How long do you leave the Pig rails up?

Until mom is not in the box anymore. The puppies will rest on it. Snuggle under it and generally use it as a play thing. Leaving them in might enable pups to get out a bit faster, but not by much.

Usually I pull them out around 4 weeks when I make the area double size.

I am building a litter box and am wondering about what material to make the pig rails out of. Will they get chewed on or will they be pulled out before most of the chewing starts? Thanks for the help.

When we made our whelping boxes - we used recycled plywood and the pig rails are 1 x 3 wooden boards secured with L brackets - they are permanent.

What I am worried about is them chewing. If I put a sealer on the wood to help with clean up and the pups chew on this is this going to be a problem. The way I have designed the box they will be removable. Don't know if the sealer will be a problem.

We used 4 inch plastic pvc sewer pipe to make our pig rails. I take them out when I expand their pbox or move them into the puppy palace around 4 weeks or so.

Just a reminder that if you are painting your wooden whelping box and pig rails to use "Baby Safe" paint like you would use on baby furniture.