Bonnie's Having Her Pups!!

[manolos mom]

[http://www.yorkietalk.com/forums/pic...61QUOTE=Woogie Man;2282607]I posted earlier that I had gotten about 2.5 cc formula in the smallest girl. She handled it fine but at the last feeding she was still kind of full and would only take about 1.5 cc but her belly was nice and tight. Think I'll back off just a hair from the 2.5cc on her next feeding. The other girl is definitely getting a good share of Mom's milk and had a firm tummy but I got 1 cc down her anyway. I'm still giving both the broth. I have the Nutri-drops but for now will stick with the broth instead. I can give them that with every feeding so it's a more continuous source of nutrients it seems. The bigger one that I'm feeding has good spring action on her skin so I'll stop the sub-q on her but the other one still needs it. Her skin seems more elastic and not so thin as before but still doesn't spring back like I'd like it be. Denise, the 1cc every 12 hours for the sub-q is my vet's recommendation but it does seem like they've been slow to re-hydrate. Thanks for the advice. I may up the volume and go a little more often. I have never done it before so have just been following what he said but, given the results I'm seeing, what you say makes sense. Good luck with your little boy. If he's made it to 2 weeks and is gaining, sounds like he'll make it. I do have a heating pad for the babies but the bigger ones seem to stay off it during the day. It's been in the mid 80's here in the day and around 70 at night. When they're off the pad, they're kind of sprawled out and not bunching up together so they're not getting cold. The little one I keep on the pad unless she's nestled in with Mom. Thanks for all the advice, y'all. I'll post again later after a couple more feedings. Jim[/QUOTE]

Originally Posted by Woogie Man

Okay, I checked my Revival catalog and found the Nurse Mate. They also sell the Just Born that I'm now using and it says it has colostrum in it. They also have something called Milkade which is supposed to help in producing more milk. I'll call tomorrow and see about getting these things.

[Woogie Man]

Oh, Belle is gorgeous! Her color is a bit richer but her expression reminds me so much of my Scarlett. Congratulations, your efforts certainly paid off. They're so worth it, aren't they? I'm still watching mine like a hawk, but if my lying eyes aren't deceiving me things are looking up here. Not out of the woods yet, but tonight I'm getting cautiously optimistic.

[katelin]

That is great news!! Hopefully you will have an uneventful night.

[Woogie Man]

Originally Posted by katelin

That is great news!! Hopefully you will have an uneventful night.

Katelin, I sure hope so. I took Denise's advice and gave her an additional cc of fluid sub-q. She seemed to respond really well to it. When I think about it, it makes sense to do more fluid as long as she shows signs of dehydration. With proper hydration, she should be able to regulate her temp more on her own. She didn't 'plump up' just yet but does show a noticeable improvement. I had my wife come look at her to confirm it. I'm in with her almost constantly and wasn't sure if it was just wishful thinking making me see a difference but it seems like yes, she is doing better. Let's keep our fingers crossed.

[katelin]

I'm so glad. Crossing my fingers here.

[manolos mom]

DONT FEED FAST THE PUP WILL SUCKLE AND JUST LET FEW DROPS OUT AT A TIME..Im off to work but please keep us informed...I hope everything went well last night..I always give my Lola a quick warm bath after a couple of hours then feed her some chicken broth...Its hard work on them. GOOD LUCK TO YOU AND KEEP US INFORMED..IM OFF TO WORK BUT WILL BE HOME AFTER 12..LOTS OF GREAT HELP HERE ON THIS SITE...GOD BLESS. LISSETTE

[Woogie Man]

Thankfully, it was an uneventful night. All pups are doing well. The smallest one is taking in just a bit more food and seems a little stronger. Her sister is nursing off Mom some so I've backed off a little on the amount I feed her and she's looking good. Lissette, I'm using an eyedropper to feed them and I take it slow, just letting the puppies dictate how fast they eat. With the dropper, it's easy to meter their intake so no danger of the food backing up through their noses and such. Bonnie still helps by cleaning off their milk mouth and diapering them when they're finished eating. We're co-mommies . I'll be so happy if the rest of the day goes as well as last night. Well, off for another short nap. I'll post again later with an update. Thank you all so much for the concern and advice. Jim

[nikkinack]

Glad you had a good night

[IluvLucy]

I'm so sorry about the 2 little ones that didn't make it It sounds like you're doing everything in your power for the rest of Bonnie's babies.

