Question about labor

[chinluvr]

I recently got a new chin that is pregnant....I do not know when she is due because she was already pregnant when I got her....I help with a rescue and we have had pregnant chins before but I have never had the pleasure of seeing a kit born....when we first got this chin she weighed about 700 grams and now weighs about 980 grams....her nipples are long and swollen and her belly is tight...so I am assuming she is due any day...
What are the signs that she is in labor and what signs do I look for to tell if she needs help....so far she is pacing the cage and rearranging....she has shredders that she is shredding like crazy...she will lay down on her side for a bit and then hop up....I have her in the room with me but not next to me but I can still see her....I am trying to be quiet (I am using the time to study for finals)....when she lays down there are times that she will roll over on her back and then sit up....she is cleaning herself down there but not excessivly...she is still eating and drinking and when I gave her new food she crawled up on my arm which is totally opposite of her (Usually she barks and sprays when you go near her....I have not seen any stretching....I do see her sides moving and when she crawled on my arm I did feel light kicking...this behavior has been going on for 24 hours...I have not seen any contractions.....I guess I am just trying to figure out if this is the early signs of lavor or is she just uncomfortable just because she is so huge????

 

[AZChins]

She's not comfy. It really could be another week or more before she delivers. Definitely watch her for discharge or blood from her vaginal opening.

Most of the time when the chins are going to deliver in a day or two the babies seem to drop a bit and the mothers bellies will go down a little. Your girl probably has a couple babies inside there...most chins gain about 200 grams or more when they have one baby with two it would be more like around 250 to 300.

Anyway, you won't have to wait more than about two to three weeks at the most. You'll probably have babies within a week.

I'm sorry that you ended up with a pregnant chin, that had to have been stressful!

 

[tunes]

You may see her down on the bottom of the cage stretching, laying on her side and stretching, hunkering down so she looks like she has a hunch back. As she gets closer to her delivery date, the food intake may go down a bit as well.

The odds of you catching her having the kits, unless you are home 24/7, are pretty slim. Chins are pretty good at taking care of business when it comes to birthing and rarely need your help, so try not to be overly concerned about it. We do stress that bad things can happen when breeding, but they don't happen horribly often, thank God.

 

[chinluvr]

I think most of my concern has more to do with the fact that I have been home 24/7 this week and that her eating had started to drop off some...I am just over concerned....I have had 4 or 5 rescues come in that had kits but because I was working I never got to watch their behavior....plus another rescue had a chin die during delivery a few days ago and also the fact that this is a holiday and most vets are closed during the holiday and the emergency vets on duty at the moment don't see exotics (usually my vet is easy to reach but he left town to be with his parents for thanksgiving) so just would rather play it safe...

thank you for answering!!!!

 

[starleomach]

The best thing you can do at this point is leave her alone. if you are messing with her it can add extra stress and cause problems that weren't there. She is going to be very uncomfortable late into the pregnancy.

 

[chinluvr]

I don't really bother her except to feed her and give her fresh water...last night was the first time that I held her because she came out of her cage while I was giving her food and I had to put her back up....I took that time to look her over but nothing too much...just felt her nipples and while holding her I felt some kicking....I have read that stress causes problems so I am just letting her be...I am studying in the same room she is in and can see her from my desk

Just wanted to make sure that what I was seeing wasn't anything serious

Thanks again for your help

 

[Rickman]

You haven't mentioned if she's alone in the cage, or if you've removed the shelves - both would a good idea, as it sounds like she's ready anytime.
IMO, she should not be on a wire-bottomed cage, and on clean pine chips for delivery.
I've got a 2" x 8" piece of PVC tubing I like to put in with expecting Moms, so the kits have a place to hide, too!

 

[chinluvr]

Rickman....she is in a baby proof cage with no shelves....and her cage is clean...and there is a house for her and also a tube for the babies to hide in....she is in the cage alone
I moved her into my bedroom because that is the quietest room in the house..I have about 15 chins in my chin room and I had family visiting and they like to go see what new rescues we have so I moved her into my room so that no one would bother her...I am completely prepared for the kits...formula on hand, etc and I have experience with hand feeding kits...the only thing new to me is seeing her trying to get comfortable...she looks so over it...lol....and I am finding that she likes watching lifetime movies...lol

 

[AZChins]

LOL Lifetime movies! I love it. That would be what a chin would enjoy for sure. She'll be fine. Give her time, don't get anxious around her...that will make her anxious.

Eventually she will go into labor and get the kits out. I tell my mama chins all the time, "You have to make the kits come out, or they will grow in there more and you will be really uncomfy." It never works...and they leave me hanging for a couple more weeks. It's hard to wait sometimes...you have that little voice in your head telling you that the mama chin HAS to have her babies.

I'm hoping that you don't have to handfeed and that mama can take care of feeding her little ones on her own.

 

[warmice]

Hope that your chin mom will have a safe delivery! =) *cant wait for your good news! =)

 

[Orlandochins]

I always tell my moms to "Push it out, shove it out, waaaayyy out"....lol...they never listen
and I have a chin that likes House and Lie to me and he used to watch Without a Trace before they cancelled it....lol...I guess he is wanting to be a forensic investigator...lol

 

[AZChins]

Today my Chelly had two little baby boys. I was there for both of their births. It went perfectly with them - 62 and 60 grams.

Chelly has been very uncomfortable the last few days and very hair trigger when it came to her mate wanting to see her. Now she's quite content. And, Tigger is in a bad daddy cage awaiting the time in which he can return to his family.

One strange thing though...Tigger was eating the placenta with Chelly after the first baby was born. That was the most disgusting thing...and the reason why he wasn't there for the second kit. Ick.

 

[Rickman]

I think that's only natural - he helps, it's over, and the "fun" begins!!

 

[Orlandochins]

I've read that the male will sometimes eat the placenta also...eewww yuck....
I also have a chin that is ready to pop and she is very uncomfortable but wants to be with her male only....I seperated them a few days ago and both of them just sit and stare at each other...lol....I put them together while I cleaned her cage today and she cuddled right up to him...
a friend of mine had problems a few days ago...her chin was in labor and had problems...when she checked on her the kit was stuck and had died so she got the kit out...weighed the kit....92 grams!!!!! Mom was very weak afterwards and we weren't sure if she were going to make it but she did...poor thing

 

[starleomach]

waiting is the worst. I am waiting on two

 

[Aimee & The Chinette's]

I had 3 surrenders come in August, 2 were pregnant the other one was the Daddy. Jemma had her kit 2 weeks after but Lexi took her sweet time, I had her in the maturity cage for almost 2 months, she finally had them on Nov. 4th, 53 & 39 grams but the little one didn't make it...

 

[AZChins]

Awww...poor little one. It's always so awful to lose a little one.