Quote:
Originally Posted by RubenO  Hi,
I posted this in my other thread but it seems either this forum is slow or the other thread is not so active.
For those that don't know, our parti Sabrina gave birth to two parti females 6 days ago (Saturday, March 7). When they were born, they both seemed to be the same weight ( I didn't weigh them) one of them took to the nipple right away and has been feeding really well and has doubled in size since birth (currently weighs 5.0 oz) unlike her sister who currently weighs 2.45 oz.
Her sister was having a hard time feeding from the mother, her head keeps bobbing allot and she doesn't seem to have enough energy to suck the milk out. We tried assisting the first two days by keeping her head on the nipple and squeezing the milk out but it is hard to tell if she was getting enough.
Our local vet advised us to milk the mother into a syringe and feed the baby every 3 hours from the syringe. That seems to be working well and the baby is drinking allot and relieving herself but she is either a slow grower or her body is not getting the proper nutrients from the mothers milk. She is really small and is not as active as her big sister. her skin is also much redder than the sisters pink skin.
We feed her until she pulls her head away and her stomach fills out (can't really feel rib cage).
Is there any recommended supplements we should feed her to help get her energy level up? She also seems to cry more than her big sister, sometimes even when she is sleeping.
The mother is a 5.5 lb parti and the father is a 4.5 lb. parti carrier.
Thanks for your help in advance.
Ruben |
Ruben,
Zacchie would cry more when he was overheated.
Your heating pad may be a little too warm. You might try folding a towel or blanket on top of it, to give more layers between the pup and the pad. A warming light might be a better way to warm her. You can regulate the temperature better by the distance you place it over the pup.
Put your hand under the lamp, and just over the baby. It should feel pretty warm, but not hot enough to be uncomfortable.
Right now, the more calories she burns, the slower she will pick up weight.