Hannahs Story to be told

[feminvstr]

I have an amazing frightful story to be told, one that I would hope no one would have to experience.

On November 18 Hannahs water broke early evening (day 57 on her due day with 3 puppies)...no contraction all evening so by midnight off to the emergency vet we go (one Ive never used before) by 3:00am still nothing she is resting comfortable so I return home to check on the dogs at home. I call the vet at 7:00am contractions start, they give her a pop shot. By 7:30 am I reminded them she has had a c-section from a puppy being stuck and if she doesnt progress to proceed with the section right away. At noon they call asking for me to make payment arrangement leaving her in labor for 5 hours still no pup (more concerned about payment than the bitch I left them with a cash deposit). I was so upset I said fine please make up my bill and I will take her to my vet...By the time I arrived she had born one little man and you could see she was totally exhausted, labor had stopped once again and the puppy was gasping (which he never stopped) I rush Hannah to vet Ive used before (he was right around the corner and use him on all my dogs dentals) ...He immediately took her in saying she definitely will need a section. Within 20 mins we had the next boy and a baby girl (sectioned)...none had hair you could see straight through their skin...He didnt think any of them would make it.

BTW when he sectioned her he said the last vet (which was an emergency clinic) had done such a terrible past section she was now covered with internal scar tissue, the previous vet cut into every place there was a puppy instead of using one incision for entry. Current vet stated he was very concerned because of this and said she is going to need radical drug treatment to ensure she doesnt get an infection.

When he finished the c-section he administered without my knowledge Baytril, Nexal and Penicillin G. When we were ready to leave he sent home another shot of the Baytril-Nexal combination. I explained I had major concern using these drugs on a nursing bitch, BUT he assured me he has used this treatment many times and has had excellent results.

Monday afternoon we arrive home with 3 very premie babies (one still gasping) and a very tried mom. Hannah wakes up and wants food...eats great and tends to her babies, these babies can not latch on, dont have the strength nor development to do it on their own, so I begin feeding every hour to build their strength.

5:00am Tuesday the first little man (one gasping) gives up his fight, I continue feeding the other two every hour, Hannahs engorged in milk yet these little ones still cant latch so I continue to feed every hour, their not gaining. Hannah is to have her second shot but my gut said not to continue with them, so I didnt.

Wednesday Hannah wont eat and begin force feeding through a syringe, she clearly isnt feeling well by Wednesday night 8:00pm her temp went to 103.9 so despite my gut I gave her shot.

Thursday (thanksgiving morning) 2:30am we lose the fight with the second little boy. I continue feeding the remaining little girl every hour and continue to force feed Hannah...Thursday night her temp drops to 98.6 in a panic I think hypoglycemia and feed her even more. Temp goes back to 102.5 and seems to be resting comfortable. By 9:30pm temp goes back up to 103.9 I monitor her through out the night as it drops down and goes up all night long, I continue feeding both.

Friday 3:00am temp is back 103.9 so I pack her and the remaining baby off to the vet we go. He gives 4 more injections to take home of the Baytril/Nexal combo and 4 of the Penicillin G, as well he injects her with another combination dose. Temp settles, baby girl is now weighing 2.4oz still not enough strength to latch on, Hannah still wont eat, seems so lethargic.

Saturday Hannah gets her injections, the baby girl finally has hair, still not gaining but has a lot of fight. I continue to feed every hour and Hannah temp goes down to 98.4 then races back up to 103.8 I begin to ice her down.

Sunday Hannah gets her injections, the baby girl is holding at 2.4 oz still unable to latch, continue to feed both, Hannah temp now seems to be steady.

Monday no fever but has no energy what so ever, can barely walk...The vet recommends more the these injections 4 more to be exact. Despite what he said I had this underline feeling the drugs may be causing all of this. Hannah has never refused food or had a sad day in her life yet by Monday night she has no life left in her so I started her on clavamox and did not inject her with his "cocktails"

Tuesday day seems a bit better, no fever but NO ENERGY, Baby is maintaining Hannah and she both being fed. Hannah now has NO MILK but the puppy can now latch on her own.

By Wednesday day 11 ...Hannah is on deaths door, I rush her back in and they do blood draws...Her red cell count was 4 (a normal dog is 45) and appears she isnt generating her red cells, her sugar levels were fine, her liver and kidney are functioning normal BUT......so next step he has a live dog donor in his office, he does an emergency blood transfusion, her red cell goes up to 20 after treatment.

He has grave concern and is really upset with me for not giving her the drugs he prescribed. While Hannah was having her transfusion I went to my friends Dawn to look up things on the computer "drug reactions to be exact"

It clearly says penicillin/Nexal can cause abnormalities in the blood. I take this information in for him to read when I return to pick up Hannah. He disputes it explaining she is anemic and there has to be bigger things happening inside her...He now thinks she may be bleeding or leaking internally, then does a stomach draw getting no blood or fluid.

Wednesday night I get Hannah home, she drinks a bit and can walk, still no energy BUT no temp, NO DRUGS except clavamox (despite what he said) puppy still being fed every hour holding now 2.8 oz. Dr also sends out Hannahs blood sample to an outside lab for further testing.

