Please Note: We wish to make it *very* clear to all parties that neither SDL
nor anyone who volunteers to assist with a whelping is a substitute for veterinary
advice!! Anyone who participates on this list agrees *not* to accept payment for their
assistance. Absolutely NO money is to be charged for this! That would put us
in the area of practicing veterinary medicine without a license!!! This listing is intended to provide a sounding board by phone or email, or
an extra pair of hands during a whelping, quick breaks to the bitch owner who
may need to leave the bitch in labor for short periods (such as to take a shower
or feed the other dogs in the house), and general back-up. The owner of the bitch should make initial contact with anyone on the list
well prior to the expected due date to work out arrangements such as whether
it's okay to phone at midnight, give driving directions if the *whelphelper* will
be attending the whelping, etc. We strongly *encourage* people to at least speak on the phone together before
handing out driving directions to your home. This is a reminder that these pages
are available on the web (not just to SDL members) so please use your best judgment
and go with your gut instinct when dealing with anyone who contacts you, it
may be better to pass on any offers of assistance that don't feel quite right.