puppies won't nurse

[Cathy1]

My sister had a pregnant dog show up on her farm 1 week ago and this afternoon the dog had 8 puppies . The problem is the puppies will not latch on too nurse. They did at first (i have a picture of them) but that was at 1:30.She called the vet but he could not come out today but told her to keep trying to get them to nurse. Does anyone have any suggestions on what she can try? She is really worrying about the puppies but she cannot spend too much time with them because it is a very busy time on the farm. Here is a pic of the puppies in the barn. She is trying to find the owners but her husband thinks she was dumped. This pic was taken the first and only time they nursed and that was at 1:30. How often should they be nursing ?

[mikischo]

I don't have any experiences to share. However, if the puppies were born early this afternoon and all have nursed once already that sounds like a good sign. It is apparently important that they nurse for the first time within a few hours after being born in order to get the antibodies from the mother to help give them immunity. Did your sister notice if they all seemed to have a pretty good feed when they did nurse? Maybe they are still full and tired.

Hopefully they will get hungry soon and be ready to feed on their own again. Perhaps someone with some experience will come on to give you some other suggestions.

Tell your sister she is an for taking in this poor girl.

[pbpatti]

Cathy, sorry I do not have advice for you, just wanted to give some encourgement (sp). Hopefully the puppies will nurse and will grow up to be big and strong. Kudos to your sister for taking the bitch in and looking after her brood. for health for all. patti

[Cathy1]

My sister just called one pup died the others seem to be ok but still haven't nursed. She said the remaining puppies are very vocal and doing alot of wigglying around. I'm going out there now to spend a few hours with them because the mother seems to be more relaxed when someone is with her so my sister can get some sleep. She has to get up at 4:30 am

[mikischo]

sweet puppy.

Losing a puppy in a litter that size is not unusual. Glad to hear the others seem to be pretty vocal and active. Keep us updated on how things are going.

[Goldfields]

Poor pup. Cathy, place the pups on the teats and see if they do actually drink. It is very important not to allow them to be chilled. I didn't know whether you meant she whelped during the night or day? If they feel cold to the touch I'd try to get them warmed up, don't feed them while they are cold, then eye dropper some glucose and (boiled, then cooled)water into them. Their blood sugar would be down if they haven't had a drink for some time. I don't like it that a pup has died already. I've had cattle dogs rear 10 or 11 pups successfully, while shelties will lose them fast if they aren't strong enough to nurse, or the pups get chilled.

[Melinda]

also, if there is milk dripping from the teats, smear it on the teat itself, wet a pups mouth with some to get him licking, then put him on the teat with the milk smeared on it, usually that will stimulate them enough to get them suckling