whelping

Photograph by Brian Skerry A young fur seal looks warily around an icy whelping site in Canada's Gulf of St. Lawrence.

在加拿大的圣劳伦斯海湾，一头年轻的海豹正在它的冰窝里警惕的东张西望。

Shortly before whelping, the bitch's body temperature will drop to 99 degrees or lower ( from a normal temperature of 100 to 102.5).

分娩前一天，母犬的体温会下降至摄氏37.2度甚至更低（正常体温是摄氏37.8－39度）。低温温度（通常低于-100℃）

It is a good idea to build a whelping box well in advance so the bitch has time to get used to it.

最好预先为母犬建一个产箱，这样，母犬可以有时间去适应。

Always keep a record of the date, the day of the cycle the bitch was bred, the results of the30-day pregnancy ultrasound or test results, the date of whelping, and the number of pups.

时刻记录相关数据：母犬配种的日期、怀孕30天超声波检查结果或是测试结果、分娩的日期、产下幼犬的数量。