HELP PLEASE!!! URGENT!!!! Puppy may die if I don't get help!!!

[Lil' Horse Lover]

I know that this isn't about horses but we are really needing some help and I know that a lot of people here have dogs and raise puppies so I thought I would give it a shot. The puppies are between the ages of only a couple days to about a week. Ok so far we've had 2 puppies die and one looks like its getting close to dying and we have no idea why. The puppy that is alive and not doing so well is only about a week old and is a small Jack Russel Terrier mix. Symptoms are heavy breathing, week hind end (back legs, etc.), skinny, not experiancing normal growth, puking up milk after recently eating, dehydration, opening and closing mouth (like its hard for it to breath), very weak, dry and cold mouth, VERY pink/reddish skin (especially stomach area)and not very responsive. The other puppies that died were the same except they were also experiancing seizures and foaming of the mouth. If anyone has any advice it would be greatly appreciated, we would hate to lose any more puppies! We've never had any problems like this before!

Also we are wondering if paint fumes and/or dust from tearing up flooring and sanding could have any influence in this. We are adding onto our house and there's paint fumes and lots of dust and fumes from the flooring and sanding. The puppies are located at the other end of the house but the fumes and dust does occasionally get somewhat strong but not too bad. Also, could this be from the mother dogs breathing in paint fumes and dust from before they had the puppies, and now after the pups are born its affecting them now???

Any help or advice is greatly appreciated, PLEASE HELP if you can!!!!!!!!!!!

 

[horsefeather]

I wish I could help, but all I can suggest is to keep the pups warm and call the vet ASAP. Hope you have emergency numbers in your area.

Pam

 

[HGFarm2]

So sorry to hear about your pups!! The mom is feeling fine and normal? She has plenty of milk? Has she been into/ate anything that she shouldn't have that may be transferring into the milk? I would say if you hae to, get some puppy milk replacer stuff and try bottle feeding even a little bit every hour or two. Mix with a little pedialite and water and try to keep the puppy as warm and hydrated as possible. That is all I can suggest with one so small. You may call the vet and ask what they think. Is the mother up to date on vaccines? Did you vaccinate her with anything while she was pregnant? Is she around other strange dogs much? Even vaccinated she could be carrying something and though she may not get sick, she could transfer it to the puppies. Unfortunatly without a blood test through the vet you may not know.

I hope all goes ok. Keep us posted. How many did she have all together?

 

[Lil' Horse Lover]

The mom is feeling fine and is acting normal, she's producing plenty of milk and is doing great. Ok, there are two seperate litters involved. This particular puppy is about a week old and is the only one from her litter and was doing fine until this morning. And the other puppies were born a couple days ago and we lost two out of the four puppies. We've given her some milk replacer and have watched her nurse once, but she puked it up about ten minutes later. The mom hasn't been vaccinated, we live out in the country and she's an inside dog and no dogs ever come on our property, and as far as we know she hasn't gotten into anything bad. We will probably call the vet if she doesn't improve or if another puppy comes down with it. We've raised puppies for years and never had anything like this happen before. Thanks everyone for the advice, its GREATLY appreciated!!!!

 

[mininik]

These litters and their dams need to see a vet ASAP. Throwing up milk? That's not something I've delt with in very young pups, but are you sure the pup wasn't exhaling it out the nose? You could be dealing with pups that have cleft palates. A lot of what you are describing sounds like pups who have aspirated milk and are dying slow deaths due to congestion. Fading puppy syndrome also comes to mind and is not something that can be helped, generally...

That said, even living out in the country, your dogs NEED to be vaccinated. Parvo (for one) is easily transfered and does NOT require that your dog come in contact with any other dogs. The construction in your house may also be hindering the development of these pups. Really, so many things could be going wrong it's impossible to say without being there. Why haven't you called the vet by now??

 

[Lil' Horse Lover]

These litters and their dams need to see a vet ASAP. Throwing up milk? That's not something I've delt with in very young pups, but are you sure the pup wasn't exhaling it out the nose? You could be dealing with pups that have cleft palates. A lot of what you are describing sounds like pups who have aspirated milk and are dying slow deaths due to congestion. Fading puppy syndrome also comes to mind and is not something that can be helped, generally...

That said, even living out in the country, your dogs NEED to be vaccinated. Parvo (for one) is easily transfered and does NOT require that your dog come in contact with any other dogs. The construction in your house may also be hindering the development of these pups. Really, so many things could be going wrong it's impossible to say without being there. Why haven't you called the vet by now??

We do vaccinate, we vaccinate when the puppies turn 8 weeks old and up until they are about a year old as reccamended by vets and then they get rabies too. Right now the puppies are ok, we're keeping a close eye on them and will call the vet if things go down hill again. They are ok as of now. But we are watching them very closely and will call the vet if needed. We've done this for years and haven't had something like this happen, we've lost puppies but not like this. We just dont' have the money to take them to the vet just to have them die anyways, we'll call the vet and see what they say. If there is a chance of saving them.

