Quote:
Originally Posted by scrapindee  I have been researching a syndrome(?) called Weaning Depression. Allegedly this happens to puppies when they are being weaned onto puppy food. I have been told by a breeder that it can result in sudden death of a puppy.
So what I am asking here is: Have any of you ever lost a puppy during the weaning process? How many--I am trying to see if this is common. Was a necropsy performed to rule out other ailments? What breed of dog, if not a toy breed.
Thanks in advance. |
I would think this is more of an issue with "force weaning" where pups are just removed from the dam with not much transition. I think in reality it is hypoglycemia. My Piper (a papillon) had a very tough transition while my breeder was trying to wean him and he did have hypoglycemic crashes at least twice that resulted in vet care. She has never had a problem with another puppy, and I have never had any trouble with any of my puppies during weaning (including Piper kids ; ) Knowing Piper, he can be a bit stubborn and I can imagine that he may have decided that he liked mom's milk and that that was all he was going to eat, ever, his whole life, period. When Piper likes something, he REALLY likes it lol.
My moms for the most part have been very good at making the decision about when and how to wean and I just keep an eye on things and make sure everybody starts eating their mash around 3.5 weeks and then transition to kibble from there, while they are also still nursing until Mom calls it off around 10 weeks.