Routine Hygiene after Shih Tzu Whelping

Your Shih Tzu matron will keep her whelping box clean the first
few weeks. She will stimulate her Shih Tzu puppies to eliminate
and ingest their wastes. Newborn Shih Tzu puppies are born
incompletely developed. The Shih Tzu matron must stimulate them
to urinate and defecate or the puppies become toxic and die.

The whelping box still needs to be cleaned and disinfected
daily. Use ¾ cup Clorox bleach to one gallon of water. Clorox
bleach is highly effective against Parvo virus. Your Shih Tzu
dam's discharge must never be profuse, overly bright red,
greenish or odorous. Should any of these conditions occur, call
your veterinarian for advice.

Change the Shih Tzu whelping box linens daily the first week and
twice daily thereafter. Do not allow the bedding to become damp.
Chilling is fatal to newborn Shih Tzu puppies. Bedding in the
whelping box should be completely flat. Shih Tzu puppies can
become lost under wrinkled bedding.

Newborn Shih Tzu puppy stools should be checked as they
eliminate. A bright or strangely colored stool, yellowish
streaked, foamy or mucoid of consistency are signs of trouble.
Hard stools accompanied by straining and crying or loose stools
of a diarrheic condition are indicative of life-threatening
conditions. Normal Shih Tzu puppy stool has form, is not overly
hard, runny or mucoid. It is brown and holds together in a soft
but formed "rope."

The only time a Shih Tzu matron should wear a collar is when you
take her out the yard or to the vet. Remove the collar prior to
whelping and throughout the time Shih Tzu puppies are near their
dam. Do not use flea collars when the dam is with her Shih Tzu
puppies.

Four interlocking layers of opened newspaper on the floor over
heavy plastic film such as that used by painters are helpful in
preventing serious cleanup problems. It is not necessary to
discard plastic sheeting after each use. Clean with a solution
of ¾ cup Clorox bleach and 1 gallon of water.