Wow how nerve wracking, i bet you have no finger nails left. We done to Mum, she must be shattered. Congratulations on 11 pups, wow you must be thrilled.
I am over the moon. I couldn't be more proud of my girl. She was a little bemused about the first pup, but has been amazing. She's nice and relaxed but attentive, I just need to keep my fingers crossed that her milk comes in soon or I'll have some very cross babies! They are a bit fussy so might be in for another long night.
Hope you had a good night. Do they just have to wait for the milk to come in and at what point would you have to intervene?
Difficult one. Newborn pups do not need lashings of milk but it is important that they get colostrum. They are all active, feeding then sleeping which is a good sign. They usually just get louder if they are not getting enough. The milk is supply and demand so I would not want to supplement them unless I really have to. The milk usually takes a couple of days to come in so I will monitor. Because it is such a large litter, I might be tempted to 'top them up' in a couple of days. She is on 4 meals a day now with a lot of added water, calcium and fenugreek to encourage milk production. The pups are weighed everyday to check that everyone is gaining. We had an easy night, I just had to return the occasional wanderer, but managed to get some fairly long stretches of sleep in between. Mum slept well and was really settled. She was happy to go out this morning, but was keen to get back to them as soon as she's been to the toilet. So far so good!
I'm afraid that I don't know how to upload a picture without becoming a supporting member, and I don't know how to become a supporter! Unfortunately, it has been an awful week. Breeding is certainly not for the fainthearted and it’s weeks like this that make me question whether I will breed again. After the arrival of 11 pups, it became quite apparent that my girl had no milk. It isn’t unusual for it to take a couple of days for the milk to come in, but with such a big litter, there wasn’t enough to go around. On Wednesday, 8 of the pups went downhill really suddenly. The vets gave them glucose and fluids and started tube feeding. They came home on Wednesday evening on 1 hourly tube feeds until midnight, then 2 hourly tube feeds after that. It was a long, upsetting night as the formula was making them constipated, which resulted in screaming puppies and a very distressed mum (and a very tired, distressed people-mum!). The 3am feed took 2 hours, so no sleep was had by anyone. They all made it through to the morning, but unfortunately, despite all the efforts, the smallest one didn’t make it that afternoon. Despite the tears, the rest of the litter still needed feeding. By last night, there was real progress with all but one of the pups. He is still on 2 hourly tube feeds, the rest are now on 4 hourly. This afternoon, the little one has started suckling again, so (fingers crossed), it looks like he might make it. I am upset, stressed and ridiculously tired, but so proud of my girl, who just watches with a slightly worried look as I take her babies one by one, again and again. He milk is coming in now, so hopefully, hopefully, we are on the right path
Oh my goodness poor you. I wasn’t expecting that! Sorry you have lost one of them. That must have been very upsetting. Fingers crossed the others all thrive now and you get some rest. if you click on your profile there is an account upgrade link to join as a supporter.
Oh my, what an exhausting worry. I guess with a litter of 11 that would present some feeding challenges. I hope at least you can get them all on 4 hourly feeds and maybe you can get some rest. Fingers crossed her milk will flow now and they can hopefully latch on to her a bit a be less reliant on you. You are both a great team, the pups are lucky to have such a super human and lab mum.
Thank you for your kind words. It's been utterly heartbreaking and exhausting, but they are all making progress now. They are all latching on strongly, gaining weight and whizzing around the whelping box which is funny to watch! Their little heads get a power-wobble on which is very comical. Unfortunately we had another sleepless night, not due to the feeding schedule, but because it was so hot! The pups need heat, but me and my girl don't! They have a Petnap heat pad and two wheatbags which I microwave, but still have the heating on too. My girl was panting puppy-poo breath in my face all night :-D I spent a couple of hours on the computer registering them with the KC last night so fingers crossed that their paperwork comes back before they go to their new homes. The KC is still struggling since they launched their new website last year. My girl is now eating nearly 8 times her pre-pregnancy ration! She's never been one for drinking much, so she has half a pint of water in each meal. She is also getting fenugreek for milk production which is giving her a slight curry smell- my living room smells lovely
I'm sorry you're having such a difficult time, and especially for the loss of one of the pups. I hope things get on a more even keel for you now and the rest continue to be healthy. You can post photos and videos without being a forum supporter if you use a third-party hosting site such as Dropbox, You Tube etc.
When I click on my name at the top I get a line which mentions upgrade. However that may be because I have joined. Maybe someone from admin can help tomorrow. I could never work out how to use a hosting site which is why I joined.
Wow, that is an adorable whole heap if mischief ! There are some lucky families who will be having one these sleepy beauties .
Oh my gosh I had a week away from work and missed everything! I'm never taking time off again. @5labs they're stunning! As I walked my dog this morning and pondered logging back in, I was trying to guess how many puppies your girl might have - I did not come anywhere near 11! What a trooper she is. And you are, foregoing so much sleep. I'm sorry it hasn't been an easy ride for them so far, and that you lost one, this really has been an eye-opening journey. I hope the others keep going from strength to strength - and now that you're a forum supporter, you have to share LOTS of photos (to get your money's worth, of course). Fingers crossed that next time you update, her milk has come in too! Thanks again for sharing this with us
