Whelping box size calculator
The free EZwhelp quiz finds her box size, liner and bundle for you. Answer a few questions about her breed and size to build her setup.
Free quiz
Build your setup
Answer a few quick questions about her breed and size, and the EZwhelp quiz picks the right box, liner and bundle for her. No guessing at sizes.
Takes about a minute. Free.
General educational information and estimates only—not veterinary advice or a diagnosis. No veterinarian-client-patient relationship is created. Confirm care with a licensed veterinarian; for urgent concerns, contact a veterinarian or emergency clinic now.
The boxes the quiz picks from
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Whelping box size calculator
The free EZwhelp quiz asks a few quick questions about her breed and size, then picks the box size, panel height, liner and bundle that go with it.
The rule the sizes come from
The dam has to lie fully stretched out on her side, in both directions, with the litter alongside her and no puppy trapped behind her. Every size below follows from that, which is why a long-bodied dam often needs a bigger box than her weight suggests.
Why too big is as risky as too small
A box that’s too big is as risky as one that’s too small. Newborns can’t regulate their temperature, and one that wanders from the nursing area gets cold fast.
A box sized to the dam keeps the litter gathered where she is, close to the warm corner, and keeps the pig rail doing its job along a wall a puppy can actually reach.
The four sizes
| Box | Panels | Suits |
|---|---|---|
| 28 × 28 | Standard 18" | Toy and small dams, roughly under 20 lb |
| 38 × 38 | Standard 18" | Medium dams, roughly 20 to 50 lb |
| 48 × 48 | Standard 18" | Large dams, roughly 50 to 90 lb |
| 48 × 76 | Tall 28" | Giant dams, roughly over 90 lb |
Frequently asked
Big enough that the dam can lie fully stretched out on her side, in both directions, with the litter alongside her — and no bigger. A puppy who wanders out of the nursing area gets cold quickly.
Yes. Newborns cannot regulate their own temperature for the first two weeks, so extra floor space is somewhere cold to end up rather than somewhere useful.
By day 45. She needs about two weeks to accept it as her place, and a dam introduced to a box on the day labor starts will look for somewhere else to whelp.
Standard 18 inch panels suit most dams. The largest box uses tall 28 inch panels, for a big dam who needs the containment as well as the length.