Hi there

We have two dogs (very close, litter sisters) aged 4. One is 6 weeks pregnant. Does anyone have experience of how a second dog will react to a pregnancy? They are close, but we are prepared to keep them apart if necessary. Have no idea if sister of pregnant bitch will be accommodating or hostile. ery grateful for any advice.

Its best to keep them seperate while the mum to be is whelping, and not let sister near puppies until eyes are opened and their moving around - and even then only when you are around. no two dogs will react the same. Its best just to keep mum to be stress free!
Mum to be is 6 weeks gone now, so by rights should have a quiet, settled part of the house that she can go to if she so wishes, to get away from sister and any think else.

To add to what DD said ... am I right in thinking this is her first pregnancy at the age of 4? I hope you have your vet on speed dial and a cool £1000+ saved ready for a possible emergency c-section!

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yes to all what DD has said , she needs peace and quiet to prepare for the birth of her pups.They may not be so close when she's had the pups as some bitches become very protective of their pups.

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love me love the dogs

Agree with DD and the others. Once the puppies' eyes are open, it will depend upon the personalities of both of your bitches as to what you think is the best thing to do.

Years ago when our cocker spaniel bich had her litter, she was totally happy for our other bitch to do the mothering for her.

When Evie had her litter a couple of years ago, we had two other bitches in the house. Gabby was desparate to get into the pen with the puppies and mother them, but could only do it when Evie went outside to relieve herself because Evie would make her get out of the pen once she came back. And Calli spent the whole eight weeks peering suspiciously around corners at the puppies and running away if they came near her.

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Bergies and borders - what more could anyone want? Siamese and maine coons, of course!

From the Rubaiyat of Omar Khayyam:
The Moving Finger writes, and, having writ,
Moves on, nor all thy Piety nor Wit
Shall lure it back to cancel half a Line,
Nor all thy Tears wash out a Word of it.
(But you can always edit your post, of course )

Some breed clubs have in their constitution that they will not be bred from before the age of 3, due to the fact that some health problems do not rear their ugly head until a little later

One of my breeds epilepsy doesnt rear its ugly head until they are a little older, so to try to cut down on the occurrence we dont breed from a bitch until what is deemed a 'safe' age, until they find the DNA for this we are trying to do the best we can for our breed.

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It would depend on the breed - but is always best to have a vet on stand by

That I would say is the latest for a first litter,it does depend on the breed but its not too late especially if its a large breed

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Having litter sisters, I hope you aren't planning to breed from the other sister. The bitch who whelps first will be considered something akin to the "alpha bitch" in the home. This can cause the lesser bitch to feel uneasy having a litter in the presence of the alpha bitch. It can also lead to fights between previously sane and loving siblings.

My advice is same as above, have a vet on standby, stay with the bitch for whelping, and keep them separated for a few weeks.

Thank you to everyone for all your advice. We have a separate room for whelping and luckily enough space that we can be very careful how and when they cross paths. Have taken note to keep them apart until the pups eyes are open - and possibly longer depending on their behaviour.

She is an English pointer - we have no plans for any further breeding from either dog.