I would like to also add that, as an example, my tiny bitch Cherry Cola needed 2 c-sections when she was young, because she was so small, and (because she was inexperienced) she didn't let me help her push. By the time she was 7-8, I was able to get pups out of her naturally, but I would always lose most of them, because the vets were using injectibles rather than gas.

By the time she had her last litter she (in 2009), she was 9 years old and I got both pups out of her alive, and with less hassle than ever before, because by then Cherry knew the drill and let me help her without trying to stand up and "see what I was doing." Cherry was in great shape ... and her age, maturity, and experience allowed her to relax and let me get those massive pups out of her tiny, small-hipped self.

Jack