Hi, we have a litter of pups who are 7 days old today. All quite nicely putting on weight but one was born a lot smaller than the others (possibly conceived on a different day?). Anyway they all lost weight for a couple of days which I know is normal and about day 3 on have been steadily gaining, even the little one. She never suckles as long as the others and easily gets knocked off due to her size. I always put her on the back teats and put quieter pups to feed next to her. She usually manages 10-15 minutes. Last night however we went to feed them at 4 and she was really quiet not moving much and wouldn't suckle. Have tried nutri drops and glucose water. They are short nosed so have to be careful with bottles as they can inhale the fluids easily. Since then she is very much the same,quite lifeless. Weighed her this morning and has not put on any weight since yesterday. Obviously very worried, thinking a trip to the vets may be worth it perhaps. She's now on the heated pad with a towel over to keep warm. Any suggestions please, don't want to lose her.

Hi biffsupreme

First - she wasn't conceived on a different day (even if mated several times.)

As it really sounds that you have already tried the right things, I would get to a vet fast before she deteriorates any further.  Sorry it's probably not what you want to hear, but you have already tried and vet can check if there is something stopping her from feeding.

Good Luck.

Agree with JeanSW straight to the vet - it can make all the difference.

Thanks for the advice so far. Have taken her to the vet, they administered an antibiotic injection and gave her some glucose fluid via the skin. She looked like a little pin cushion bless her. They also gave me some dextrose powder to make into a paste and give a drop to every so often. Fingers crossed but at the moment its not looking too good.

Hope it goes well, they are such a worry when they are so young, keep persevering with her and let us know how she progresses.