 

[mininik]

"We do vaccinate, we vaccinate when the puppies turn 8 weeks old and up until they are about a year old as reccamended by vets and then they get rabies too." -Lil' Horse Lover

Vaccinating the pups at 8 weeks but not keeping their dam vaccinated (as you stated she is not in the quote below) is not protecting the pups from conception to after they have built up immunity from their last puppy shot. Rabies is really not the issue here as it is required by law after a certain age that varies from state to state.

"The mom hasn't been vaccinated, we live out in the country and she's an inside dog and no dogs ever come on our property..." -Lil' Horse Lover

What about your deworming schedule? The dam and these pups may be heavily infested which could cause the symptoms (and death) you describe.

Please do call the vet ASAP even if the pups appear to be okay now. Part of being a responsible owner is vetting your animals even if chances are they won't make it. At the very least you could have any suffering pups humanely put down. Having raised pups myself, I have a hard time believing that pups who were just breathing heavily, throwing up, dehydrated, weak, skinny, not experiencing normal growth and who have had litter mates dying are going to be okay now. Looks can be very decieving especially in young pups who can go down hill in an instant.

I'll be hoping for the best!

 

[Lil' Horse Lover]

Yes, we deworm everyone regularally, and we do vaccinate our dogs we've just been bad about it lately. I do admit that we need to get on top of that. Well my mom does anyways. And we have the vet ready to call if we feel we should, my mom is very knowledgable and I trust that she knows if a vet is needed. I posted this just to get some extra advice and see if anyone else has had this happen before. We will try everything to keep them alive and will have them humanely put down if need be. As of now they are doing ok, they are alive, don't appear to be uncomfortable, eating and are staying warm, my mom is watching them closely just in case things go down hill again. We've bottle fed them and have them under heat lamps with blankets and they appear to be doing better since then and have nursed a couple times just a little bit ago, but don't worry we'll call the vet if need be. I'm just looking for some advice if anyone has had this happen before, we'll call the vet if we feel it is needed, trust me, we care about and love our dogs and puppies VERY MUCH and will do what it takes to keep them alive and help them live happy healthy lives.

 

[mininik]

I'm sure you love your pets - I don't think very many who own pets don't love and want to do what's best for them.

:

My point about vaccination was simply that when your dam isn't vaccinated it does open up the possibility of the pups not getting immunity from her for many things. Deworming regularly is also important as those nasty parasites will pass from dam to pup. What you were describing could have easily been an infectious disease or parasite overload, cleft palates and/or puppy fading syndrome as I mentioned. But, it sounds like the survivors just might be making it and that's great to hear. Please continue to keep us posted and of course post pictures when possible.

:

 

[Lil' Horse Lover]

We did some research and it looks like they are coming down with puppy fading syndrome and it doesn't look like there is much that can be done except to keep them warm, hydrated, and kept an eye on. From what the different articles said there isn't much that can be done except to just do our best to keep them alive. My mom used to be a vet's assistant (before she became a stay at home mom to eight kids) so she is very knowledgable about dogs, just so that all of you know.

Here are some pics. of them taken a few days ago and the day before.

The female that is about a week old (taken when she was perfectly fine just a few days ago) ~

The two females left that are only about two days old (were fine until today, still ok and better then the other puppy but not completely normal)~

 

[Nemesis]

Not knowing all the facts it could be that you have canine herpes. Here is a link that may help you. http://www.marvistavet.com/html/body_canin..._infection.html. Here is a link to fading puppy syndrome http://www.showdogsupersite.com/kenlclub/b...vet/fading.html

 

[OhHorsePee]

I used to breed English Mastiffs. Maggie's last litter was a litter of 18. They were c-section delivery. We lost every single one in one night due to her milk being bad. I frantically tried to get a hold of the vet every hour all night long. I was bottle feeding these pups for a week and Maggie finally got milk in and the vet advised to go ahead and place them on their dam. I bottle fed 9 and placed the 9 other on her every two hours. We lost a few every two hours all night long. My point being if I could have had the assistance of the vet that night I might have saved some. And that is where you should go now is to your vet. No offence but if you and your mom want them to have a chance to live you can not be diagnosing the problem yourself. Call your vet! That is why they are there.

Good luck!

Fran

 

[kaykay]

im with fran i bet her milk is bad. fading pup only happens usually to the runt in the litter. and usually the mom will refuse to nurse the fading pup. it never happens to a whole litter.

 

[rabbitsfizz]

Kay sorry you are wrong.

It is still largely unknown what causes fading puppies but, believe me, the most experienced of us can lose a whole litter- I sat and watched six lovely, healthy, strong born Sheltie pups die, one by one.

Just one in the litter we managed to save and the bitch was so serene about it- never turned a hair, as if she knew that this was all meant to be.

The one reaming pup, a Blue Merle dog, she raised fine, he was as fat as a beached seal pup- nothing wrong with her milk at all and he had it ALL!!!

When he had his presale Vet check he came up with a heart murmur.

I told the insurance people, they were OK with it, I told the prospective owners- they were fine with it so he went.

