How to Manage Whelping Records Professionally
Whelping is intense. You're monitoring the dam, tracking individual puppies, documenting weights, watching for problems. Good record-keeping during whelping makes everything else easier. This page explains how professional breeders manage whelping without drowning in paperwork.
Why whelping records matter
Poor whelping records create problems:
- • You can't identify which puppy is which
- • Weight trends are invisible without daily tracking
- • Vet asks about birth weight and you're digging through papers
- • Buyers ask questions about their puppy's early days and you have no record
- • You lose track of deworming schedules and vaccination dates
- • Critical information is on scraps of paper you can't find
Whelping is too important to track on sticky notes. Proper systems keep everything organized when you're sleep-deprived and stressed.
Common whelping tracking methods
Whelping charts on paper
Printed charts taped to the whelping box. Write weights daily in pencil. Good for the moment. Terrible for long-term records or sharing with buyers.
Spreadsheets
A sheet per litter. Columns for each puppy. Rows for each day. Data entry after weighing. It works until your laptop isn't near the whelping box. Or until you need to see the chart on your phone.
Notebooks
Write everything down. Birth times, weights, notes. Finding specific information later means flipping through pages.
Photos with timestamps
Take a photo of the scale. Works for documentation. Terrible for calculating weight gain or spotting trends.
Memory
"The blue collar puppy was smallest." "I think she weighed about 12 ounces at birth." Memory fails when you're exhausted and managing eight puppies.
Why whelping tracking fails
Daily weights become overwhelming
Eight puppies. Twice daily weighing. That's 16 data points per day. Over eight weeks, that's nearly 900 weights. Paper charts and spreadsheets can't handle this volume efficiently.
Trends are invisible
Is that puppy gaining appropriately? A list of weights doesn't tell you. You need to see the pattern. Calculating percentage gain manually is tedious.
Puppy identification gets confused
Colored collars work until they fall off or puppies look similar. Your paper chart says "red collar" but which puppy is that now? Photos help, but organizing them is another task.
Records don't connect to placement
You've tracked the blue collar puppy from birth. Now he's going to a buyer. Do your whelping records automatically become part of his permanent record? Or are they stuck in a notebook?
Milestones and tasks are forgotten
Deworming schedule. First vaccination. Microchipping. ENS protocol. These are date-driven tasks. If they're not tracked with reminders, they're easy to miss.
Sharing with buyers is manual
Buyer wants to know their puppy's birth weight and growth pattern. You're scanning paper charts or copying data from spreadsheets. Professional, this is not.
What proper whelping management requires
Litter records with due dates
- • Due date auto-calculated from breeding date
- • Whelping alerts before expected delivery
- • Actual whelping date recorded
- • Litter connected to dam and sire records
Individual puppy tracking
- • Each puppy identified with collar color or temporary name
- • Birth time and weight recorded
- • Sex, color, markings documented
- • Photos attached to each puppy record
Weight tracking with trend visualization
- • Daily weights entered quickly (mobile-friendly)
- • Weight gain patterns shown visually
- • Puppies not gaining appropriately flagged
- • Historical weight data accessible
Milestone and task tracking
- • Deworming schedule auto-generated
- • Vaccination dates tracked
- • Microchipping recorded per puppy
- • Reminders for upcoming tasks
Records connected to placement
- • Whelping data becomes permanent puppy record
- • When placed, buyer gets access to history
- • Birth weight, growth, and milestones shareable
- • No manual transcription needed
BreederHQ handles whelping records
Litter records with automatic due date calculations. Individual puppy tracking with photos and identification. Daily weight entry that works on your phone at the whelping box. Weight trends visualized so problems are obvious. Milestone reminders for deworming and vaccinations. Records that connect seamlessly to buyer placements.
Whelping records, properly organized.
This workflow matters for breeders who:
- • Produce multiple litters per year
- • Track puppy weights and growth carefully
- • Need to identify individual puppies reliably
- • Provide detailed records to buyers
- • Want to stop using paper charts and spreadsheets
- • Need mobile access to records at the whelping box
This might be overkill if:
- • You have one or two litters per year
- • Small litters (2-3 puppies) that are easy to track
- • Paper charts genuinely meet your needs
- • You don't share detailed records with buyers
If paper works for your program, use paper. But most serious breeding programs outgrow paper quickly.
Frequently asked questions
Can I enter weights from my phone at the whelping box?
Yes. Mobile access means you can enter weights immediately after weighing.
Does it track multiple litters at once?
Yes. Each litter has its own record with individual puppy tracking.
Can I attach photos to each puppy?
Yes. Photos help with identification and can be shared with buyers.
Does it remind me about deworming and vaccinations?
Yes. Milestones are tracked and reminders are automatic.
Can buyers access their puppy's early records?
Yes. When you place the puppy with a buyer, they can access whelping and growth history through their portal.