Welping Box - Page 1

What is the best size for a welping box?

You know...I have been in and around German Shepherds for 35 years...and I built a whelping box once and after I used it once I threw it away...I like to use (for German Shepherds) a small plastic swimming pool that you can buy almost anywhere for very little money and is washable and can be used over and over again...I will usually put the female in our laundry room or in the garage in a large run with everything she needs in it...I also use newpaper in my "whelping box" instead of old towels/sheets or whatever...the pups don't get tangled up in the material and I can change out the paper as needed... ~Bob~

What about the side rails. Do you have to be concerned the bitch my crush of suffocate a puppy if I use a pool for the whelping box?

My whelping box measures 4'-0" x 4'-0" with a 1'-0" wall height all-round. The "pig rails" are 2" x 4" studs that are fastened so there is a distance of approximately 0'-6" from the floor to the bottom of the pig rails. It is all made from 1/2" seasoned plywood and Nr. 2 spruce. I allowed all of the wood to season for one (1) year in order to remove most of the vapours that are emitted by the plywood. The exterior dimensions are the minimum that I would recommend. If I ever build another one, I will increase the span by 0'-6" or so in both directions. This one works very well, even with a large litter, but it does become cramped as the puppies grow. I saw another box one (1) time that incorporated a very good idea. Instead of using 2" x 4" boards the builder used 4" diameter PVC pipe that was connected with 90-degree elbows and fastened to the walls of the box. It was much easier to clean blood or waste from the rails, and the puppies could not get a firm grip on the pipe and climp from the box. They are such monkeys at that time of their lives. I may very well do this if I ever need to build a new box. Bob-O

I've been using the plastic swimming pool now for a long long time and have never had a problem with a puppy dying from being crushed by the mother...as a matter of fact what I do is use 2 of the pools...each day I would change out and clean each pool...I just keep rotating them...it's worked well for me and is a lot easier to keep up with then the formal whelping box...Bob-O, after curing the treated wood are you then painting it too?...I know there's some really nice plastic coated wood (I don't know the name of it and it's very expensive) that's out there but by the time you buy all you need it would probably be a fortune to build...This stuff would be the ideal stuff to make it out of...I know a friend of mine made hurdles out of it but he happened upon it at a jobsite and it was the scrapes that were left over... ~Bob~

I have also been using the small plastic kiddie pool. I have not measured it recently, but I would say it is about 5 feet in diameter. It has worked well. I was going to use a wooden whelping box, but decided the plastic would probably be much easier to clean and keep bacteria from builing up in. I use shreded newspaper and change it and clean the pool daily as needed. I do not see the need for two of them, because I can move the puppies as needed for cleaning and the female does not stay in it 24/7. It does not take long to clean and the pups and mom are back in and content.

Hi Pat, It is a bit of an investment but I used the Dura-Whelp kit and it was great. My bitch had 7 very large pups and I loved it. Great for cleaning and has a slide door to contain as you prep the rest of the room or indiv. weigh in etc. Cleaned and broke down beautifully for the next litter. GOOD LUCK !!!

I used a plastic kiddie pool once for a small litter of 3 pups. It worked ok, but was very slippery - couldn't keep the bedding or papers in one place, they would be moved all around by mom and puppies would end up on the plastic which was too cold, even with a heating pad underneath. I also didn't like it because the sides are slanted and if pups got behind mom - too much risk of them being crushed or suffocated, even though mom was extremely careful - I would never use it on a litter larger than 3, and because of above reasons it didn't work for me. I have a whelping box now built of plywood, 4' X 4' and 1'+ sides. Pigrails made of wood dowels on all sides - one side has a "door" cut out for mom to walk in/out without jumping. Yes the pups can climb out using the pigrails when they are 3 weeks old - but if so I just put up another wood board across the "mom door" and when they are that old it is safer for her to jump in/out. My whelp box doesnt' have a bottom on it, it just sits on the floor and so easy to clean, I put papers and/or blankets in that can be changed, floor can be cleaned. Or, put a 5' X 5' piece of scrap linoleum under the box, very easy to clean and can be tossed between litters if necessary. molly

I used to use the kiddie pools for years...however about a year ago, I lost a pup because it was smothered behind mom.....it does happen. I agree that it was extrememly convenient, but won't use one again. I have a 4'x4'x2' box out of plywood...we covered it with sheets of (can't remember what it's called now!) the stuff you use for shower walls. Anyway, it's washable, scrubbable and can be bleached. The door is cut in 1/2 and slides into a track like a gillotine...this way mom can step over when the pups are young, then we add the other 1/2 when they learn how to escape. PVC pipe for the pig rail with the 90 degree elbows someone had mentioned. Inside the whelping box when they are newborns, I have bought used hospital pads...the ones they lay under patients. You can get them on ebay reasonable...depending on the condition you want, will determine the price. I get the 'little to no stains' because even tho it's for my dogs, I can't imagine getting stained up ones! YUCK! They are about $3 each....you can bleach the heck out of them and reuse...they wash very well. Soft for mom and pups can get their footing. When pups are older, I use pine chips...smells good, feces gets covered over by the chips and pups aren't walking through their mess....easy to scoop out to keep clean.

Also wanted to mention that the pig rail out of the pvc pipe is free standing on small 3" legs...puts it at the right height and the whole thing is lifted out in one piece to clean and when pups are older so they can utilize that space.