# Bitch absorbing puppies



## Adrian.nic (Oct 25, 2016)

Took my bitch for her scan yesterday at 30days, or so I thought..the vet scanned and said that the pups were too small for 30 days and that they had a fuzzy outline instead of clear image so she must be absorbing the puppies, is there any chance she's just earlier in the pregnancy than I think??has anyone had this experience before?any help would be greatly appreciated, this is the 3rd time I've tried


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## Firedog (Oct 19, 2011)

Right, I had a bitch that always gave birth on day 67. I can only assume that when I mated on day ten she didn't actually ovulate until day 14. If this is the case then if she was four days less pregnant then that may make a difference on scanning. What have you tried three times?


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## Adrian.nic (Oct 25, 2016)

Firedog said:


> Right, I had a bitch that always gave birth on day 67. I can only assume that when I mated on day ten she didn't actually ovulate until day 14. If this is the case then if she was four days less pregnant then that may make a difference on scanning. What have you tried three times?


My bitch was mated 3 times. As in the last 2 heat cycles tho no puppies either time..this time a different stud dog was used..i understand what you're saying about the ovulation happening later than the mating, I'm also counting from the first mating but if I take the last day she was mated that would be another 5 days later.i don't know if I should still hope or just take it that all the embryos will be re absorbed, so unfair


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## Sled dog hotel (Aug 11, 2010)

Adrian.nic said:


> My bitch was mated 3 times. As in the last 2 heat cycles tho no puppies either time..this time a different stud dog was used..i understand what you're saying about the ovulation happening later than the mating, I'm also counting from the first mating but if I take the last day she was mated that would be another 5 days later.i don't know if I should still hope or just take it that all the embryos will be re absorbed, so unfair


From Memory I think re-absorption can take place up to and even sometimes longer then 35 days in the pregnancy, so if she is at day 30 it could be possible that the pups are being re-absorbed. Sometimes though only some of the puppies are re-absorbed and the rest can go on and be fine. Ultrasounds although can confirm pregnancy are often not very good at confirming the numbers of puppies anyway and some can even be missed as they are carried high up in the ribs. Some breeders swear more by having ultrasounds done with a sheep scanner.

Bitches can have reproductive problems also, and there are sometimes medical reasons for failure to get pregnant as there sometimes also are for failure of pregnancy.
There is an article below about the causes of foetal death and re-absorption of puppies.

http://www.dogworld.co.uk/product.php/2087/1/the_causes_of_foetal_death_and_resorption_by_steve_dean


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## Sled dog hotel (Aug 11, 2010)

Adrian.nic said:


> My bitch was mated 3 times. As in the last 2 heat cycles tho no puppies either time..this time a different stud dog was used..i understand what you're saying about the ovulation happening later than the mating, I'm also counting from the first mating but if I take the last day she was mated that would be another 5 days later.i don't know if I should still hope or just take it that all the embryos will be re absorbed, so unfair


If your bitch has failed to get pregnant before it may be a case of just timing was off, or even a problem with the stud especially if not a proven one, but as mentioned there are various reproductive issues that can cause a bitch to fail to conceive too. The article goes through some of the causes of fertility issues in the dog.

http://www.ivis.org/proceedings/wsava/2006/lecture24/Fontbonne1.pdf?LA=1


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## Adrian.nic (Oct 25, 2016)

Sled dog hotel said:


> From Memory I think re-absorption can take place up to and even sometimes longer then 35 days in the pregnancy, so if she is at day 30 it could be possible that the pups are being re-absorbed. Sometimes though only some of the puppies are re-absorbed and the rest can go on and be fine. Ultrasounds although can confirm pregnancy are often not very good at confirming the numbers of puppies anyway and some can even be missed as they are carried high up in the ribs. Some breeders swear more by having ultrasounds done with a sheep scanner.
> 
> Bitches can have reproductive problems also, and there are sometimes medical reasons for failure to get pregnant as there sometimes also are for failure of pregnancy.
> There is an article below about the causes of foetal death and re-absorption of puppies.
> Thanks for your advice, just wanted to ask to see if anyone else has had the same problem, previous dog was not proven and was a bit older ,8years ,so I assumed the problem was with the dog and not my bitch..just feeling very unlucky, though I don't have a lot of faith in the vets that scanned her,they didn't look for amount of puppies, just said they are too small to be 30 days..would it be a bad idea to re scan soon?as the vets told me to wait 2 weeks


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## Adrian.nic (Oct 25, 2016)

Sorry posted that in the wrong place


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## Catharinem (Dec 17, 2014)

It may be she's just not suitable to be bred from, simple as that. Have you spoken to her breeder about the problems with sustaining a pregnancy? Assuming you have bought a healthy bitch puppy with no endorsements and low coefficient if inbreeding, and chosen your health tested, proven, not too old stud carefully...

