Hiya,
      My small dog had 9 pups last Sunday by c-section, the vet suggested that i feed them whelpi every two hours as it was a large litter for a small dog. I have been doing so every 2 hours since then, they don't seem to drink very much of what i give them at all dribble most of it out which mum drinks. As they have been putting on weight daily (about 10 grams)i have not worried too much. They are now all between 6.5 and 8 ounces and started at around 4.5. Does this sound ok??
The are getting bigger and none seem weak. As none of them seem hungry enough to to want to swallow what i give them do you think mum is providing enough for them??
She has been very good and has looked after them excellently.
Do you think now that they have all made it a week that they have good chances as the vet said it was likely some will die, do you think this is still likely to happen.
Any advice anyone could offer would be greatly appreciated.
Thanks
Kelly

How are you feeding them?  When I hand reared my litter at Christmas, I started off with 2ml of Welpi every 2 hours both day and night.  I also used a premature baby bottle with air valve, 2ml is a tiny amount, but they slowly gained weight.

They've got to 7 days, just keep going, fingers crossed they'll all survive.  Does mum have much milk??

The vets gave me a syringe to feed them with but its not very effective because i imagine they don't like the feel of it. I'm managing nowhere near 2 ml, more like 0.5 of a ml before they start dribbling sometimes 1ml over a couple of minutes but they are very good at refusing to drink it! This is what makes me think/hope they are probably getting enough milk since they are not hungry and gaining weight.
Excuse me for being dense but how do i check shes still producing milk before they were born you could lightly pinch and a little would be produced but no you can't, is this a bad sign or just because they are not so full anymore.
Also just today they have been so adament they are not taking any that it almost sounds like they are inhaling it instead so i have had to give up with most of the litter on the last two hourly feed as i am worried they will choke.
Should i still try and feed them or see if they gain the weight by tomorrow if i don't and just check they are lively every two hours?
I really don't want to do the wrong thing either way and risk losing any of them after they have done so well.

Hi
I just wondered, did the vet say why some might die? as I am also the worried owner of a mum and 7 pups born a week & a half ago & I still wonder if any might die & why, I tried to help them feed but they would'nt.
Suzanne

Hiya,
       The vet just said tht sometimes as so many have had to be supported inside her that they may not have had enough nutrients to be strong enough to make it. Also she may not have enough milk to feed them all so i would have to suppliment them every two hours. As i said i have been trying to do this but with limited sucess but they are all still alive after a week and gaining weight. I would like to hope this means mum is managing to feed them all with her reserves but don't know how i can be sure without risking their lives.
Have all yours been gaining weight? Even the tiniest of my litter is still strong and has gone from 120g to 190g in a week. I can't imagine all their gain is from the tiny amounts they are willing to drink from me.
I would like to think that because our pups have survived so long they surely all must be healthy and getting fed enough.
I am worried about her supporting them as they get bigger though and was wondering if anyone knew if when they started lapping which apparently can be as early as two weeks it would be ok to try and coax them into eating whelpi mixed with something tastier like liquidised rice pudding or farleys rusks to suppliment them alittle more???

Do you see them actually feeding from mum? Are they on the whole, quiet and contended babies? If yes to both of these then I don't think you have anything to worry about :) a hungry puppy will cry out and be restless, same as if its cold. And, if mum is laying there contentidly feeding them, then cleaning them and not getting distressed, then all is well with her as well. If there is/are any smaller puppies than the rest, try latching them onto a teat before the other 'greedy guts' get in or try to latch them on for a few minutes with mum out of the box, so the biggers ones can't push them off. That gives them a head start to fill up before the other stronger ones get there. To latch them on, rather than trying to get their mouths around a teat, if you hold their bottom end with one hand and hold the nipple out with the other and gently push the pup up to the nipple. This is usually a lot easier to get them latched on. Sometimes you have to stay there holding the puppies botty while it drinks :D but its all in a good cause. Just feed mum as much as she wants to eat and give her plenty of drinks and she should keep on producing plenty of milk for them. You can start to wean them at 2 1/2 to 3 weeks, so not long to go now ;)
Good Luck, keep us informed
Anne

Thankyou for your advice, i have two smaller girls, and also two of them are incrediably fat in comparison to the others! I will try your advice and see if i can give the smaller two abit of a head start! They all feed from mum and the rest of their time the spend quietly sleeping. The only time they squark is when they are faced with the whelpi, they wriggle alot when you pick them up and when doing this all appear strong. They all attempt to feed and try and get in, none seem lathargic.
Should i keep up my attempts at the whelpi feeds anyway, i'd hate to stop and then lose one.. who needs sleep anyway!!! The vet said that after today it would be ok for every three hours anyway.

Lactation is supply and demand and Mum seems to be doing well so you are better geting the best into her so she can continue3 to produce plenty of milk.  I would give up teh supplemetns unless they get tetchy and ovbviously hungry, but in a few days if this shoudl happen their eyes willb egin to open and you can start early weaning giving a porridge consistency of soaked puppy food mixed with welp in a saucer.  I have started pups as early as 10 days if their weight gain hasn't been too brilliant.

We had 9 pups by cs that survived...2 were born dead. All were fine without extra help from me. I have tried topping up but if pups are getting enough from mom they are not too impressed with it. It is supply and demand, the more they feed and grow, so the milk increases. If they are gaining weight and content..looks a good sign. You are right in encouraging the smaller ones to feed first. Sometimes it helps to put the strongest pups on just for a few secs which starts the milk flow off for the littler ones to latch on to.  Good Luck
Sue

Hi cjjm26

I have left some information on a topic under "Trouble Bottle Feeding" if you check it out it might help

Alexis

and hope all turns out ok........I think a lot of ordinary people think its easy breeding like a walk in the park.
Oh how little they know.

<They all feed from mum and the rest of their time the spend quietly sleeping.>

I think that you have answered your own question! Why supplement the puppies when they are feeding and sleeping okay.  We had a litter of 10 to a C-sectioned bitch, we made sure that she had plenty to drink and eat and she then fed the puppies.
A C-section should not make a bitch any less able to cope than a bitch delivering naturally.

You should keep an eye on the puppies and ensure that any of them that look a bit smaller are given the first chance at the milk-bar, this should ensure that they even out over a period of time. You can then start to wean them early (at around 3-weeks), which will help even them out further, because you can hand-feed the puppies their ration for the first week or so and be confident that they are getting the nutrients that they need.

Snomaes