HELP!! Newborn puppy with very low life indications

[black_dog]

Hi, please excuse me if violating some forum rule, but really hurried to write about the problem...

Shortly, I have a dog, she gave birth to a puppy, but I think it is dieing. It is normally grown, cried for a while after birth, but ever since it was born - about 4 hours ago, it moves less and less, getting weaker and weaker.

Is there a way to help that doggie??? One fellow told me to give it a drop of coffee and cognac to make it more vital. I did not, so far.

It is breathing, but does not suck milk from the mother dog. Is there a way to know if the breathing is effective enough?

The birth was a big problem. Heard the dog screaming outside and saw a small paw showing... A dead puppy. Called the vet, he came and managed to pull it out. He left and said, if the rest don't be born, tomorrow morning - surgery.

After he left, this puppy was born. The dog never paid any attention, I removed the placenta and wiped it careefully. It was not very active from the moment of birth, but ever since that moment it is getting less and less active. Very sad!

So, please, help me - is there something I can do about that puppy?

[Traci]

Call the vet back immediately, see if he can come back out to examine the pup and get him to nurse on the mother. Warmth is crucial, get him near his mother and physically place him at a nipple, he needs the vital collostrum that is in his mother's milk.

Call vet back NOW.

[black_dog]

No, he is not 24 hour vet and his phone is already OFF long ago... Found only a few numbers of 24 hour vets. Noone answered Yeah, Saturday night, who's gonna work It's 4 and a half in the night /or rather in the morning/ here.

The dogs are mutts of medium size, nothing rare or valuable, but I really do not care, want to try to save that doggie. As said, vet help is unavailable now, not before 8 or 9 tomorrow. That's why trying my luck in forums....

[Traci]

There's only so much one can do on a forum, thousands of miles away. Do any of the vets do emergencies? Do they have answering machines that they actually check and respond to?

It's difficult to try to save failing puppies so soon after birth, but you do need to keep him warm, try to ensure the mother is not neglecting him, make sure he is able to nurse from her, is not crowded by his siblings, is not getting pushed away from the mother. If you have puppy formula available, try mixing it up and hand feeding him, but you must be careful with this approach because he could aspirate if fluids are forced to him. Best to try to get him nursing on his mother.

Do NOT give coffee or cognac to a pet ever. These can cause fatal consequences!

If you think the pup is crashing, you can try to give oral glucose on his gums, (like light corn syrup or sugar water if that's all you have -- do not let him drink it, just mix sugar and water and apply to his gums)....gently rub a small amount on his gums to see if he perks up. This is only a temporary measure, and is not a cure for anything. If the pup is crashing, the only effective solution is veterinary care immediately.

Warmth and get him to nurse from the mother, this would be the best thing to do until you can get him seen by your vet.

[black_dog]

Thanks Traci! You are absolutely right. Did what was possible, but it is getting more and more sleepy. Changed the bottle, don;t think anything else can be done. Seems there's sonething wrong wit hthe pregnancy and with the puppy, even if a vet was available right now in this moment /or earlier/, I doubt anything could be done. Lets hope that at least they will take a good care of the mother after a few hours.

[Traci]

What do you mean, changed the bottle? Do you mean a puppy nurser bottle or a hot water bottle? If a hot water bottle, this should be kept under a soft blanket under the pup, never directly near the skin as it can burn sensitive skin.

Do you have puppy formula? If so, mix it up and use an eyedropper or a teaspoon to gently allow a drop at a time into lower corner of the pup's mouth...let him swallow each drop before allowing more.

It may be the pup is born with a cleft palate, which would be difficult for him to suckle....but if you're not sure about this, make every attempt to gently put his mouth at the mother's nipple, gently massage the mammary so that milk is produced for him to suckle, don't stop until he shows signs he actually can suckle. If he cannot suckle after several attempts, you would have to have puppy formula available immediately to feed as described above. If you don't have puppy formula, do you have a store or somewhere available who sells the formula? If so, get it immediately and mix according to the package directions. Use an eyedropper or teaspoon to put a drop at a time into his mouth, making sure he swallows after each drop. Feed him while he is on his belly, not on his back. Make every attemtp to get him close to his mother for warmth, etc.

[Traci]

If you're able to check this post again, the following may be helpful:

Emergency Puppy Formula:
(to be used only if the puppy is not nursing, only on a temporary basis until the pup can be evaluated by the vet, and only fed to a puppy who is NOT suffering hypothermia)

1 cup whole milk
1 tsp. salad oil
2 egg yolks (no whites)
1 drop multi-vitamins (if you have pet multivitamin drops, if you don't, don't substitute vitamins)

Another Emergency Puppy Formula:

8 ounces of water
8 ounces evaporated milk
1 beaten egg yolk (no whites)
1 tablespoon corn syrup

For small-breed pups: feed 2-4 cc of formula, every 2 to 3 hours

For large-breed pups: feed 1 cc per ounce of weight, every 4 hours

Again, for newborns, use only an eyedropper or teaspoon and never force liquids in the mouth, allow the pup to swallow.

Hypothermia and hypoglycemia: Limbs and extremeties are cold to the touch, tongue may also be cold, pup may be listless and lethargic. Slowly warm the pup using a hot water bottle under a towel or blanket and place pup on the towel.....or warm pup by gently and loosely wrapping pup in a warm towel. Do not feed formula or milk to a hypothermic pup, warm him up first!

For hypoglycemia, do NOT use honey in lieu of sugar. Karo syrup is the best form of glucose to help stimulate a hypoglycemic pup. If Karo isn't available, use sugar mixed in water to rub on gums.

Hope your pup does much better and you're able to get both him, his sibings and the mother to your vet first thing in the morning....the mother should be throughly examined as well.

[black_dog]

Hi, sorry to be so late back. Yes, bottle with hot water. But not burning hot and not directly to the dog, I followed this.

Well, the puppie spent with us 12 hours. It was a miracle that is survived the night and actually lived till noon.

The pregnancy was very bad. Something went wrong and of the total of 7 puppies, only one lived to be born, all the rest had died at least a day prior to the day of birth.

But to report the facts, as early as possible took the puppy and the mother dog to one of the good clinics. They took care immediately of the two, but the puppie was a lost case. Had no sucking reflex and that was not all, seems there was something wrong with it from the very beginning. Some pups just can not survive.

The mother was a bigger concern. There wee still 3 dead dogs to go. The doctors decided first to try medicines and only later surgery. Fortunately the medicines helped. Two dogs came out in the morning/noon in the clinic, the last one came out at home in the eve - the doctors gave me a syringe with the medicine and in the evening I made injection to the mother dog and helped her release the last one /yes, I have some experience about injections and etc, no problems about that/.

So, finally, the dog is well, looks happy again, became again "talkative", a few more days must pass in order to recover and also needs lots of walking and a little diet in order not to produce too much milk. Really wanted to help the puppy too, but it had no chance to live.

Again, special thanks for your support and help! The information given is very valuable for future cases of having puppies, so I'll save it, thank you!!

[Traci]

I strongly advise you get the mother spayed, as soon as she has recovered. Don't allow her to breed again, anytime there is a problematic pregnancy or birthing, chances are, if allowed to breed again, the problem will occur again.

I also strongly advise testing her for viral and bacterial infections, and to rule out pyometra and mastitis. This may be why she could not deliver or some infection could have caused the puppies' deaths in utero. Please make every effort to get her rechecked, tested, and treated appropriately for any infections.

I'm sorry for the losses, it sounds like you did everything you could do. But, please, get her spayed as soon as she has fully recovered.