They kept in touch and were delighted to be able to tell me that at one year old he had nothing wrong with his heart- it passed the Vet check for his next years insurance with flying colours.

It did make me wonder though if that what was caused the deaths of the other pups- maybe the heart was worse in them certainly they just reached one week old and, just when I was expecting to start seeing "eyes" they faded and were gone within four days.

It was heart breaking.

It had never happened before and it never happened again- I had the bitch tested and she was fine- so, no rhyme or reason, just a heart defect, maybe.

 

[Lisa-Ruff N Tuff Minis]

I am no expert and dont know anything about this fading pup thing then then it sounds awful but the huge key here to me is this is 2 DIFFERENT litters that has lost pups to the same symptoms it would seem? that the odds of both litters having this fading pup thing is well a huge coincidence?

I would take a uneducated guess and think it is something else.

but bottom line no matter how much experience your mom has personally I would call the vet. Most will work with you on the money issues.

I am sure they don't go from severe symptoms to perfectly fine again I know we had one get pnuminia and some told me to wait I couldnt I rushed her to the vet we gave her antibiodics and she is fine now weeks later. She just drank and got some milk down the wrong tube is the vets best guess. It was horrible just to see one not feeling well I cant imagine what you are going thru.. please take them to the vet

 

[kaykay]

hmmm i really dont think so jane. after all fading pup is just a diagnosis of a pup that fails to thrive. my bitch absolutely refused to nurse him and would push him to the corner. My vet said that is what the bitches always do. if i had a whole litter like that then for sure something more then fading pup is going on. Herpevirus would definately be something to check into if you have an entire sick litter. I talked to my vet about it when i had one and that is what i was told. bottom line is none of us are veternarians. I would have been taking those pups into the vet so fast it would make your head spin. If i take the responsibility of breeding a dog then I am also responsible for the puppies health no matter what the cost. That is part of being a responsible breeder.

heres an excerpt from above website that someone posted

Fading puppy is not a diagnosis, it is a description. After we exclude the puppies discussed above, which are malformed or infected, we are left with the puppies which are dehydrated, hypoglycemic, or chilled. These are the 'faders'.

It's often said that the 'mother knows best' when a bitch rejects a puppy - as though she has x-ray eyes and can spot a malformed heart or other defect. The fact is the bitch can't tell the difference between a malformed puppy and one that is chilled, dehydrated or hypoglycemic. She only knows that it isn't thriving.

 

[StormyAcreRanch]

I normally don't post much on here. But considering you lost 2 pups already and more are sick, why are you waiting to go to the vet? They need to be seen by a vet.

 

[pamk]

HI. Did I miss somewhere that you checked for cleft palates??? If not, it is easy to do...just open the puppies mouths and look for a defect in the roof of their month..the milk goes into this "crack" and gets into the nose....that might be the problem. If the puppy(ies) are vomiting, there is a good chance they can aspirate the milk into their lungs and will die a slow death...getting weaker and weaker...There might be some kind of milk abnormality too....[SIZE=14pt]I strongly suggest taking them to the vet to get checked out...like someone said before, you might not be able to save them, but it is the responsible thing to do since you are the person responsible for the litter of puppies[/SIZE]. Having them euthanized is far better than letting them die a slow death..Also, please vaccinate your dogs! It is best for them and YOU...especially if you keep breeding them.

Good Luck! Pam

 

[HGFarm]

This sounds like either distemper or could possibly be parvo. If you dont want all of your dogs sick, I would certainly take them in to a vet NOW. Also, a friend of mine years ago rescued a skinny mama dog and a litter of pups, who began to die right and left... she took them to a vet and they were so full of worms, she had to make a bed in the bathtub in her spare bathroom... it was the GROSSEST sight I have ever seen as the worms were half the size of the pups. Many of them died.

Edited to add: We had parvo come through the neighborhood again this summer and even dogs that are vaccinated REGULARLY got it. Some died, some recovered. The vaccine is not 100% sure but helps, so if you have skipped or are late on vaccines, you may have to start all over again. If the mother was not vaccinated, these pups have no immunity to anything.

They are also recommending now to vaccinate the pups starting at 5 weeks and not waiting til they are 8 weeks and weaned. The foaming at the mouth sounds to me like distemper and is highly contagious like parvo. It can be tracked on your shoes, in and out from other places, etc.....

This is NOT something to mess with and I hope you have seen a vet by now?!!

 

[Ms THE]

I don't know what to say here, I am sorry but it is VERY irreponsible to breed dogs and not properly vaccinate and provide adiquate veterinary care for them. Do you sell these puppies? If you are breeding them to sell at a profit you should at least take the proper steps to ensure they are healthy.

You are responsible for them as it was your (your mom or whomever bred them) decision to bring them into this world. Whether or not they survive, it is your duty to provide vet care immediately. If you cannot afford to pay a vet, turn them over to a rescue or a shelter that can do the right thing.

I am sorry to sound harsh, but this really strikes a nerve when people don't do the proper thing. I don't see how they can go from nearly dead to fine when people say to take to vet.