Help! My Yorkie Is Pregnant
 

I am not a breeder. I actually didn't plan on Delilah ever having puppies and tried to prevent it. Delilah is three years old and this will be our first litter of puppies. She has two or three weeks left. The ultrasound indicated that she has two puppies with viable heartbeats but Dr. Kline advised there could be others. I am very concerned with the pregnancy because Delilah is so small. She was a little over 3lbs prior to the pregnancy and today is 4lbs. I was wondering are most yorkies her size able to safely deliver their puppies naturally? I am interested hearing opinions and experiences on both natural and c-section births. I'm also wondering how to recognize if something is wrong and when to call the vet.

Thank you in advance.

How large is the sire of the puppies? Do you know what size her parents were? Also, do you know if the females back in her and the sire's lines have a history of free-welping or needing a C-section? The answers to those questions will probably help some of the experienced breeders on here to give you better advise

Louis is 1yr old and weiged 7lbs today. His mother was 4lbs and his father was 2 1/2lbs. The breeder worked for a vet and opted for the c-section. There were five puppies three of which ended up seizing up and dying from liver shunt. Delilah's parents were both 4lbs. Her mother had five puppies naturally with her litter. I took them both to the vet today. She advised me to try to let her have them naturally and to call if an emergency. I am really concerned with Delilah safety.

Wow the sire is quite a bit larger, but his parents were pretty small. There is a breeding forum too, and you might get more responses to this kind of question in there. Hopefully some of the more experienced breeders can help you.

You said that the dad had three siblings that died of liver shunt. I'm not sure if you know but liver shunt is a genetic defect and your male could be a carrier of it. Because of this, it's very important that when you are finding homes for the puppies that the potential parents know that it is a possibility that their puppy could develop liver shunt. You should have the puppies bile acid tested before they leave you, although a shunt may not show up until even later. I just wanted to say all this so you can be prepared that these puppies could have this defect. It can be quite expensive to fix and treat so that's why it'll be important that the new owners are prepared financially for it in case the puppy develops a shunt.

Your little girl is really too small for breeding but there have been 3lb dogs that have given birth without issues. I would definitely make sure you talk with your vet and be prepared for a c-section if needed. Again, the breeder section will probably get you more responses from breeders and get you more help. I hope your little girl makes it okay

My vet said just because Louis's siblings died from liver shunt doesn't certainly mean he or his puppies will have or carry that particular gene. However, this has been an additional concern of mine. I'm not selling my puppies to anyone but they will be tested. I am keeping one puppy and giving one to my friend, Jaqueline. If there are any additional puppies I am going to give them to people close to me. I wouldn't consider letting them go to anyone I didn't trust completely and see on a regular basis.

Thanks for the tips.

Well first, Welcome to YorkieTalk:)

Now three pounds is just way too small to have a litter. It can work but it is too risky in my opinion. Usually breeders insist that the dam is atleast 4 1/2 or 5 pounds minimum.

Being as the father's siblings had shunts, there is no way in this world that he should have been bred. Liver shunt can go back 10 generations. If the puppies have shunts, they will need surgery. This will be thousands of dollars (usually) per dog. LS is not a death sentence, so it's not fair to the pups to not try the surgery.

I know this was all an accident but I'm a little puzzled with your vet's opinion. I don't want to say that he/she is wrong, but I would not accept this advice from them. I would have your female spayed to end the pregnancy now. Maybe I am wrong though...

The female is only 2 or 3 weeks away from whelping....I don't know what I'd do in this situation.....everything that should have been done to prevent this from happening wasn't

Mardelin, can this girl be spayed now? Is it too close to the due date?

I really don't know.....I've never been up against a situation like this one.

Since there is no DNA marker test that can be done to find out if the sire is a carrier, all that can be done is wait.

Okay...I was just thinking since she could have a c-section, it would be no different to do it now and avoid complications later. Since they take the uterus during a spay anyway, I am thinking it wouldn't hurt to do it now.

Tough call

Sure is....besides being expensive in the long run....definately all will have to be bile acid tested and then retested at 6 months of age. Spay and nueter on dam and sire.....very expensive litter.

Technically you can spay a pregnant dog and abort the puppies right up until the puppies are viable on their own. It would be riskier to spay a pregnant dog this far along though - increased bleeding for sure but it's an option if the OP wants to consider it.

And no, the puppies are not guaranteed to have liver shunt, but it is a very real possibility and they are at quite a high risk for it with their father's background. Hopefully they'll be lucky and won't inherit it.

I agree. I am definitely spaying her afterwards. I didn't already because I was too afraid something would go wrong. Her mother's sister bled to death on the operating table. I've been given so much conflicting information from not only breeders but vet's as well. My head is spinning!

I use pants on my female when she is in heat. It's always worked in the past but I took them off for a minute, he got to her and even though I caught them right away it was too late.

My vet said to let her have them naturally. Is that a good idea? I'm so worried. No expense is too high for me to keep her safe and healthy.

Should I have my female spayed or my male neutered? Nervous since Delilah's aunt hemorrhage and died.

I would have them both spayed and neutered