Dog Pregnancy How Many Days?
by Anonymous
I'd like to know about dog pregnancy, specifically how many days between the first mating hookup and arrival of puppies...
Answer From the Editors at Dog-Spoiling
The gestation period is approximately 63 days from the time of ovulation. While, the fertile period is in the range of 7 - 10 days, the due date is figured from the time of ovulation. Even if your female dog has been in contact with the sire for several days, the due date will still be 63 days post-ovulation.
If you want to pinpoint the time of ovulation, this can be done through a test of hormone levels that your vet can carry out.
One of the early signs of a dog pregnancy, enlarged nipples, occurs around 14 to 15 days.
Later, between 20-28 days, some loss of appetite may be observed and possibly morning sickness in the form of a little vomiting.
Evidence of puppy presence is when you can hear the heartbeats - which you may be able to do at around 25 days.
Your vet can usually confirm the pregnancy by ultrasound at 28-30 days, or you can obtain a test kit online to check your dog at twenty days.
There is much more information about dog pregnancy on this page of the website, that will be useful to you.
Also, to get a picture of what happens at different stages of dog pregnancy, check out our canine pregnancy calendar and then you can follow along your dog's journey.
Don't forget to take pictures if this exciting event does occur with your dog!