by Emma Riley Sutton

Created on: May 21, 2008   Last Updated: March 16, 2010

I slammed on my brakes to keep from hitting them. Their "passion" had driven them into the road. Still shaking from the near miss, I jump out of the car to see if I had hit them. The male dog and ran off, but the little female ran up to me. Without giving it a second thought I put her in my car. I had a new dog. I named her Lainie; I had found her on Lakeside Lane. It was rural area and lots of animals were dumped there. I took the ones I found to the local shelter. I couldn't do that Lainie. They would euthanize her if she was pregnant.

Without even going home, we went to directly to the veterinarian's office. No one was surprised I showed up with a new dog in arms. Animals of all kind seemed to find me. I must have a tattoo on my forehead that says, "I will take you home and love you" that only animals can read.

My veterinarian just shook her head when I explained what had happened. I think she can see that tattoo as well. She gave me several little booklets about pregnancy in dogs, explaining everything I would ever need to know. It even had a calendar in it. My veterinarian wrote down the date in the first box on the calendar - June 14, Flag Day.

"We won't know for sure for about three weeks," she explained. "Bring her back then and we'll figure it out then."

Call me Prissy. "I don't know nothing about birthin' babies." Or puppies or any animal. All of our pets had always been altered so having additions to our family was impossible.

Once home and after Lainie was made to feel at home, I began reading the booklets I had just been given. Despite my mind whirling, I learned quite a bit. I didn't know that a dog was only pregnant for 54 to 72 days, average was 63 days. That seemed awfully fast to me. I always thought it would take longer. Larger dogs were usually pregnant for longer and smaller dogs had shorter pregnancies. That made sense; it should take more time to make bigger puppies and less time to make smaller puppies.

I read that I should watch for signs of pregnancy before the veterinarian could medically confirm it. Changes in behavior and eating habits should be looked for. Well, so much for me knowing before the vet could tell me. I didn't know anything about her normal behavior or how much she would eat. I also read she might have morning sickness, just like pregnant women. I felt a little better. I could tell if she had vomited.

The booklet said that a pregnant dog didn't need a special diet or supplements. My veterinarian had just told me to

• 1
• 2
• 3
• ...
• 7
• Next Page >>