Day twelve November 30th Dr calls early am with the lab results, explaining she is regenerating her own red blood cell but something is killing it off...He is so perplexed and concerned suggesting we not only need a second opinion but need an ultra sound he is still convinced she is draining or bleeding internally. I make an emergency appointment with a leading fertility specialist Thursday morning 10:20AM. We do the ultra sound and find NOTHING WRONG! He does another blood draw and finds her blood level at 16so holding from the transfusion. He also checks the baby girl she is now weighing 3.0 oz and in all appearances very heathy she can latch on (but by wednesday Hannah had nothing left to feed her) The specialist suggested we take Hannah back for another blood transfusion right away. ALSO said he WOULD HAVE NEVER DONE SUCH RADICAL DRUG TREATMENT, EVER and said he could not rule out the drugs not causing these problems! Thursday 12:40pm Hannah begins with her second blood transfusion.

Friday the day is better, Hannah has some energy drinking a lot but still needing to be force fed, Baby is 3.3 oz and by end of night 3.5 oz. Finally all seems to be calming down and everyone is on the mend...YET Mercedes says MOM my turn, she begins labor at 12:30pm and by 4:30pm we have 4 beautiful, healthy baby boys weighing 4.4 - 5.9 oz. JJ is walking proud as he is the daddy to these boys as well as Hannahs little girl.

Today, Saturday day 13 Hannah ate on her own has a bounce in her step and in all appearances seems to be recovering, her baby girl is eating like crazy every two hours and now weighing 3.8 oz at 12 days old.

Sorry the story is so long but needed to explain in depth what I experienced due to a "true drug reaction" almost losing Hannah and raising her premie baby.

PLEASE PLEASE PLEASE take heed in what Ive posted, if you dont agree with what your vet is doing, go by your gut feeling, take things into your own hands...Had I not Hannah would not be alive today!

Ive also posted her little miracle baby girl!

I hope this helps someone...when in doubt!

[Luckyone]

what a horrible and sad experience! Not only to lose puppies but also their momma too. This is a perfect story that demonstrates why you need to be educated in breeding. Had that been just anyone, all those pups and their momma would be gone.

[Yorkiekids]

I'm so sorry you went through all this, but the baby is a doll. I hope they keep getting better and stronger everday.

[labrown]

I am SO glad you were able to discern the best treatment for Hannah and that she is recovering and safe. I was really worried about her as I read the whole post! Prayers that you and your little ones can recover from such an ordeal!

[Mardelin]

Originally Posted by Luckyone

what a horrible and sad experience! Not only to lose puppies but also their momma too. This is a perfect story that demonstrates why you need to be educated in breeding. Had that been just anyone, all those pups and their momma would be gone.

Momma Hannah is still alive and now eating like a champ.

Had Kim not known her girl and the ramifications of Baytril alone, witout mixing it with other antibiotics and going with her gut, she surely would have lost her Hannah.....

Congratulations Kim, Hannah, Mercedes and of course Mr Cock of the walk/JJ

[littlewhip]

Wow Iam so sorry for what you have been thru, and for your loss thanks for posting your story, Iam sure it will help many breeders, On a happy note , the baby is beautiful and Iam so happy your Poor hannah is recovering. Hugs to you all.

[sweetr72]

What a scary ordeal..thank goodness you had the "gut" feeling to do what you thought was right for Hannah..I am so glad she is doing better and her little miracle baby is adorable!! You must be so tired!!

Dawn

[Ladyhawk]

Kim, I'm so sorry you had to go through all that! So glad that the little angel and Hannah have you. Get some sleep as soon as you can, I know you must be exhausted!

[kalina82]

Glad hannah is doing better now. That is a weird drug combo that your vet used. I've never heard of using all those drugs together, especially for her condition. i hope mom and the baby continue to do well.

[Sugar's Mom]

Quite a story. Sorry you and your little ones had to go thru this an for the loss of the babies.

[mistyinca]

Wow! What a frightening experience. That's amazing that you were able to save Hannah and her baby. I'm sorry about the two that you both lost .

[feminvstr]

Thanks everyone, Hannah and "Kings Legend I believe in Miracles" continue to recover and thrive...Mercedes babies are so robust and doing so well they'll be ready for show leads next week

I wanted to add November 19th, Monday night and all of Tuesday I also administered sub-q fluids, liver drops and nutridrop to each of the pups because they couldnt latch a bottle nor lap with the tongue more than a couple drops each feeding with formula, that is what kept the little girl alive today, the little men although they were larger just couldnt keep up with the fight. Also Hannah had from the day of her first transfusion B-12 shots daily to help her along, I just checked on them all and Hannah was up and eating once again...YIPPIE!

The pic I post of little Miracle was taken this morning you can see how tiny resting in my hands...What a little Miracle she and Hannah both are!

[crystalsmom]

Kim I feel as though I went through all that with you except I'm not tired. I was on the edge of my seat and I wish there was a way every one here could read this. Breeding is not for the faint of heart and working with these little ones must take alot of knowledge. I had a story Tuesday at the vet I will have to tell everyone sometime but it worked out fine and not nearly as scary as this. I so hope Hannah builds her strength once again and the baby girl makes it. You are their hero.

[crystalsmom]

We were both posting at the same time and I forgot to mention the little boys in all of this. Sounds like they all are doing much better. Wonderful.

[Patti]

That had to be so scary and frustrating with the vet! Glad Mom and baby are doing well. She is a tiny one!!!