I also use Calsorb (acts very quickly) during whelping.Then use Tums afterward during nursing period. Whenever my girls start panting too much, acting anxious, digging in the whelping box etc. I'll give them Tums. You want to keep ahead of that behavior. Really calms them down.

Several long time breeders on here have suggested ice cream or yogurt .. that's what I use

If I use calcium during whelping, I only use natural prior to whelping is complete. I then use a calcium supplement after all pups are on the ground for 6 weeks. Why give man-made calcium when it comes naturally in foods?

So far, we haven't had a bitch that rejected or didn't love her pups.

I've heard of more than a few repro vets say not to use man-made calcium, natural only.

What else is in Tums that the bitch doesn't need? I never took a look.

calcium carbonate, 2 grams of sucrose, 5 mg of sodium, corn starch and mineral oil. Ice Cream is calcium 15% of daily need, 21 gram sugar, 35 mg Cholesterol, 75mg sodium, 65 gram of fat. Doesn't say how many mg of calcium. All calcium is calcium, some supplements, the way they are compounded aren't absorbed as easily as others. That is why the chews are better, all ready to be digested. The Tums melt very quickly. We use the 750mg tabs. I once took a calcium tab in the morning and had a stomach x-ray in the afternoon and the calcium pill was in my colon undigested at all. I quit taking them, didn't see any point in it. Now I eat Tums for my calcium/bones health. I know all of us are different and do things the way we like, so whatever works for you is what you need to do.

the idea of giving tums during whelp is to help the body produce good contractions.
many breeders use ice cream which has some calcium in it plus the sugar will help energy wise.

tums is a easily digestible high calcium supplement that will get into the system fast and really help labor along.

others use calsorb or oracal during whelp.....remember never give added calcium during pregnancy before whelp.

As part of my whelping protocol I use Oral Cal Plus additionally I also use a high sugar supplement in conjunction with it. I mix a slurry of sugar/Pedialyte and they get a dose of that after each puppies birth, along with the Oral Cal.
The role of calcium during birth is to 'turn the muscle on.' In science terms the calcium ions result in movement of troponin and tropomyosin on their thin filaments, and this enables the myosin molecule heads to "grab and swivel" their way along the thin filament. This is the driving force of muscle contraction. The glucose and electrolytes are then the energy source.

Tums is calcium. It is often prescribed for people as a calcium supplement by physicians. It's easily absorbed and (obviously) doesn't bother the stomach. Calcium is water soluble, so barring any metabolic abnormality or extreme overdose, excess calcium will be excreted in the urine. To be safe I stay within the recommended dose for an adult human. My dogs will eat chewable Tums like they are a treat. I usually give the bitch two tablets right after the pup is born. I'll give her a couple more if labor has stalled. Once the pups are born, if she doesn't act completely maternal I'll keep giving her Tums using the package directions.

Cacium is a mineral. That means it is by definition INORGANIC. Don't let anyone convince you to spend more money on organic calcium - no such thing. It might be in an organic substance, but calcium is calcium wherever you find it. You want the form to be most absorbable and Tums has one of the most easily absorbed forms. There's nothing in Tums that is unnatural, and it also doesn't contain lactose (the sugar found in milk) which can cause digestive problems in dogs and a lot of humans as well.

PS - Fat soluble vitamins are A, D, E and K. Those supplements are not excreted easily if you give too much/ They can more easily build up to toxic levels.

I use tums too. They worked great on a maiden bitch who wasn't quite sure about her pups intially. They kicked right in and she was the best mom we ever had.