My Whelping Box

Hanne and Roux

With the imminent arrival of Roux’s litter this week, I spent part of Easter Sunday preparing my whelping box. You can spend a lot of money on a whelping box and I have used a more traditional whelping box in the past but years ago, when we were installing a dog bath atop an existing sink/vanity in our kennel building, we found a 3 ft square, fiberglass shower stall base in the “scratch & dent” section of Home Depot for $25. It didn’t fit the space intended for the dog bath but, it occurred to me…this could be a GREAT whelping box…and it’s what I’ve used and loved ever since. It gives me plenty of room to deliver the litter and it’s so easy to clean. So, here is my set-up…

An old rug is placed over the hardwood floor in the warm and sunny southeast corner of the living room.

Shower stall base, turned whelping box is placed on the rug

Pegboard, cut to fit inside the whelping box, is placed in the bottom

Several layers of bedding are placed over the pegboard and ends tucked underneath

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Roverpet panels with blankets draped over provide privacy for the new mom

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Insert expectant mom

This will be my initial set up for the delivery of Roux’s litter. When it’s time for Hanne to deliver the following week, Roux and her family will move to the bottom half of a Vari-Kennel 300 crate and Hanne will whelp her litter in the whelping box. A variety of modifications will be made as the litters grow but they will start their lives here in the warm, sunny corner of our living room. I have pig rails to add after delivery but I prefer the access that the box provides as shown for whelping. As I look at these photos, I see the wear and tear of several years of litters on my walls. We’re looking forward to a fresh coat of paint after the puppies have moved to their new homes! 🙂

Hanne watches for the stork to deliver her new family – 12 days to due date