Last Updated on April 24, 2024 by Dr. Julie
Congratulations on your pregnant Rottweilers! But how many puppies can a Rottweiler have is a question that most people ask.
You are going to have a wonderful experience with your pregnant Rottweilers. What a privilege! What’s even sweeter is ushering in the new tiny beauties into this world.
And how long are Rottweilers pregnant for? You will only have about 63 days to find out how many puppies you have.
Whether it’s your Rottie’s first or third, or fifth litter, the joy is unending! If this is your first experience, we have compiled some helpful information about pregnancy that you need to know. In addition, we wish you all the best.
If you have not yet decided to breed your Rottie, this will be a helpful resource you can use to make your decision.
Either way, you will learn something new. Let’s dive right in.
Table of Contents
When Can Female Rottweilers Get Pregnant?
As early as 6 months of age, your female Rottie can start getting on heat. Most Rottweilers having puppies start experiencing signs of heat when they are almost a year old.
It’s important to know when it can happen so that you can have planned pregnancies. Do not get confused; your Rottie’s first sign of heat is not when to get her pregnant; the second stage is the best.
Being on heat is a reproductive term, and in canines is known as Canine Estrus. It has 4 Stages. These are:
- The Proestrus stage or the beginning. This is the start of her “heat” cycle. You will notice her being flirty or frisky; however, she will not let any male mount her at this stage. Her vaginal area appears swollen, with small amounts of blood dripping from her. This can last a week or lesser. This stage is not one to get her pregnant, even if you are using artificial insemination.
- The Estrus stage. This stage is the ideal breeding stage! Your female Rottweiler will gladly accept coupling with a male. This stage lasts a week or lesser. It is the best stage to get her pregnant.
- The Diestrus Stage: The heat is lowering, and your Rottie won’t welcome any advances from males anymore. The Diestrus stage lasts the entire length of her pregnancy, or if no pregnancy occurs, it lasts about 80 days.
- The Anestrus stage: This stage is the time between her heat cycles, and males are not attracted to her during this time.
Note that: Your female Rottie will go through this heat cycle every 6 months, and it will last about three weeks long. These are estimates and can fluctuate depending on many factors of reproductive health.
So How Many Puppies Can A Rottweiler Have?
So assuming your Rottie gets pregnant, how many puppies can you expect on average? On average, a Rottweiler litter has 6 to 12 puppies.
The smallest recorded Rottie litter in history had only 1 puppy and the largest 18 puppies.
A Rottweiler’s first litter is always the smallest. The number of puppies in a litter is directly related to the size of the breed.
Large dog breeds have more puppies than small ones. The larger the body size, the more puppies they can carry.
Read more about: Can You Take A Puppy Home At 6 Weeks?
What Factors Affect The Number Of Puppies A Rottweiler Will Have?
The number of puppies born by each depends on the following factors
The Age Of The Dog
The age of a Rottie really matters as to how many puppies they give birth to.
A bitch under 7 years will give birth to a smaller litter. The stud’s age has less influence on the size of the litter but the age of the bitch matters.
If she has not given birth by the age of 5, she will give birth to a smaller number of puppies per litter because she is growing old.
If your Rottie gives birth between ages 2 to 5, the litter will be larger because she is young and more productive.
If the male who serves your Rottie is under 5 years old, the litter is larger than older. The younger he is, the more sperm count he has compared to when he ages.
The Health Condition Of Both The Male and The Female
A healthy Rottie will produce healthy puppies. This is one of the biggest factors that affect the number of puppies born.
A healthy bitch can give birth to more puppies per litter than one who is not healthy.
The male must also be healthy as it affects the litter size.
Your Rotties’ diet
What you feed your bitch with directly affects the size of her litter. If she has all the nutrients her boy requires, she will likely conceive and give birth to a healthy large litter.
If she lacks important nutrients, she will not produce a large or healthy litter.
Inbreeding
The breeding of daughter and father leads to smaller litters. It directly affects fertility, genetics, life expectancy, and puppy mortality.
How Many Puppies Do Rottweilers Have The First Time They Give Birth?
The first litter from a Rottweiler is the smallest. The same is true for all other breeds. The average litter size of a Rottweiler is 6 to 12 puppies.
The first litter could be as few as 2 puppies. It is kind of nature’s way of helping the first time, mom. The smaller the litter, the more the new mother can provide the care and sustenance for her puppies.
The first litter is usually the smallest, and their health is not reliable because the breeder is yet to establish how well they do.
The second litter is medium – not too small as the first and not as large.
The third and fourth litters are the best and have the largest numbers of puppies.
Conclusion
If you want to buy a Rottweiler puppy, it is best to pick from the third and fourth litters. By this time, the breeder has had time to study the puppies, learned much about them. By this time, the breeder has a good breeding history that they can share with you.
When you want to buy a puppy, take time and learn the breeder’s history to see if you are comfortable with their breeding.