The most pertinent question most dog owners and breeders want answers to once their dog gets pregnant is how many puppies will my dog have? In answering this question, it is important to know that the number of puppies a dog can have depends on a lot of factors that can help predict litter size.
The sound of yelping puppies is sweet music to the ears of most dog owners and breeders all over the world. Not only does it mark the arrival of new puppies into the home, but it is also the assurance that a female dog (dam) has safely delivered her new puppies and is equally safe. Howbeit, amid the joy of welcoming new furbabies, the litter size might be a problem if you can’t take care of the new arrivals. Thus, this is why most people want to know how many puppies a dog can have before they allow their bitch to get pregnant.
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How Many Puppies Can A Dog Have In Her First Litter?
Truth is, do not expect your dam to give you her optimal puppy litter count in her first pregnancy. She will most likely bring forth a couple of puppies shy at this stage in her life, but things will definitely get better in her subsequent litters.
For instance, the average litter size for a German Shepherd is 8, but for her first litter, you may have between 3 to 6 puppies. Notwithstanding the slow start, subsequent litters would yield more. Thus, if it’s the first time for your dog, don’t expect so much to come out of the pregnancy, though things might be different, depending on several other factors.
Can A Dog Have Just One Puppy?
It is important to understand that most female dogs are polytocous – that is, they are meant to have more than one offspring by nature and design. In fact, no dog parent expects their pregnant dog to have just one puppy and the number of puppies a dog can have is always estimated to be high. Sometimes in a dog’s life, however, you can have a situation where a female dog that previously had multiple puppies, ends up having only one puppy. This situation is usually known as Singleton Puppy Syndrome (SPS), and it can offer challenges that could be – if not well handled, fatal to both the dam and her whelp.
SPS in dogs could be caused by different factors such as aging of the dam (this rightly suggests that older or elderly dams can have declining puppy litter count), size of the dam (small dog breeds are prone to SPS than large dog breeds) and even the mating method – natural or artificial insemination, as well as a few other factors.
SPS also comes with its attendant challenges such as the fetus becoming too big for natural birth by not releasing enough hormones to stimulate birth in the dam, the dam not producing milk (and collustrum) to nurse the puppy after a C-section, whelp developing behavioral issues if it survives this stage, etc.
What Is The Average Number Of Puppies In A Litter?
The average litter size for dogs can be put between 3 to 8, but it depends on certain factors. The age of the dam obviously plays an important role in determining its litter size. While the very young and old dams usually have a smaller litter, the matured and healthy ones are expected to have more. The size of the dog breed also plays a crucial role here, as small dog breeds will naturally have a smaller litter than the large dog breeds.
Another factor many consider when predicting litter size is the number of nipples a dog has during pregnancy. However, this fact has not been verified by experts and cannot be used as criteria to predict how many puppies a dog can have. In all, a dog can have as little as one or two puppies, as well as over ten in a litter.
Read Also:Â Menopause In Dogs: Can Bitches Get Too Old For Heat Cycles?
Factors That Determine Litter Size – How To Know How Many Puppies A Dog Can Have
The size of your dam’s litter depends on several factors, some of which are within, as well as not within the control of the owner or breeder.
- The breed of the dog in question
All dog breeds have different litter sizes when the time comes around. Large dog breeds tend to have a higher litter count than smaller dog breeds. It is common for large dog breeds to have litter counts of between 5 to 11 puppies, while small breeds have litter counts of between 1 to 4 puppies.
- Size of the particular dam
It is a fact that the dam’s “fitness” plays a role in her litter count size. Dams that are healthy and slim have more puppies than those that are not healthy or overweight.
- The dam/sire’s age
The age of the female dog also plays an important role in determining the litter size. The optimal breeding age for the dam is between 2 to 6 years, any age lower or higher than this range will yield a lower litter count.
The age of the sire (male parent) also plays an important role, as the younger a sire is, the higher the quality of its sperm for optimal fertilization and vice versa.
- Nutrition
In order to increase the number of puppies a dog can have, the dam has to be well nourished with the appropriate nutrients all year round. A poor diet will definitely have a negative impact on the ability of the dam to conceive and if she does, carrying it to full term might be a problem.
- Type of fertilization
Dams that are naturally fertilized by a desirable sire will lead to more litter, while artificially inseminated dams will probably have less litter size, as the virility of the sperm may be diminished.
- Time of birth
Studies show that dams that give birth in the spring usually have larger litter sizes than those that give birth at other times of the year.
- Good old mother nature
Owners, breeders, and vets may try all they can to help nourish dams in order to enhance their litter size, but ultimately mother nature will eventually have the final say in these matters.