AUSTRALIA'S MOST-LOVED PET CARE COMMUNITY
When your litter needs
expert hands, not just willing ones.
Wagly Breeder Specialists are vet nurses, current breeders, and experienced former breeders who understand what's at stake when you have newborns on the ground.
If you would prefer to chat to someone about what services and staff will best suit you or find out about becoming a WagLy pet professional, click below to book a chat.
SERVICES
Breeder Specialist
Whelping a litter is one of the most demanding, unpredictable, and high-stakes responsibilities in the dog world. You can prepare for months and still have the birth arrive early, run long, or throw something at you that no amount of planning anticipated. And the weeks that follow — the litter rotation, the weight monitoring, the fading puppy watches, the 2am tube feeds — require a level of sustained attention and expertise that does not take breaks.
Until now, when a breeder needed help, they relied entirely on their personal network. A friend from the club. A mentor who might be available. A vet nurse who might be willing to come after hours. Sometimes that worked. Sometimes it did not.
Wagly Breeder Specialists changes that. For the first time in Australia, breeders can book verified, experienced, specialist neonatal support — locally for a few hours of relief, or from further afield for serious, sustained care when the situation demands it.
Someone who speaks your language.
Someone who has done this before.
Someone you can trust with the most vulnerable animals in your care.
The Experts You Need
Verified whelping experience · Current and former breeders · Vet nurses and vet students · Local pop-in support from 2 hours · Live-in support for serious situations · Willing to travel interstate · Available for whelping attendance · Neonatal and litter care specialists
WHO ARE WAGLY BREEDER SPECIALISTS?
This is not a pet sitter who likes dogs. This is someone who has been in the whelping box.
The Wagly Breeder Specialist service exists in a completely different category to any other service on this platform. The people who provide it are not general pet carers who have completed a course. They are people with direct, hands-on, real-world experience in canine reproduction, whelping, and neonatal puppy care.
Every Wagly Breeder Specialist falls into one of the following verified categories. Not adjacent to these categories. Not similar to these categories. One of these categories.
Current registered breeders
Active breeders who are currently whelping litters of their own and want to use their expertise to support fellow breeders in need. These are people who have rotated puppies in their sleep, who have their vet on speed dial, who know the difference between a pup who is struggling and a pup who is simply loud, and who understand the particular demands of your breed because they live it themselves.
Experienced former breeders
People who have retired from breeding but whose knowledge, instincts, and steady hands remain as sharp as ever. Some of the most capable specialists on the Wagly platform are former breeders who have whelped hundreds of litters over decades of involvement in the show and breeding world. They are not on the platform for the money. They are on it because the knowledge they carry is too valuable to sit unused.
Vet nurses and vet technicians
Qualified vet nurses who have worked in clinical settings with newborn and neonatal animals. They understand neonatal physiology. They know how to identify early warning signs that a layperson would miss entirely. They are trained to act with precision and calm under pressure and many have assisted with whelping, caesarean recovery, and neonatal intensive care in a clinical context. Their skills translate directly and powerfully to the whelping room.
Veterinary students
Final year and advanced veterinary students who have completed reproductive and neonatal training components of their degree and who have supervised clinical experience with whelping and neonatal care. Vet students bring current, evidence-based knowledge and are supervised and reviewed carefully before listing on the Wagly platform. They are an excellent option for breeders who need cost-effective local support from someone with genuine clinical training.
Every Wagly Breeder Specialist is interviewed by our team, has their credentials verified, and undergoes a National Police Check and identity verification before they ever take a booking. For this service we do not make exceptions. The stakes are too high.
AUSTRALIA'S FIRST
WHEN DO YOU NEED A BREEDER SPECIALIST?
When the dam goes into labour and you need another set of expert hands.
Whelping is not always textbook. Labour can run for many hours. A large litter means sustained concentration and constant vigilance over an extended period. A first-time dam may need more support and reassurance than an experienced whelping bitch. A breed known for whelping difficulties — brachycephalic breeds, breeds with large heads and narrow pelvis, breeds prone to uterine inertia — may need someone in the room who has seen complications before and knows what to do.
A Wagly Breeder Specialist can attend the whelping from onset of labour through to the last pup on the ground and the dam stable and nursing. They will assist with puppy rotation during delivery, clearing airways, stimulating puppies, monitoring the dam's condition, timing intervals between pups, tracking placental counts, and making the call to contact your vet if something is not progressing normally.
This is not someone to hold your hand. This is someone who can hold the puppy while you attend to the dam, who can count placentas while you are watching a pup, and who brings enough experience to stay calm when things move fast.
