Im not a breeder but I think you should call you vet ASAP.
I found this info on Mastitis. I hope it helps. Please keep us posted.
Mastitis in Dogs and Cats: What to expect when you take your pet to the vet
(Of course, your veterinarian may treat this problem a little differently)
by Roger Ross, DVM
Mastitis refers to swelling, inflammation, and infection of the breast...one of the many things that can go wrong during the pregnancy, birth, and nursing process. Having babies is a fairly high risk venture in all species, and of all the potential problems that can occur, mastitis is usually fairly easy to treat ...but not always: this disease can be deadly. Yet another reason to recommend spaying female pets unless you really want a litter and are willing to take on the responsibility and expenses of when things go wrong.
Some Basics:
Mastitis refers to the swelling, inflammation, and infection of one or more mammary glands (breast tissue)...a problem that sometimes occurs while nursing puppies or kittens.
Think about it; the spongy glands of the breasts have been recently stimulated by hormone changes to swell and produce milk and colostrum...full of nourishing fats and sugars...A NEAR PERFECT situation for bacterial growth. All a bacteria has to do to gain entrance into the milk enriched gland is find a way up the teat canal...which very likely might be swollen and raw from being suckled and gnawed on by greedy little infants.
If the bacteria can't make it up the nipple, it can possibly gain entrance from the blood ; after all, it's common to have an extra high bacteria count in the uterus, the vagina, and the near-by urinary tract for a few weeks after delivery...AND NOT ONLY THAT, but the mom's immune system is often out of whack during the massive hormone changes of pregnancy and nursing. So, bacteria might gain entrance into the blood stream, evade the immune system's defenses...and settle happily into the milky goo of the mammary glands.
To top it off, the intestinal system...the number one source of bacterial invasion into the blood stream...is more likely to be raw and inflammed during nursing. Why? Because the hormones of pregnancy stimulate intestinal worms to come out of dormancy and feast on the intestinal tract...AND...GI upset (inflammation) is very common post delivery due to the mom eating all those nasty placentas, cleaning up all that vaginal discharge, and licking all those puppy or kitten butts.
After reading the above, you might not be surprised to know that ALL (100%) nursing dogs and cats get bacteria in their breast tissue. Luckily, most of the time, the immune system is successful at keeping the bacteria numbers low enough so as not to cause obvious disease needing medical treatment. But sometimes the immune system is not up to par...often due to poor nutrition, poor parasite control, or poor vaccination protection...and sometimes due to poor dental care. (Inflammed gums are a major source of bacterial entry into the blood stream) Sometimes the immune system is simply over-whelmed:
This article is about what to expect if your pet happens to get an infection of the breast tissue during nursing...a disease known as MASTITIS
Symptoms:
The most obvious symptom is a swollen mammary gland (breast, tit, etc) that is either more red, discolored, painful, firm, or lumpy than the other breasts on the pet.
The breast may discharge pus...or milk that looks different from the other breasts.
Other symptoms might include:
Fever (rectal temperatures greater than 103 F in both dogs and cats)
No or poor appetite
Dying pups or kittens
Poor energy level
Note: the above symptoms are not exclusive to mastitis; they could be caused by other or additional problems.
|