I have 7 pup's just over 1 day old, I weighed them when born and they ranged between 375g and 450g. While 6 have put on weight one (who was not the smallest) has lost some and is down to 300g, he is feeding from mum just as much as others and she is doing as much for him as she is for the rest.

Should I top up the feed's? or is there anything else I can do?

IME some puppies do lose a little weight initially and i wouldn't be too worried at this early stage.  I would advice to put the smallest puppy on one of the back teats though, and make sure he/she is feeding at least every 2 hours.

Good Luck with the puppies. xx  I have been following your other thread, well done to you.

How much weight has he lost?  A few grams isn't a problem, but if he was 450grm to start and now down to 300grm then I think I would be a little concerned.  Just make sure he latches on, if the others are feeding, let them suckle first to soften the teat, then remove them and latch him on.

Try not to worry too much though, as pups do sometimes lose weight in the first couple of days, once mums milk comes down fully he should be fine.

he was 375g born

i wouldnt top up he needs the 1st milk and the more he sucks the better ,sometimes you think their sucking away but theri not try and havd alook when hes feeding ,if he dont start to put ant weight on after 3days then id see what the vet says? good luck louise x

When one of the biggies are drinking, pull them off once they've got the milk starting to flow and put little one the same nipple.  If you do that every hour or so he should find it easier.

have you checked them all for cleft pallate agree to get a hungry pup on the back teat to get it going then pop him on and when he is on tickle his chin if he falls asleep on the teat to keep him suckling or you could get mum out of the box and give him a extra feed seperate until he gains the weight back something which I have done in the past.
Also weight them at the same time each day because if you weight him when he has been fed and the next day before he has been fed you may get incorrect readings.

An ounce lost at a day old is not a big problem, just make sure every time you pass the whelping box you put him on a good teat.

Milk is based on supply and demand and top ups should only be given as a last resort.  If milk is in short supply then it ti s the bigger ones you top up so the smaller once get more off Mum.

Vet gave all clear for cleft palate yesterday. Have been doing as suggested, putting him on back teat after a large one has started it of. Will be going to vet tomorrow as he is looking dehydrated, pinched skin on neck and back and it is not going back as it does with the others.

Is there anything I can do for this?

Is this fading puppy syndrome?

Give him few drops of electrolite every half an hour or so for dehydration and nutridrops for nutrition.

3oz loss in one day does sound like something isn't quite right and if pup is looking dehyrdated I would of had him/her at the vets urgently rather than wait till tomorrow.

had similar with one from my last litter agree with westcoast electrolyte are required you need to get some lectade from the vet and continue giving at regular intervals with a bottle a newborn baby bottle from tesco with the smallest teat , if pup is definitely suckling keep putting on the teat (does he have a strong suck when you put a clean finger in his mouth ) I was told the fluids are more important than the milk if he is dehydrated. Also nutridrops to give him an energy boost.
Remember to keep him warm does he feel cool to the touch? if yes pop him down your top or get him under a heat lamp or on a heat pad his nose should be nice and pink.

You do need to see the vet tonight if he is dehydrated they can go down very quickly .

Roni

Hi Westcoast, I don't have any of that stuff, not being a breeder

The only thing I have is lactol

They're both basic whelping kit.  Then ring your Vet urgently and get some from him - he'll have electrolytes but probably not nutridrops.

If nothing else, glucose and water or water down the lactol formula to rehydrate.

Best wishes

hows pup doing louise? did you get him to vets? x

Hi been to vet, gave him some fluid under skin, the vet found that he has trouble getting a firm hold when suckling so advised me to hand feed and sold me welpi as he said it was better than lactol also gave me a bottle that is better suited to pups who have difficulty suckling.

He is doing better now

I would still be trying to get him to latch on properly on Mum, as he grows he should get better at it, use the formula just to keep him going. 

You will know if he is latched on properly when you tug on his body slightly and the grip on the teat is really firm. 

Also once the bitch milk really comes in about day three or four you will notice that you can hear the pups glugging and see a little white circle of milk around their lips and they will be wagging their tails with satisfaction as it wont be such hard work getting the milk.

glad he is a little better today . I think its debatable about the milk I hand reared a whole litter this year on Lactol I find it  much easier to prepare than whelpi. my puppies thrived very well.

I would also keep putting him on Mum as he needs first milk .

hi, i am trying him on mum, he has a good go, but you can hear him suck air. at one point last night i thought i had lost him, he was at his mum and getting alot of air then made a gurgling sound and stretched out and went very stiff with his mouth wide open and stopped breathing. rubbed well and he came back :-D

when drinking from bottle or mum, you can see when he has had to much air as his mouth goes open as before and struggles to breath, but apart from that he is more active and less dehydrated today

glad to haer his alot better ...but the only way to stop him taking to much air is to tube feed him! shame you carnt get hold of the breeder that lives near you she may be able to show you? x

Sorry to hear you're having a struggle with this little one. It could be he had such a rough birth he's weak. I didn't have the nutridrops with our recent litter and I'll never be without them again.

