Concerned over Mastitis - YorkieTalk.com Forums

starstella92 · 11-12-2009, 07:22 PM

Maybe I'm being paranoid, and I did have the vet check her out just yesterday and he said things looked great. I expressed concerns about the lumpiness to him, but he said she looked fine (and yes, he felt around the area as well). I notice more than anything how lumpy her breasts seem, and today especially this whole area around her breasts are just pretty firm. I don't have experience with this, so I don't know if this is normal. There isn't any redness around it (maybe since this is just beginning it hasn't advanced to that yet?), and no discharge of any sorts, her temperature is where it should be. I did notice earlier when a puppy when nursing from one of those teats, she seemed to whine a little bit; this didn't last very long, but I've never seen one cry while nursing. Is that normal. The last thing I want is for my mama to be in pain or my babies to suffer from it as well.

I'll attach a picture of her teats; mainly the milk is just in the bottom two teats as the pups tend to nurse from those mainly. Am I just being paranoid, I don't know what they should look like. :/

starstella92 · 11-12-2009, 07:51 PM

Let me just add that there isn't hardness directly around her nipples, and the milk that I am able to squeeze out looks normal. It's just that this firmness looks so strange, even though most of the lumpy firmness is below her teats. She is not lethargic at all, and is eating fine. Her babies are gaining weight steadily as well. Please tell me I'm just overreacting.

smartpuppiepets · 11-12-2009, 08:01 PM

I agree with the vets opinion, they look just perfect for me.
You are worried but they look fine, mastites is not common in small breeds, when it happens in large breeds it "hangs" down filled with way too much milk that becomes hard and inflamed...
as long as the puppies are nursing you are fine, if they are engorged and swollen they will be tender, do not worry !

blancla · 11-13-2009, 04:44 AM

Okay, Ellie got this with her first pregnancy. An experienced breeder told me that if you get some PH strips, like the ones to test fish tanks, you can actually test her milk. If it doesn't register as milk which is a 6.7, almost neutral, then the milk is infected. That's when you need to stop the babies from nursing from that nipple. Ellie was put on antibotics, and I covered that nipple and let the babies drink from the other ones. I put cold cabbage leaves on the nipple that was infected which helped bring the swelling down. I cut an old sock and used that to hold that nipple tight and keep the cabbage leaf there. It worked great. Within 5 days, that nipple didn't have milk anymore and the rest of the milk was fine. I checked all the nipples with the PH stips and that worked like a charm for me.

I forgot to state that I did drain the pus from the infected nipple by milking it. She was relieved when it would come out. I know it's gross, but the way I look at her, well all I can say is that she is my child. The daughter that I never had and I would do anything for her.

TatumsMom · 11-13-2009, 06:18 AM

When our Australian Shepherd had pups back in August, she developed mastitis in her lower two teets but she developed a fever (about 103.4 I think) on Friday night (had the pups wee hours of Thursday morning). I took her in with the pups on Saturday morning and the vet confirmed it. Got antibiotics and probiotics (for her and the pups). This was my first time to experience this so the vet showed me what it felt like. I think maybe your girl just feels lumpy because all her milk is in the lower teets? Hope she continues to do well but just keep an eye on her. Good luck.

Princessangela3 · 11-13-2009, 06:28 AM

Bella Mia had mastitis....it was very obvious to see the red color and it was much warmer and she did have a temperature and the pups would not nurse from the infected nipples...it was suggested that we apply warm compresses off and on and massage the infected area...

bjh · 11-13-2009, 11:30 AM

Quote:

Originally Posted by starstella92

Let me just add that there isn't hardness directly around her nipples, and the milk that I am able to squeeze out looks normal. It's just that this firmness looks so strange, even though most of the lumpy firmness is below her teats. She is not lethargic at all, and is eating fine. Her babies are gaining weight steadily as well. Please tell me I'm just overreacting.

How are they looking today. Just from my experience it looks like the start of mastitis. Just watch her very close. When I have a female that looks like that I put her on amoxicillin and by the next day she is back to normal.

starstella92 · 11-13-2009, 02:33 PM

Quote:

Originally Posted by bjh

How are they looking today. Just from my experience it looks like the start of mastitis. Just watch her very close. When I have a female that looks like that I put her on amoxicillin and by the next day she is back to normal.

It looks the same, no redness just a little puffy looking. Not hard, but just firmer in some spots more than others.

TatumsMom · 11-13-2009, 04:40 PM

Quote:

Originally Posted by starstella92

It looks the same, no redness just a little puffy looking. Not hard, but just firmer in some spots more than others.

Well, in my (one-time) experience, there were definitely hard lumpy knots in the teets when Stormie had mastitis - plus the fever. Not sure if they always have fever though. Maybe your just seeing more milk in a concentrated area??

starstella92 · 11-14-2009, 07:42 AM

Quote:

Originally Posted by TatumsMom

Well, in my (one-time) experience, there were definitely hard lumpy knots in the teets when Stormie had mastitis - plus the fever. Not sure if they always have fever though. Maybe your just seeing more milk in a concentrated area??

