Can anyone give some advice on..........

[sands]

............the specifications of a good sized, well designed whelping box?

We have finally decided that we are going to let Coda have a litter at her next season and the lovely janitor in the school I work in has offered to build a whelping box for me  (he's a DIY fanatic  )  so I need to make sure I give him the correct instructions to follow.

Here is what I thought: -

30 x 30 inches square base
18 inches high on 3 sides 
4th side about half that height to make it easier for Coda to get in and out but able to be heightened as the pupsters grow to keep them safe

What i wasn't sure about was what height the pig rails should be from the base and how far from the sides should they be 

Any advice would be very much appreciated 

[JeffandAnnie]

  "Let" her have a litter? Ummm, not sure subjecting her to a potentially life-threatening, painful and psychologically damaging experience is some sort of treat you are allowing her to have, which is how this reads 

[sands]

Sorry wasn't meant to sound like that at all just wasn't sure how to word it.  All I meant was after much dliberating over the subject of it we (as a family) had come to a decision about it.

[JeffandAnnie]

Fair enough, sorry I misunderstood. Before you order your box though, it might be worth reading this thread (if you haven't already) where experienced COLers describe all the potential pitfalls of breeding. It was threads like this that made me understand the enormity of the decision and put me off breeding from Annie, who is now neutered 

http://www.cockersonline.co.uk/discuss/index.php?topic=90473.0

[Cayley]

I wouldn't buy or make anything till you know you're expecting. Prepare for serious heartache if it goes wrong  .

[sands]

No problem  - having re-read my 1st post it did sound rather bad

Please do not think that this is something we have entered into lightly. My OH and I have read up on every relevant thread, , every bit of literature we could lay hands on including The book of the Bitch several times. We have asked for advice and information (pros and cons) from various sources, our vet, a friend who is a vet and another a veterinary nurse.  I have also received PMs (re another thread) from COLers (for and against)  and have had several discussions with the breeder who we bought Coda from and several members of my local Cocker Club over the last year before coming to our, I hope, informed decision.

We also appreciate things could go wrong but also that it could just as easily go well but please do not feel this is a criticism of your very genuine concerns and your replies has been very much taken on board.

Thanks to you both for taking the time too reply too  

[Jane S]

I wouldn't buy or make anything till you know you're expecting. Prepare for serious heartache if it goes wrong  .

Agree with this & if you do go ahead with your plans and if all goes well, you can always buy a disposable whelping box (made of heavy duty cardboard) which would be fine for a one-off litter. Here's a link to a site selling good qualitity boxes: http://www.newdog.co.uk/

[Holly2009]

We may get one of these http://www.welpingbox.moonfruit.com/

Another good site http://www.petnapwhelpingboxes.co.uk/

And these look fab http://weanafeeda.com/

I'd probably look at the sizes of ones you can buy & modify to your own needs/ design x

[sands]

Thanks everyone 

[Jane S]

And these look fab http://weanafeeda.com/

We have one of these - they're very good

[sands]

What brilliant sites 

Thanks again 

[LynneB]

I wouldn't buy or make anything till you know you're expecting. Prepare for serious heartache if it goes wrong  .

Agree with this & if you do go ahead with your plans and if all goes well, you can always buy a disposable whelping box (made of heavy duty cardboard) which would be fine for a one-off litter. Here's a link to a site selling good qualitity boxes: http://www.newdog.co.uk/

Our first one was a disposable, they are impossible to clean properly.

[Jane S]

Our first one was a disposable, they are impossible to clean properly.

You can buy liners for these type of boxes. I know several people who have used these disposable boxes and had no problems with them so worth considering for a one-off litter (and probably no harder to clean than the old fashioned wooden boxes breeders used to have before the invention of pvc etc)