Milk.....?

[caddis]

Hey PATCH you are correct. Bad wording on my part. Lord knows where that came from after rereading it. lol. I was referring to calcium or lack of. I have attached a summary of the stages of labor and what might be helpful. Thanks for correcting me on such a late or should I say early morning wrong wordage.

.Whelping Puppies

What to expect

Your Female will show some of these signs or all of them. If your experience is not normal from things you have read, you should call your vet. Delaying HELP from a Vet could endanger your Dam and pups. This is a time to remember to be Safe rather than sorry

First stage of Labor:
(This stage often goes un-noticed, and takes place in the 24 hours following temperature drop)
Temperature FINALLY drops to 98°F from its normal 99,100,101°F (you should have been taking it regularly for a few days)
If you are really committed, the temperature taking does work. You will find her temperature around 99 to 101, and as soon as it starts to drop, below 99, and continues to drop. (now you take it every hour or two) ;you have about 12-24 hours from the start of the drop. When it bottoms out, to 98 or 97.9, then you have about 2-12 hours.
You may find your dam much more restless, and not able to get comfortable. She will stretch out on her side.
You may find her eyes different, they can dilate, and she can stare at you.
She may not want you out of her site. She may go to her whelp box.
She may vomit. She may try to have a bowel movement from the pressure. She may urinate frequent.
She will refuse to eat, and seek a quite spot, like a closet or under a bed.
She may have some mucus discharge, and her Vulva area will become puffier.
The normal body temperature for animals is generally higher than for humans. The normal rectal temperature of a dog is 99.5° to 102.5°F. The normal temperature of a puppy at birth is 96-97°F. The temperature gradually increases with age until it is 100°F at 4 weeks of age.

Second Stage of Labor:

Your female may go to her whelp box, or couch, or wherever she has chosen to have her pups, & start digging.
She may start shivering and Panting, examining her rear, and licking her vulva.
She may have mild contractions, vomiting, pooping and urinating more.
Warning Signs: Twitching, green discharge. (Green discharge is only Normal AFTER a pup is born)
u]At the first sign of a contraction, give her some calcium[/u]. Offer her vanilla Ice cream, or chew a tum and spit in her mouth, or use Calsorb.

Third stage of Labor:

Water sacs present, and break
Shivering and Panting may continue and get stronger. AS well as digging.
Contractions will become stronger and closer together.
Vomiting, grunting and pushing.
Warning Signs: pushing on a pup for over an hour causing exhaustion (more warning signs listed below)
Normal and preferred time, to push on one puppy that is in the birth canal, is 2 to 10 minutes.
One must be prepared for some interesting scenarios.
Stuck puppies are VERY common. They come out better with lubrication, and talk to your vet before hand on what to do if this should occur.
Pre-Eclampsia/Eclampsia (which normally can happen 10 days after whelping, can also happen in the last few days of pregnancy. Hypocalcimic shaking & pre-labor shaking can seem the same at first), but if Dam is hypocalcimic, and gets eclampsia, the shaking quickly turns to Convulsions, muscle weakness, muscle tremors, spasms, rigidy and twitching needing immediate Vet assistance before seizures, coma and death. It is wise to give your Dam calcium when pups are 5 days old, (for the next few weeks. The easiest way is one Tum a day. Tums are a great calcium supplement. Eclampsia (sometimes referred to as Milk Fever) is a very serious condition, and can come on suddenly. It is caused from a shortage of Calcium in the Bloodstream.
Uterine Inertia can happen also with a large litter or large pups. She will fail with weak attempts to deliver the pups. She may not even show contractions as her uterus is too stretched. The biggest cause of this, is from too much calcium, in the diet, while pregnant. it is they way to mess up a breeding. NOW, I limit calcium at pregnancy stage, and give it at labor stage.
Rupture of the Uterus, torsion or hemorrhage, can happen. The Dam will pass heavy , ongoing flow of blood, from Vulva, this is a medical Vet emergency.
Green Discharge- before puppy birth, means early separation of placentas. Call the Vet. Sometimes this is okay, if the puppy is to come soon, sometimes not. Normally we do not like to see green discharge until After a puppy is born.
If two pups try and come out at the same time, it is physically impossible. This may be a cause for concern. This presentation is best discussed with your Vet. It could be a medical emergency, or things could just fix themselves if you are comfortable waiting. Call your Vet for his advice, as every situation is different. This situation needs an experienced hand. Delivery could progress uneventful, or delivery could get held up and stop.
If you are comfortable to do an internal exam, this is the time. With a gloved finger, and lubrication, you must push the puppies, back up, every so gently. Often, if you push one puppy back, the other puppy will slide into the birth canal. I think the best advice is to have your vet on standby. Never now when you may need him or his advice.

Hope this helps.

[LR Patch]

Yea SR I didn't type what my mind was thinking ( milk production ) I meant to say ( milk drop ) , my bad . Also I'm with you on the Tums , I may could see helping rid some of the acid form the bitch milk , but that's a new 1 for me , not that I'm not open to new things. I've always kept & used Milk-Aid for my bred bitch's , it's cheep insurance ! As for the oxy , my vet recomends 1/2cc for contractions & 3/4cc to 1cc for the clean -out. I've not whelped a great # of pups but I've never had a problem using it , but as we both stated common sence is a must when it is used.
Best Regarda to all ,
L.R. Patch