was just amazed how strong their hind quarters are as they are able to push against mama as they suckle without slipping.
Tony, just wondering what are the dimensions of your whelping box? Not planning on any litters in the near future but would like to start preparing for the spring.
Tony, just wondering what are the dimensions of your whelping box? Not planning on any litters in the near future but would like to start preparing for the spring. I am talking height and how high up did you put the board to stop a female from laying on a pup?
Greg, my whelping box is 4' x 4' x 2', this size is perfect for any size bird dog, even the larger ones have plenty of room to move around, specially when they are whelping and there are pups on the floor, the frame is out of 2 x 2s and the floor and sides are 1/4” moisture resistant plywood, my box has only three sides because I place it up against a wall and anchor it with two 3” screws through the frame and into the wall where the opening to the exterior run is, then mama can come and go as she pleases, the shelf around the box is 3 1/2” off the floor, and attached through the plywood walls with triangular shaped blocks above the shelf, that way there is nothing below the shelf that may hurt the pups, as you can see in the picture, I can remove the section of shelf near the opening so the pups can start to learn to go outside to do their business, I do have a top to the box made out of a 2 x 2 frame and welded wire, that way mama does not get any ideas about jumping out.