There are a lot of people here who know SO much about whelping and babies so I know you're receiving excellent advice.

I'm saying prayers for Bonnie and the rest of the babies. Hang in there!

[manolos mom]

Im so glad you all did well last night..How are you guys doing now...Are they eating and getting a little fuller. It seem to take about 2 weeks to get Belle a little fuller. she started doing better after a few days then all of a sudden she looked as thou she was not gaining weight and looking real punny..I just had to feed her more and tell her I was not going to let her die..She cryed alot and one day I was resting in my bed and Lola picked her up and jumped on my bed and layed tiny Belle on my stomach, like saying help her please..Just watch them because they seem to lose body heat and weight real fast. like one feeding....I dont mean to scare you but I dont want you to feel alone in this..God Bless those babies and you for taking care of them with little sleep.....

[katelin]

So glad your night was uneventful -- you've had enough for a while.

I'll be watching and sending my best wishes to you.

[Woogie Man]

Lissette, I'm happy to say that things are still looking good here. The tiniest girl has made a real turnaround. She's looking less frail and is beginning to plump a bit. She's also a little more active today. I caught her earlier working a teat! (hooray!) When her next feeding came around, she didn't take as much food but her belly was nice and firm so she was getting something off Mom. I'm not relaxing with her feeding schedule but it's a real difference in her since last night. I think it was due mostly to giving her the extra sub-Q that did the trick. I didn't do as much as Denise (Majestic Yorkies) said she was doing, but did start doing 1cc every 6 hours rather than the 12 hour schedule my vet recommended. The difference is really noticeable. The other girl I've been feeding is getting a good bit from Mom and is only taking a little supplement but is looking good, too. I did the extra sub-Q on her, too. Before, even though they were getting a good amount of food and the beef liver broth, they just weren't hydrating as they should. It makes so much sense, too. Proper hydration is required not only for regulating their temp but also for proper organ function. I'm devastated about the loss of the two girls but am very hopeful now for the remaining ones. I can't believe how little sleep I've gotten but it's so worth it to see these little ones bounce back. I've made an appointment with the vet for tomorrow. Hopefully they're thriving enough to get their tails and dew claws done but it's his call on that. I'll update later on but can tell you that it feels like we're out of the crisis mode now. Everyone here has been wonderful with their concerns and advice and I do appreciate it so much. Jim

[katelin]

Jim, just a word about the tails and dew claws. My vet wants them all over 4 oz. before he will do them. My last large litter we did in 2 stages, and the little ones were a week old before they were docked. I was glad I waited on them. They all did fine.

[Woogie Man]

Originally Posted by katelin

Jim, just a word about the tails and dew claws. My vet wants them all over 4 oz. before he will do them. My last large litter we did in 2 stages, and the little ones were a week old before they were docked. I was glad I waited on them. They all did fine.

Katelin, that's something I've considered already and am frankly a little worried about it. In the past, I've had one as small as 3 ounces get the tail and dew claws done with no problem. That was, of course, a baby that was vigorous and thriving. In this case, these babies are already a week old. I know we're on the outside edge of a good time to get them done. In this litter, I have two that are certainly thriving and should handle it well. A third one, though I'm still supplementing her, is doing well and is eating more from her Mom than my supplementing. She is now 3.4 ounces. The one that's caused me so much worry is doing much better and doesn't appear frail anymore but she is small, only 2.4 ounces. I certainly won't risk any one of them for a docking procedure and my smallest one I'm very unsure of. I saw the vet on Monday and he wouldn't consider them for docking at that time (neither would I have, for that matter). I'm not pushing the issue with him and will have to rely on his judgement. What I'm thinking is if he wants to delay the smallest one more than a day or two, then I probably won't have it done due to her age. I've heard only about maybe 10 days old being the outside limit before it gets to be more like an amputation. I just may wind up with a Yorkie with a tail but that's fine, as long as she's healthy. She'll be gorgeous anyway. If anyone has any experience with having the tails done past 10 days, I'd love to hear about it. Jim

[katelin]

Let me bump this for you and see if anyone responds.