A whelping specialist booking can be arranged in advance for an expected litter, or called in urgently when labour begins. For planned whelping support, early booking is strongly recommended — specialists cannot always be available at short notice for a long commitment.
You're taking a holiday
You breed because you love it — but that doesn't mean you can't take a holiday. With a Wagly Breeder Specialist on watch, you can actually switch off, knowing every pup is being weighed, rotated, fed, and monitored around the clock. Your specialist will send you photo updates and daily logs so you can relax without guilt.
You have a commitment you can't move
A wedding. A family event. A work trip that can't be rescheduled. These things happen, and they shouldn't mean choosing between the people you love and the litter you've worked months for. A Wagly Breeder Specialist steps in so you don't have to choose.
You or a family member is unwell
Illness is unpredictable, and it doesn't care that you have a two-week-old litter in the whelping box. Whether it's you, your partner, or someone else in the household, our specialists can step in at short notice to take over full care of your dam and puppies so you can focus on getting better.
WHILE THE LITTER IS ON THE GROUND
The six weeks after whelping are where most losses happen. This is where specialist support matters most.
The whelping gets all the attention. The weeks that follow are where experienced breeders know the real work lives.
Neonatal puppies — from birth to around three weeks — are entirely dependent. They cannot regulate their own body temperature. They cannot eliminate without stimulation. They cannot find the teat without help if they are weak or the litter is large. They can fade with frightening speed if something goes wrong and no one notices the early signs.
From three weeks to eight weeks the demands shift but do not diminish. Weaning, socialisation, environmental enrichment, monitoring for developmental issues, managing the dam's condition through the transition — it is a sustained, demanding commitment from the moment the last puppy arrives to the day they leave for their new homes.
A Wagly Breeder Specialist can provide support at any point during this period. A few hours of relief while you sleep. A day of full care while you attend a commitment you cannot miss. Extended live-in support while you recover from illness. Whatever the litter needs, whatever you need, for as long as the litter is with you.
HOW IT WORKS
WHAT A SPECIALIST CAN DO FOR YOUR LITTER
Structured, professional neonatal care. Not supervision. Care
The full range of what a Wagly Breeder Specialist can provide:.
Whelping attendance and active birth support
Airway clearing and puppy stimulation at birth
Placental count monitoring and interval timing
Puppy rotation — moving pups from dam to warm box and returning once she has settled
Warm box temperature monitoring and adjustment
Individual puppy weighing on the neonatal scales with timestamped records
Tube feeding for pups who cannot or will not latch — safely and correctly
Photo and video updates to you throughout every session
A written end-of-session report covering every puppy
Bottle feeding and supplementary feeding management
Colostrum management in the critical first hours
Fading puppy identification and early intervention
Stimulation and toileting for pups under three weeks
Monitoring dam condition — milk supply, mastitis signs, temperature, appetite, discharge
Weaning management from three weeks
Enrichment and handling protocols from three weeks onward
Observation and flagging of developmental concerns
Medication administration if required and instructed
Immediate escalation to you — and to your vet if required — at the first sign of anything concerning
HOW THE SERVICE WORKS
Two levels of support. One for relief. One for serious situations.
POP-IN SUPPORT — local specialist, minimum 2 hours
Who it is for: Breeders who need a few hours of genuine relief — to sleep, to attend an appointment, to go to a show, to handle a personal commitment — without leaving the litter unsupervised or in the care of someone who does not truly know what they are doing.
How it works: You book a local Wagly Breeder Specialist for a minimum of two hours. They come to your home, receive a full handover briefing on every puppy and the dam, and take over complete responsibility for the litter for the duration of the booking. You leave — or sleep — knowing the litter is in genuinely expert hands. When the session ends they provide a full written report on everything that happened, every pup's weight and status, and anything worth knowing.
Ideal for: Needing a break during a long whelping · Attending a show or event while a young litter is at home · Sleeping through a night shift while pups are old enough to be left for a block · A few hours away from the house for any reason · Regular scheduled relief as part of an ongoing litter management plan.
Pricing: $80 per hour · Minimum 2 hour booking · Travel to your location by the specialist is additional and agreed at the time of booking
LIVE-IN AND EXTENDED SUPPORT — for serious situations
Who it is for: Breeders facing a situation where pop-in support is not enough. A significant illness. Surgery and recovery. A family emergency. A situation where you genuinely cannot be responsible for a litter for a sustained period and need someone to move into your home and take over full care — not for a few hours, but for days or weeks.
