Puppies, trauma and the wonder of creation

It's been a while!
My beloved dog, Tabi gave birth to three very large healthy puppies last Thursday - 25th July.
That's the short version - buckle up for the full story!

Wednesday morning she started nesting - pacing round, digging in her crate and in the whelping box next to the crate. This continued for most of the day, and by late evening she was clearly in labour. Panting and pacing; pacing and panting.
I set up a garden recliner in the kitchen, put the lights down low and settled in for a night delivery.
She fell asleep around 1.30 am, so I decide I would take the opportunity for a short snooze in a real bed.
She woke me around 4.00 with short sharp barks.
Back down to more pacing and panting - everything pretty textbook TBH!

Late morning the panting got deeper, the pacing and digging diminished and she began to try pushing... and then, at 1.20 pm, or thereabouts, out dropped the first puppy! Oh! I cried - well, it was so amazing to watch, and she proceeded to roll and lick the pup, freeing her from the membranes, encouraging her first breaths - and it was indeed a miracle - the wonder of creation, that instinctively she knew exactly what to do for her baby.


She sat for a while; got up, licked and pushed the pup; lay back down following this routine for some time, and then the panting began again and it became clear number two must be on way...
But no! Eventually, at 4.00 pm, the placenta was delivered.
The pushing continued and still no more pups.
Meantime, regular calls to the vet with updates and monitoring.
When her water broke for no. two, things got sticky - no pup and a very distressed mum; another call to the vet and instructions to get her into the car and over to the vet hospital!!
We got puppy wrapped in a towel and placed in a shoe box and Tabi onto a lead and into the car and then headed off.

Arriving at the vet at 6.30 pm, a quick assessment confirmed definitely puppies in there - so into the theatre, sedation and emergency caesarean!!
Meantime, puppy #1 now six hours old, is also distressed, cold and floppy! She was put into a warming box and we were sent to the pet store to get puppy milk formula.

Off we went; trying not to panic; assuring each other and praying hard.
An hour later we returned - with a small box of supplies for puppy feeding.
To discover two more pups - both huge! and a very sleepy but stable dog.

Thank God for the skills and technology, for the miracle of birth, for the relief after trauma...