Hi everyone
I took my bitch for her scan today (5 weeks ish) and the vet said he could only see one puppy :-( I am worried as I know about the problems a bitch can have "getting started" as only one pup.
Can anyone give any advice on what I should/should not do in this case and what other problems may I be faced with.
Also at the moment she is having bouts of sickness and diahorrea - the odd day here and there - I have put this possibly down to pregnancy and heat etc. She will only have the runs for a day then she returns to normal so it is not constant.
Again any tips on this and whether down to what I think also appreciated :-)
By the way she is going back for another scan in another 2 weeks to re-confirm only one pup just incas one hiding behind the one they could see.

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I really don't understand why you would want to subject your bitch and unborn puppy to another scan. There are always risks when you do x-rays, ultrasounds (scans) to the unborn pups. Some have been documented but many have not yet. Many of the vets in North America are backing off using both of these diagnosic aids in pregnancy because of the unknown problems that can occur. You know you have one pup. In a number of cases when one pup shows up on a scan at whelping a multiple birth results. What has happened to being patient and waiting out the gestation period. I truly believe that the bitch's pregnancy should be handled in an "AU NATURAL" way as possible. I give no additional supplements, do no x-rays or scans. My vet might do a palpitation around 6 weeks if I think there is a need. I have bred 5 litters of Wire-haired Fox Terriers. Red raspberry leaves in the capsule form, I do give once daily from the first breeding as they will not harm the bitch or the pups but do help with the delivery. I just put these in her food.

A bitch will whelp one puppy just as easily as more. If there is going to be a problem the same is also true of the opposite. A friend who breeds Std Poodle puppies just had a litter of 12 that resulted in a early separation of one of the placentas leading to a C-Section of the remaining 11 puppies and the death of the 12th. You just never know. Any early intervention wouldn't have changed things or could have caused even bigger problems.

That's why you need to read up on what is going to happen. Keep as Calm as you can! Wait until your bitch is ready to present you with her baby or babies. Many of the toy breeds don't ever have more than 1 or 2 pups.

Margaret :(

There was an article on the radio some time ago about ultrasound scans. It appears that the incident of left handed children is higher when born by mothers who have been scanned! For my part, I find that worrying! Anything which changes the "Natural average" I find disturbing!

So often vets get scans wrong so there could well be more. If there is only one then it is likely to be a very large puppy and the bitch may not be able to give birth naturally This happened to a friend's bitch and the puppy died during birth.

Regards, John

Hello John
I read with interest what you heard on the radio.
I have 3 children.
My oldest I had one scan at 16 weeks with and he is left handed.
My other two (girl and boy) due to a problem in a previous pregnacy (after my oldest was born) had to be scanned every 4 weeks to check for problems. So they both had a fair few scans during the 40 week pregnancy :-) Both of them are right handed! :-)
I will monitor my bitch very closely and if no signs of labour around her due date will be straight to the vets. If the pup is going to be too large to pass I dare say he will suggest a c-section :-(
Edit: I am left handed too and my mom did not have a scan - don't think they did them then - not that I am old or anything :D

This is not my first litter and I have no problem with being patient :-)
The problem is that sometimes if only one puppy there is not enough hormone produced to trigger off labour - this is what the vet told me.
Therefore if there is only one pup I do not want to take any chances that could be damaging for the pup or the mom.
All of my bitches have been scanned to confirm pregnancy and I have only ever needed to take them once, however I have never been faced with one pup before therefore am asking for peoples experiences that may have been in this position before.
Thanks for the advice on the Rasberry leaf as any help in the whelping process can only be a bonus :-)

It is true that with a singleton there might not be enough hormones produced to induce whelping, i have a friend to whom it happened. I would follow the end of her pregnancy very closely with your vet, did you do any progesterone testing before the mating ? That would help you figure out the real due date. In case of doubt before sectioning have a progesterone test performed, you would not want to section unless the progesterone level has dropped.
Also, unlike someone said earlier, there IS an increased risk of C-section because a singleton might grow too much to be able to pass through the pelvis.
I would NOT give raspberry leaves early in pregnancy as they cause uterine contractions and can lead to abortion.

Thank you for your advice.
The blood test will indicate by the progestrone levels when the "true" date for her labour is then? Do you suggest I start the blood test from the due date from her first mating day?
Sounds a sensible solution as I really do not want for her to have a section unless absolutely neccessary.
What stage of pregnancy do you reccomend the Rasberry leaf from?
Once again thanks for your advice :-)

As of rasp. leaves I don't know as I've never used it, since I read an article about the fact that it caused uterine contractions and could lead to abortion, I never tried to use it !
About the progesterone test, yes, once it drops labour should start, it means the puppies a ready (lungs finished) and can be born, actually should be born asap ! I think you could start on the calculated due date from the first mating to be on the safe side, but if I were you I'd discuss this with my vet. Although it seems not to be a popular opinion, I would x-ray her at the end of the pregnancy to be sure there is only one, so as not to worry for nothing !

That sounds like the best bet to have her scanned/x-rayed later on to be sure only one.
Personally I have never had any problems from scanning and think sometimes medical advances are there to help us and prevent us having problems due to ignorance of what is happening inside :-)
I have never used Rasberry leaf tablets before and from 7 litters I have bred only one c-section, admittedly on a couple of occasions oxytocin has been needed to help them along though.
Thanks again for your advice :-)

To throw a spanner in the works, the only time I haven't given raspberry leaf we have needed veterinary intervention (including 3 jabs of oxytocin).......

Hi JG
So if to be on the safe side and decided only to give Rasberry leaf in the later stages of pregnancy what time would you start them and what dose for a Dogue de Bordeaux? Also, where is the best place to get them? Anywhere over the internet?
Thanks

I always used to give it from mating onwards - but others on this board say that's bad. I never had any problems, though.

As for dosage, I really can't remember - the instructions were on the pot! The ones I used were made by Denes - they may have a website, I'll have a look.

Good luck - I'm sure it'll all go well.
:)

If you type Denes raspberry leaf into your search engine you'll find some suppliers - one sells them at £5.52 per 100.
Hope this helps.
:)

Thanks JG
Have ordered some by phone so probably by the time they ger here our bitch will be about 6 weeks + so will it be OK to start them then or should I leave it till about 8 weeks gone?

I think the best thing is to go by the advice given on the package. Denes only used to do one make of Raspberry Leaf tablets, and they worked perfectly with my bitches.

You must be careful that you are giving RED RASPBERRY LEAVES CAPSULES and not RASPBERRY TEA LEAVES. Each are totally different things. The first can be given throughout the pregnancy without any difficulty of early contractions and abortion but the second can cause problems.

When you go to buy this item you must ensure your buying the Red Raspberry Leaves. The capsules form are the easiest to give your bitch.

Margaret :)

Thanks, I will make sure they are the right ones :-)