incubator ?

[Crimson Ghost]

I read that I need an incubator for the newborns while mom is popping out the siblings. If I use a laundry basket, will a heating pad under a towel be sufficient or will I need to place the heating lamp over it ?

[Blaze]

I just use a little foam basket with a heating pad and a warm blanket. The pups are put in there while Lilly (my girl) is giving birth and then placed back on her to keep suckling as soon as she's delivered and cleaned that baby as I find it helps to bring the others on quicker too and then they are all returned to the basket while she has the next one and so on.
Depending on your weather the laundry basket and heating pad should be fine but be careful as the heating pads can be dangerous. You can get special whelping ones that either get heated in the microwave or by the pups natural heat but I'm not sure how good they are. But you'll also have a fair idea on how warm the pups are depending on how they act, if they are to cold they will huddle together very closely as that gets them warmer and if they are too hot they'll lay a way from each other and usually squeal quite a bit.

[barnjess]

I used a box lined with towels and a hot water bottle then placed a towel over the top, it worked great

[Crimson Ghost]

Oh fantastic, that sounds great – I am glad I asked. I have a heating pad that I will use in a laundry basket and I will set it to low and cover it with a nice blanket.