How it works: A Wagly Breeder Specialist — local or willing to travel — comes to your home and stays for the duration needed. They live in, follow your protocols and your records, and manage the litter with the same dedication and attention you would provide yourself. You receive daily detailed reports. You remain in full communication throughout. The specialist is there not to replace you but to carry the litter through until you can carry it yourself again.
For breeders in regional or remote areas, or for specialists with the right experience and willingness to travel, we can arrange interstate flights and accommodation. This is not a standard service. It is an exceptional one for exceptional circumstances. And it exists because there are breeders who need it and have had nowhere to turn.
Ideal for: Serious illness or hospitalisation · Post-surgical recovery · Family emergency requiring extended absence · Isolated or regional breeders with no local support network · High-value or high-risk litters requiring sustained specialist care
Pricing: $150 per day for live-in support · Travel costs — flights and accommodation — agreed individually before confirmation · Extended stays are discussed directly and priced based on duration and care complexity
REMOTE SUPPORT — Zoom or video call
Who it is for: Breeders who have experience but want an expert second opinion on something they are seeing, a second set of eyes on a pup they are worried about, or guidance through a specific situation in real time.
How it works: A 2 hour Zoom or video consultation with a Wagly Breeder Specialist. You share what you are seeing. They help you assess it, guide you through a response, and tell you clearly whether you need to escalate to your vet. This is the triage call that has saved litters before — because knowing the difference between a pup who needs tube feeding right now and a pup who is simply having a slow start can mean everything.
Pricing: $80 for a 2 hour remote consultation
WHO CAN ACCESS THIS SERVICE?
This service is for registered breeders with active litters.
Wagly Breeder Specialist support is available to breeders who are registered with Dogs Australia (ANKC) or an equivalent recognised state body and who have an active litter or an imminent whelping. We may ask for registration details at the time of booking to confirm eligibility.
This service is not available as a general puppy care service. It is specifically designed for breeding situations and neonatal litter care. If you have questions about whether your situation qualifies, contact us directly and we will give you an honest answer.
CREDENTIALS WE VERIFY
We check. So you don't have to wonder.
For vet nurses
Current or past registration with their state veterinary nursing board, employment history in a clinical setting, and relevant neonatal or obstetric experience.
For current breeders
Active registration with Dogs Australia (ANKC) or equivalent state body, breeding history, and breed experience relevant to your needs.
For former breeders
Documented breeding history, references from within the dog community, and an interview with our specialist team.
FOR BREEDERS
WHO CAN ACCESS THIS SERVICE?
This service is for registered breeders with active litters.
Wagly Breeder Specialist support is available to breeders who are registered with Dogs Australia (ANKC) or an equivalent recognised state body and who have an active litter or an imminent whelping. We may ask for registration details at the time of booking to confirm eligibility.
This service is not available as a general puppy care service. It is specifically designed for breeding situations and neonatal litter care. If you have questions about whether your situation qualifies, contact us directly and we will give you an honest answer.
THE APPLICATION
BREEDER SPECIALISTS
The knowledge you have is rare. Breeders need it.
If you are a current or former registered breeder, a qualified vet nurse, or a veterinary student with supervised whelping experience — we want to hear from you.
This is not a service that anyone can offer. The qualification barrier exists because the stakes are real. A fading puppy, a prolonged whelp, a dam showing early signs of eclampsia — these are not situations for enthusiasm and goodwill alone. They require knowledge, experience, and the ability to remain calm and make good decisions under pressure.
If you have that — and if you want to put it to work for breeders who genuinely need it — Wagly Breeder Specialists is where you belong.
A NOTE FROM OUR FOUNDER
Why this service exists — in Debbie's words.
"I have in the past for many years breed Newfoundlands. I have sat through long whelpings in the middle of the night. I have tube fed fading puppies. I have made the call to the emergency vet at 3am. I know what it feels like to have a litter on the ground and to feel the weight of responsibility for every single one of those lives.
I also know what it feels like to need help and not know where to find it.
The Australian breeding community is extraordinary — generous, knowledgeable, deeply passionate about the animals they produce. But it is also a community that has always relied on informal networks of support that do not always show up when you need them. The friend who is at a show. The mentor who is dealing with their own litter. The vet nurse who would love to help but cannot leave the clinic.
Wagly Breeder Specialists exists to fill that gap with something formal, reliable, and trustworthy. With people who have the knowledge to actually help — not just the willingness. People who have been in the whelping box and know what to do when things do not go to plan.
If this service helps one breeder get through a whelping they could not have managed alone, it has done exactly what I built it to do."
— Debbie Mewes, Founder, Wagly
Real pet lovers, right in your neighbourhood.
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