It looks better to me today. The lumps aren't really noticeable, which is leading me to believe it was probably just the milk that was concentrated in areas, like you said. And the lumps have always been below the teats and not directly around them. Today the whole area is just firm, not hard, so I do think it's just the milk. And the little babies seem to be thriving.

So I do think I was just being paranoid, but better to be safe than sorry. I am still keeping a very close eye on things, just in case. The first sign that something is wrong, we're headed the the vet ASAP.

Anie · 04-23-2015, 04:12 AM

I have the same problem now with my new mother it's been 2days now that half of her breasts,I meanfrom the diaphragm upwards is red and tender and she runs fever.since we don't have a vet on duty,any recommendations to alleviate her pain,tnx

bjh · 04-23-2015, 06:32 AM

Quote:

Originally Posted by Anie

I have the same problem now with my new mother it's been 2days now that half of her breasts,I meanfrom the diaphragm upwards is red and tender and she runs fever.since we don't have a vet on duty,any recommendations to alleviate her pain,tnx

You can use a warm compress on her teats. Some people swear by putting a cabbage compress on the effected teats. For myself I always have amoxicillin on hand and I give it to my mommas when a new momma's teats get hard. That usually clears it up within 24 hours. How high is her temperature? It would be best if you get her to the vet asap, especially if her temp goes above 103.

11-12-2009, 07:51 PM	#2
starstella92 Senior Yorkie Talker Join Date: Nov 2008 Location: Arlington, TX Posts: 216	Let me just add that there isn't hardness directly around her nipples, and the milk that I am able to squeeze out looks normal. It's just that this firmness looks so strange, even though most of the lumpy firmness is below her teats. She is not lethargic at all, and is eating fine. Her babies are gaining weight steadily as well. Please tell me I'm just overreacting. __________________ Tara & Arthur Chloe, Maya, Mallory, & Marina Last edited by starstella92; 11-12-2009 at 07:53 PM.

11-12-2009, 08:01 PM	#3
smartpuppiepets YT 1000 Club Member Join Date: Jun 2007 Location: Beverly Posts: 1,042	I agree with the vets opinion, they look just perfect for me. You are worried but they look fine, mastites is not common in small breeds, when it happens in large breeds it "hangs" down filled with way too much milk that becomes hard and inflamed... as long as the puppies are nursing you are fine, if they are engorged and swollen they will be tender, do not worry ! __________________ "The reason a dog has many friends is because it wags it's tail instead of it's tong " [I]Smartpuppiepets@yahoo.com /I][

11-13-2009, 04:44 AM	#4
blancla YT 1000 Club Member Join Date: Feb 2009 Location: Longwood, FL Posts: 1,122	Okay, Ellie got this with her first pregnancy. An experienced breeder told me that if you get some PH strips, like the ones to test fish tanks, you can actually test her milk. If it doesn't register as milk which is a 6.7, almost neutral, then the milk is infected. That's when you need to stop the babies from nursing from that nipple. Ellie was put on antibotics, and I covered that nipple and let the babies drink from the other ones. I put cold cabbage leaves on the nipple that was infected which helped bring the swelling down. I cut an old sock and used that to hold that nipple tight and keep the cabbage leaf there. It worked great. Within 5 days, that nipple didn't have milk anymore and the rest of the milk was fine. I checked all the nipples with the PH stips and that worked like a charm for me. I forgot to state that I did drain the pus from the infected nipple by milking it. She was relieved when it would come out. I know it's gross, but the way I look at her, well all I can say is that she is my child. The daughter that I never had and I would do anything for her. __________________ ELLIE & PEPPER'S MAMA Last edited by blancla; 11-13-2009 at 04:46 AM.

11-13-2009, 06:18 AM	#5
TatumsMom Donating YT 500 Club Member Join Date: Aug 2004 Location: TX Posts: 2,799	When our Australian Shepherd had pups back in August, she developed mastitis in her lower two teets but she developed a fever (about 103.4 I think) on Friday night (had the pups wee hours of Thursday morning). I took her in with the pups on Saturday morning and the vet confirmed it. Got antibiotics and probiotics (for her and the pups). This was my first time to experience this so the vet showed me what it felt like. I think maybe your girl just feels lumpy because all her milk is in the lower teets? Hope she continues to do well but just keep an eye on her. Good luck. __________________ ~ Angie

11-13-2009, 06:28 AM	#6
Princessangela3 Donating YT 500 Club Member Join Date: May 2009 Location: Woodland, Ca, Usa Posts: 764	Bella Mia had mastitis....it was very obvious to see the red color and it was much warmer and she did have a temperature and the pups would not nurse from the infected nipples...it was suggested that we apply warm compresses off and on and massage the infected area... __________________ ~Angela

04-23-2015, 04:12 AM	#11
Anie YorkieTalk Newbie! Join Date: Apr 2015 Location: hongkong Posts: 1	I have the same problem now with my new mother it's been 2days now that half of her breasts,I meanfrom the diaphragm upwards is red and tender and she runs fever.since we don't have a vet on duty,any recommendations to alleviate her pain,tnx