After the litter is born,the room is kept warm (not Hot) about 20 degrees day and night
The bitch needs a private place away from other dogs
we use a puppy pen we add a plastic board liner to the inside to keep any draft away from the puppies plastic is easy to keep clean we do not like the cardboard whelping boxes as we feel the pups need to be kept as clean as possible
A rail fitted to stop mum from squashing the pups

we use vet bedding secured on a felixable plastic board as shown on our pregnancy and whelping page
we raise the a water bowl for the safety of the pups

A little encouragement with eating and drinking is needed just for the first few days
we often have to pick up the dishes and place it right under the bitches nose as she is so keen on caring for the litter but she needs her water and her food so we do pamper her a little

The bitch has a very demanding period coming up,feeding the litter before weaning start's,she will eat puppy food up to 4 or 5 times a day it is important that her poo is firm the only time we restrict her food in take is if she has loose poo.

the pups cord dries out and drops off within a day or two.

All new born pup's have undeveloped ears, & pink noses when they have white on the head.

Within a few day's black spots appear on the nose and the ears come forward.



Around 10 days old the eyes start to open by 14 days all the pups have eyes



At 14 days old the pups nails need cutting ,we use nail clippers from mothercare ,we have found this the easiest way .

if the nails are not cut the bitch will not want to feed the pups as she will get sore from the constant feeding
At 2 weeks the pups are wormed

Between two and three weeks old the pups are up on their feet ,we take down the rail in the puppy pen and cover the pen with half vet bed half news paper


Around two and a half to three weeks we offer the first meal,we have used raw steak ,cut up a small as possible only if the litter shows little interest in solid food, the second meal is soaked dry complete puppy food ,it looks like porrigde with just a few pieces if steak on top,we have found this the easiest way to get the pups interested in solid food.

some litters need little encouragement & will eat soaked puppy food as early as 18 days
we start with one meal a day ,adding an extra feed a day until the pups are eating four meals , at 4 weeks old they are offered solids 4 times a day every 5 hrs and its time to worm and cut nails again.



The pups still feed from mum at night,she goes in to clean up any food the pups have left after each solid meal,they mob mum for a feed after eating the solids.

At 4 weeks old, it's time to register the litter with the kennel club,to be sure the paper work is ready for the new owners on collection.

At 4 weeks more extentions are added to the puppy pen,we like to give as much space as possible as the pups need to play a summer litter can now spend some time in the garden,we give them toys, and allow children to play with the pups.



from 5/6 weeks less water is added to the food, we mix a few dry biscuits into the food the pups have strong teeth now.



mum now just stands to feed her pups

At 6 weeks it's worming time again,we check the nails and use frontilne flea treatment.

The kennel club insurace can be activated for a puppy from 6 weeks old, we feel 6 weeks is a little to soon for a pup to leave us,what we like to do is stop mum feeding the litter and see the pups gaining weight without her.

from week 6/7 pups do well on dry complete puppy food unsoaked pups stay here for 7 weeks we like to be confident the pups are fully weaned and a healthy weight before leaving us.

By 7 weeks the pups need the one to one attention that only the new owner can offer

This pup now has a full black nose at 7 weeks



The ears start to come up at the back first.



Often one ear folds back first.



Some pups have full rose ears at 7 weeks others take a little longer



We do our very best for the pups they are warm clean ,well fed and socialised ,we have the pups in doors they get used to normal household noise and we handle and play with them ,we take lots of pictures and enjoy seeing the pups grow

We take time to find the most suitable owners possible for them ,we are lucky as we have many people waiting for them before they are even born ,we ask new owners to stay in touch and offer a life time of help and advise.

Drying up mums milk
when the litter is 6 weeks mum normally looks very thin

despite eating as much of the best quality food so mum comes away
She really shows little interest in the pups now & enjoys the rest from all her hungry pups with now sharp teeth
within 24 hrs of not feeding the pups her teats swell & are hard and painful

we do not give medication to dry up the milk
we do not touch the teats at all because if left alone will go on their own
after three or four days the teats get softer the bitch absorbs the milk and you will see the bitch get fatter daily
during this period we feed the bitch several meals of puppy food each day
it is good to see your bitch looking thicker set again
she will have lots of energy and want to play

with in 7-10 days the milk sack are no more than loose skin
we need to clean the skin daily as the bitch might have a hot spot under this skin that may get sore if left untreated


not nice to look at but with daily excersise will in time soon tighten up

However the nipples on a bitch that has had a litter remain bigger than before she had a litter
with in 3 weeks her weight is back to normal but her coat may look thin but in no time she will look good again
we reduce her food and feed her normal diet & give her lots of excersise

Diet sheet

When a puppy leaves us at 7/8 weeks old the new owner will get a puppy pack containing a dry complete puppy food.
From 8-12 weeks old a pup requires 4 meals a day evenly spaced through out the day
The pup must have fresh water available at all times.

From 12 weeks - 6 months old 3 meals a day.

6 months - 1 year 2 meals.

From 1 year you can feed once a day.

But we prefer to feed our adults twice a day.

All our dogs have a complete dry feed we find staffords do very well on it !
There are many different views on the best ways to feed, we have tried lots of alternatives, however dry complete food is a covientient alternative it suits our dogs,we are happy if the dogs are happy, firm poos are one thing we like about a dry complete food !

From time to time a pup or an adult will get diarrhoea normally caused from over eating or eating things they were not suposed to. Staffords are forigers especially as pups.
We find the best cure is to miss a meal, then feed boiled rice and chicken for a day or two gradually changing back to the normal diet
A teaspoon of live natural yogart is helpfull in putting back good bactria lost in a attack of diarrhoea.
We are great belevers in herbal tratment for dogs. Our dogs have garlic & fenugrek every day, it boosts the immuine system.
Each puppy raised by us is weaned with this in the diet and we give a free herbal puppy pack to the new owner.
Most people that own a dog knows that chocolate is dangerous to dogs and should never be given to your pet.

WARNING!!!!!!!!!!
Beware of using coca mulch in your garden it is atractive to dogs and is killing many dogs each year! There are pure coca seeds in this mulch, and no warnings on the bags dispite the fact it is toxic to your dog!!!!!!!!