Breeding isn't about getting a dog and a bitch together and expecting a problem free pregnancy with healthy, sound tempered puppies all being chosen and homed by 10 weeks. Not getting at you, but for other people who may come across thread in future thinking breeding is a good idea. 

Like the person I met the other day. On admiring his GSD teenage bitch, I was proudly told that she was in fact a Malinois. I stood corrected until he went on to tell me that he didn't have her papers as he'd found her chained up in the back yard of a "pikey" ( his words, not mine), and hadn't asked for them or they'd have known how much she was worth. Once older she was to be bred to a Rottweiler stud, as some mate of his had told him the police would buy as many puppies as he could produce. When I carefully enquired about if he'd thought of the problems of whelping a small GSD/GSD cross bitch with Rottweiler cross puppies he told me it was OK, they'd use AI! Oh God, he didn't even know whelping meant giving birth, not mating. Unfortunately I couldn't be quite as blunt as I'd have liked in my answer or my girls would have learnt some new words to take back to school! 

Back to your girl. Assuming she is kc reg with no endorsements, health tested, to a kc reg health tested stud with no endorsements, and she is neither too young nor too old, and she is only distantly related to the stud boy, then it could be stress, she could have environmental exposure to viruses which affect the foetuses, or she may be too fertile, having too many foetuses to sustain to term. Give her a full health check ( on top of breeding health tests) prior to mating, discussing with your vet the optimal time for booster vaccinations and whether to use live or dead vaccines. Keep her home environment scrupulously hygienic, and try to avoid excercise near other dogs ( as if she was an unvaccinated puppy). This will also help her avoid confrontations /being jumped on or stressed by other dogs. Keep your home routine consistent. It goes without saying to offer plenty of good quality food, little and often as her tummy shrinks in lune with her uterus growing. 

Sadly, it may be that she is just unable to carry puppies to term for no immediately obvious reason. If she aborts or reabsorbs with this second stud, when all hygiene/low stress practices have been performed, then I would call it a day and spay her.


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## Rafa (Jun 18, 2012)

What Breed is she?


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## Adrian.nic (Oct 25, 2016)

Catharinem said:


> It may be she's just not suitable to be bred from, simple as that. Have you spoken to her breeder about the problems with sustaining a pregnancy? Assuming you have bought a healthy bitch puppy with no endorsements and low coefficient if inbreeding, and chosen your health tested, proven, not too old stud carefully...
> 
> Breeding isn't about getting a dog and a bitch together and expecting a problem free pregnancy with healthy, sound tempered puppies all being chosen and homed by 10 weeks. Not getting at you, but for other people who may come across thread in future thinking breeding is a good idea.
> 
> ...


 Thanks for your reply..everything is ok with the breeder and all KC registered etc however this is my fort time breeding.although I know a fair bit and have seen the whole breeding and whelping process a lot as my mum used to breed dogs..I always try to keep her home life steady, though it's just myself and her at home alone and I think she frets a bit when I go to work..I think after this time I will get her spayed as I feel it's just not meant to be and I don't want to put her through all this again


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## Adrian.nic (Oct 25, 2016)

Sweety said:


> What Breed is she?


Yorkshire terrier


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## Adrian.nic (Oct 25, 2016)

Just a wee update, back to the vets today for a scan and one healthy looking pup still visible..I'm assuming there were more to begin with and have been re absorbed..glad to be having 1 at least


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## Siskin (Nov 13, 2012)

There could be more, scans are somewhat unreliable for numbers of pups as they have a habit of hiding away under the ribs. Usually the best scanners are the people that scan sheep.


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## Leanneshihtzu (Nov 11, 2016)

Adrian.nic said:


> My bitch was mated 3 times. As in the last 2 heat cycles tho no puppies either time..this time a different stud dog was used..i understand what you're saying about the ovulation happening later than the mating, I'm also counting from the first mating but if I take the last day she was mated that would be another 5 days later.i don't know if I should still hope or just take it that all the embryos will be re absorbed, so unfair


Your bitch we scanned at 30 days from first mating. Last was 5 days later. So 25 days pregnant. If she ovulated late she could potentially only be 20/21 days pregnant. At this stage it would be hard to pick up any embryos on a scan and could explain what your vet saw. If I was you. I would assume pregnant and treat her as such for now. And re scan in 10/14 days. Potentially only 30/35 days they will be visible at that stage.


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