We had one like yours unfortunately we couldn't save her, she had become severely dehydrated and we didn't realise until it was too late. The first we knew was when she had a seizure (sounds a bit like what you're describing) vet plumped her up with fluids, and kept her on a heat source, but not to be. Sometimes whatever we do, there are some pups who just won't make it, they're so tiny and fragile when so young.

At least you've got a fighting chance with this little one. I guess all I'd say is that keep trying, where there's life there's hope. It sounds like you're doing all you can, good luck.

oh dear Louise sound like he had a fit. Did the vet give you some lectade you really do need it to keep his electrolytes stable  along with this  I would be bottle feeding him then you at least will know what he has taken .
Maybe something else is going on with this baby. Did he have a difficult birth

I too like itsadogslife  had the same earlier this year with two puppies but I know they had difficult births and not the smallest in the litter. Nutridrops are a god send and so is lectade which is a product always useful to have in stock for dogs who have had upset tummy and vomiting. Only cost £3 or so.

I hate to say it but it sounds like one of my pups that died as her lungs hadn't fully inflated/got liquid down into the lungs. 

At birth she had been gasping for air, and the next day seemed to be feeding fine, but it was inefficient, because she had trouble breathing and feeding at once.

Was the Vet absolutely sure there is no cleft palate.

Remember sadly not all pups are destined to make the transition from birth to maturity.

I also once had a pup go stiff like that after feeding and regurgitating the milk, and the Vet said it was Liver shunt, had him PTS at 12 days old.

vet was 100% sure nothing wrong with him apart from poor suction and just gave fluids under skin and said to hand feed and that there is no reason why he could not grow up to be a strong healthy dog

doing really well today, less sign of dehydration, much more active too, bottle feeding every 2 hours and putting on to mum in between as and when he starts looking for teat, he can't seem to find it or latch on by himself so after a few minutes of him trying i put him on and support him or he loses it again

I would still worry about cleft palate, we had a pup, 4 years ago that couldn't latch on, he was checked over by 3 different vets and none of them could find anything wrong with him, we continued to bottle feed him and he was fine, it wasn't until he reached 6 weeks that we finally found he had a small whole in the soft palate.  But he is still alive and doing well, with his owners, we told them about the problem and they were happy to take him on.

sometimes I have put a rolled up towel under a pup so that they can hold on in the early days until they get stronger or pop them on the lower teat so that they dont have to reach when the front legs get stronger they find it easier. Never had a cleft palate is it common in the breed? does milk come down his nose?
How is he on the bottle does he have a strong suck ? dont forget to wind him after the bottle you get a little burp!! if he cant seem to find the teat make sure the other bossy puppies arent pushing him out.

Been and bought a human baby bottle today with a firm large teat and he is doing well on that, he is getting to be a very feisty little guy, lol.

It definitely not big ones pushing him out of way making the problem, I have protected him from them to see how he goes on, to no avail, so I physically place a teat in mouth and hold him close to lower ones.

Yes I do burp him and toilet him and no milk comes down nose.

He is looking much much better today and full of beans, would never guess looking at him that he had been not right

Great news...hope he continues to do well. xx

great news louise I prefer a proper baby bottle than puppy feeding bottles , he will pile the weight on now !!

I have never got on with the puppy bottles, always used the small baby bottles and teats.  Sterilising goes without saying of course.  I always use the silicon teats.

He still has not put any weight back on still only 300g the others all range between 600g and 700g. popping into vet today see if I can get any electrolite also looking for somewhere to get nutridrops and lectade

Brainless that's what I'm doing, basically treating as a human child in that respect

despite his size he got alot of energy lol

lectade should be available at the vets and nutridrops from www.hyperdrug.co.uk

electrolyte is lectade.What colour is his pee? should be a pale green if it is dark he def needs more fiuids.Just looked back at my book, when I had to hand rear a litter after the first week  they were taking approx 1oz  every 2 hrs, everyday it is a little bit more.

worrying he hasnt gained but he also hasnt lost anymore so he may be better with this bottle.

Pee is pale green, got lectade from vets and also had nutridrops so got that too, also said not to worry to much that weight still same at mo ment, give few more days and if still same to take back between xmas and new year

Forgot to add, is there anything else that I should get in just in case anything else happens?

cant think of anything just make sure you have enough puppy milk its amazing how much they get through, the ony other item I usually have in is gripe water but you may never use it!

Roni

So glad to hear this little pup is doing better. you may have just dragged him back from the brink!!!

Long may it continue....!!

YAY, he has put almost 100g on

so pleased

Roni

:) great news!

he has started getting a bit of milk coming out his nose now that he is drinking more and drinking faster, am going to get him checked again for a cleft palett. when breathing for awhile after feeding he sounds a bit rattly as if he has breathed some fluid in. 

If he is sounding a bit rattly, he may have inhaled some milk into his lungs and is developing Aspiration Pneumonia. Hand reared pups are alwaus at risk of inhaling a small amount of milk which can set off an infection in their lungs. If this is the case, your vet will probably recommend anti-biotic treatment with Synulox drops or similar which will hopefully cure the problem if you have caught it early enough. Good luck.

hows it going louise??

Just started a new topic on the behaviour thread, I really really need advice, she has just bit a child