What to record on whelping day
A whelping-day record is the foundation of everything that follows: vet visits, weight logs, microchip files, and registrations. Fill it in as puppies arrive, not from memory the next morning.
Per puppy, in birth order
One row per puppy, filled in live as each one arrives:
- Time born
- Sex
- Colour and markings
- Birth weight
- Collar colour, if you use identification collars
- Notes column for anything unusual: needed suction, slow to nurse, vet called
If you use collar colours, photograph each puppy with its collar visible on day one. Six newborn puppies of the same colour all look identical a week later, and guessing is not a record.
The dam section
Below the puppy rows, keep a section for the dam:
- Whelping start time
- Time between each puppy
- Any intervention, by you or the vet
- Placenta count
- When she last ate and drank
Vets ask for exactly this if you call at 3am. "I think it was about two hours" is not as useful as the real number.
File it the same week
Afterward, transfer the sheet to wherever your permanent records live while you still remember which puppy was which. The whelping record belongs in the per-litter folder alongside the weight log, vet-visit log, microchip numbers, and registration confirmations. A litter folder that starts with a complete whelping record stays complete; one that starts with gaps collects more gaps.
Plan the whelping date
The free WhelpWise whelping calculator gives the expected due date from the mating date, the normal whelping window, and a milestone checklist with calendar dates, from ultrasound to temperature checks. No signup needed.
Prefer paper? The Breeder Records Pack has printable litter sheets, weight logs and checklists for $17.
This guide is a record-keeping aid. Paper on a clipboard first, permanent filing the same week: that is the whole system.