Dog Pregnancy Calculator
Enter the breeding date, or the LH surge or ovulation date from your vet, to get your dog's due date, the normal whelping window and a day-by-day checklist of vet visits and whelping preparation.
Pick a date to see the due window, today's day count and the vet milestones.
How this whelping calculator works
Dogs are pregnant for about 63 days, but how precise that is depends on what you count from. The calculator uses the ranges published by the American Kennel Club and the Merck Veterinary Manual:
| Counting from | Typical due day | Normal range | How you get the date |
|---|---|---|---|
| First breeding | 63 | 58–72 days | Your own records |
| LH surge | 65 | 64–66 days | Vet blood tests |
| Ovulation | 63 | 62–64 days | Progesterone testing |
| First progesterone rise | 65 | 64–66 days | Vet blood tests |
Sources: AKC, "Gestation Period: How Long Are Dogs Pregnant?"; Merck Veterinary Manual, "Management of Reproduction in Dogs"; VCA Animal Hospitals, "Breeding for Pet Owners: Pregnancy in Dogs".
Why a breeding date gives such a wide due window
Pregnancy length is fairly steady when you count from ovulation: about 63 days (AKC; Merck gives 62–64). But a mating isn't ovulation. A bitch can be bred days before she ovulates, and the AKC notes that this is why due dates counted from a breeding date spread across 58–72 days. Drag the mating day to see it.
Counting 63 days from this mating would put your date 3 days early. That is why vets pin down ovulation with progesterone or LH tests when an accurate date matters, for example to plan a scheduled C-section.
Simplified model for illustration: it holds birth at 63 days after ovulation and ignores the ±1 day spread and individual variation. Source: AKC, "Gestation Period: How Long Are Dogs Pregnant?"; Merck Veterinary Manual.
What the milestones mean
The timeline under your due date lists the checks most breeders plan around. Your vet may choose different timing for your dog.
- Day 21–28, palpation: a vet may feel the swellings in the uterus, but the result can be unreliable (VCA).
- Day 25–35, ultrasound: the usual way to confirm pregnancy and see that the puppies are alive (Merck).
- Day 30–35, relaxin blood test: an alternative to ultrasound. Testing too early, or with only one or two puppies, can give a false negative (VCA).
- After day 55, X-ray: the most accurate way to count puppies, so you know when she has finished whelping (Merck, VCA).
- Last week: set up the whelping box and take her temperature daily. A drop below about 99°F (37.2°C) usually means labor within 24 hours (VCA).
Call your vet if she strains hard for a long time without a puppy, goes more than a few hours between puppies while still straining, has green or black discharge before the first puppy, or passes the end of her window. These are general guidelines, not a diagnosis. Your vet knows your dog.
More planning tools
Questions breeders ask
How accurate is a dog pregnancy calculator?
It is only as accurate as the date you enter. Counting from a vet-confirmed LH surge or ovulation narrows the window to about three days (AKC). Counting from a breeding date gives a range of about 58–72 days, because she may have been mated several days before she ovulated.
What if my dog was bred more than once?
Enter the first breeding date. VCA suggests noting both dates and expecting birth roughly 63–65 days after them; the calculator's window already covers that spread.
Can a dog give birth at 58 days?
Counting from the first mating, 58 days is within the normal range the AKC gives (58–72 days). Counted from ovulation, pregnancy is about 62–64 days (Merck), so puppies well before that may be premature. If labor starts earlier than you expected, call your vet.
When can a vet confirm my dog is pregnant?
Ultrasound can reliably confirm pregnancy from about day 25–35, and a relaxin blood test from about day 30–35 (Merck). A vet may feel the uterus from about day 21, but that is less reliable.
Does the calculator store my dog's dates?
Only in your own browser (localStorage), so the page remembers them next time. Nothing is sent to us unless you use the optional AI question box. The Clear button removes them.