# 4Week Lab Puppy not thriving, please help



## Georgia12 (Apr 14, 2012)

I am in desperate need for some help. My Chocolate Lab recently had a litter of pups (pure bred), they're now four weeks old. One of the puppies is not thriving and the vets don't seem to be very experienced in helping.

The little puppy weighs 635 grams, while the others weigh 2 - 2.5 kilos. She is doing smelly poos that are like off-white/yellowy water and is getting dehydrated (she's had a few shots of water from the vet to get her hydration back). She looks like a chiwawa next to the other puppies - her face doesn't look healthy, her eyes buldge out a little and her face is very pointy. She put on 80grams last week but lost 10grams a few days ago.

The vet wormed her yesterday but she has recently did another watery poo. Other than that she is feeding well, we're giving her a bottle 4-6 times a day (10-15mls) on top of her mothers milk.

We're trying our best to save her but we are not experienced. I would greatly appreciate some help.


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## dexter (Nov 29, 2008)

Georgia12 said:


> I am in desperate need for some help. My Chocolate Lab recently had a litter of pups (pure bred), they're now four weeks old. One of the puppies is not thriving and the vets don't seem to be very experienced in helping.
> 
> The little puppy weighs 635 grams, while the others weigh 2 - 2.5 kilos. She is doing smelly poos that are like off-white/yellowy water and is getting dehydrated (she's had a few shots of water from the vet to get her hydration back). She looks like a chiwawa next to the other puppies - her face doesn't look healthy, her eyes buldge out a little and her face is very pointy. She put on 80grams last week but lost 10grams a few days ago.
> 
> ...


 hard to say without seeing her , i'm assuming the vet has checked her over!.have you tried her on solids yet? many small pups soon pick up once they are put on to solids.


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## Sled dog hotel (Aug 11, 2010)

Not sure how experienced you are? The following may help concerning temperatures the pup needs to be kept at help with bottle feeding etc. It seems even things like not keeping him at the right temperatures, and even doing the wrong thing with bottle feeding can weaken the immune system further and bottle feeding in itself done wrongly can exacerbate the problem.
I Have copied and pasted the relevant bits but the link to the whole PDF its from is below.

Temperature. A newborn puppy cannot control its body temperature and must be kept in a warm environment. Chilling will stress the puppy and predispose it to infectious disease; overheating can kill it. The environmental temperature can be controlled with a well-insulated electric heating pad or a heat lamp. But make sure the puppies have a cooler place to crawl to if they become too warm. The immediate environmental temperature should be kept between 85 and 90 degrees for the first five days of life. From the seventh to the tenth day, the temperature can be gradually reduced to 80 degrees; by the end of the fourth week it can be brought down to 75 degrees. Nursing. The first milk produced by the bitch after whelping is called colostrum. Every puppy needs to ingest colostrum as early as possible after birth and certainly during the first 24 hours of life. Colostrum contains a number of substances that are beneficial to the puppy, including immunoglobulins that protect newborns from the infectious diseases to which the mother is immune.

Care for Orphaned Puppies Newborn puppies must be hand fed if their mother is either unable or unwilling to nurse them. Cow's milk is a poor substitute for bitch's milk, which is more concentrated and has twice the level of protein, almost double the calories, and more than twice the calcium and phosphorous content. For feeding puppies, a commercial puppy formula is recommended; carefully follow the manufacturer's instructions.
Remember that puppies grow very rapidly so make sure you weigh them every day before you calculate how much to feed them. You may need to start with slightly less formula at each feeding and gradually increase the amount as the puppy responds favorably to hand feeding. Steady weight gain and well-formed feces are the best evidence of satisfactory progress. If diarrhea develops, immediately reduce the puppy's intake to half the amount previously fed, then gradually increase it again to the recommended level. Diarrhea in newborns can be very dangerous so consult a veterinarian for advice. Never prepare more formula than is required for any one day because milk is a medium for bacterial growth. Maintain sanitary conditions at all times. Before feeding, warm the formula to about 100 degrees or near body temperature. Using a bottle and nipple, hold the bottle at an angle to prevent air bubbles. The hole in the nipple can be enlarged slightly with a hot needle to let the milk ooze out slowly when the bottle is inverted. The puppy should suck vigorously, but should not nurse too rapidly. Consult a veterinarian if the puppies are not nursing well. You may need to resort to tube feeding, which is best taught by a health professional. Newborn puppies must be stimulated to defecate and urinate after each feeding. Ordinarily the mother's licking provides this stimulation, but orphaned puppies will need human intervention. Gently massage the puppy's anal region with a cotton ball that has been dipped in warm water. Gentle body massage is also beneficial for any hand-reared puppy. Massage stimulates the circulation and thoroughly awakens the puppy. Stroke the puppy's sides and back with a soft cloth. The best time for a massage seems to be when the puppies are waking up and you're waiting for the formula to get warm.

14 - Wean Puppies from Their Mother There are many rules of thought about weaning your puppies. Experienced breeders tend to use methods that work best for them and their respective breed. It is recommended that you contact your veterinarian to discuss a feeding regimen for your litter.
Most puppies begin the weaning process at about two to four weeks of age. Some breeders recommend starting them off by offering a pan of puppy formula in place of their mother's milk. Other breeders combine the puppy formula with some presoaked or grinded dry puppy food and/or baby rice cereal to create gruel.
As the puppies get older, most breeders start adding more food and decrease the amount of formula. To avoid digestive upsets, be sure to introduce all changes in food or feeding schedules gradually.

http://www.akc.org/breeders/resources/guide_to_breeding_your_dog/pdf/guide_to_breeding_your_dog.pdf

The main worry is dehydration, that in itself can be a killer, If he has diarrhea again and is losing fluids quicker then they are going in thats one of the biggest worries.


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## Georgia12 (Apr 14, 2012)

Thank you both! That is great advice and I will be taking it all on board. Starting solids tomorrow so fingers crossed


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## PennyGC (Sep 24, 2011)

you should try a second opinion from another vet, but I agree at 4 weeks the pups should be on solids already.... it may well help the little one, let us know how it goes will you please? thanks


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## Sled dog hotel (Aug 11, 2010)

Glad it might be of help, and everything crossed for the little guy that he gets better and stronger.


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## swarthy (Apr 24, 2010)

Have you started weaning the litter yet? they should be well on their way now to mum's milk being the lesser part of their diet.

The pup might catch up, but TBH - with the weight, particularly if it is losing weight, it could have other hidden health-problems. Have it's teeth come through yet? What is it like in terms of length of body compared to the other pups?

I had to do a conversion on the grams as I tend to work in pounds and ounces in the early weeks - my last litter of newborn pups were just 1oz a piece less than the the weight of this little one on the day they were born.

This was my keeper at 4 weeks old and my dogs don't have the substance of many showbred Labs










You've been given a lot of good advice, but my mind is working overtime TBH from the size, description and the picture, and you may have to be prepared you could lose this pup.

If you haven't started weaning the puppies yet, you need to do this urgently - a litter of 4 week old Lab puppies can be savage and really hard on mum, and some girls will just stop feeding - you need to be prepared for this, if mum is happy to keep on feeding, that too is fine, but it certainly should be making up the lesser part of their diet now.

I also now never worm my pups until I've started weaning them - and always worm after a meal because it can have a really harsh effect on their tummies otherwise, having spent nights up with them doing it "the other way" - I will stick to what I know works and causes less distress to the babies (some wormers can be really harsh on the tums - although i don't think this is the main issue you've got here).


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## Georgia12 (Apr 14, 2012)

Thank you so much swarthy. Yes her teeth have come through and she's walking. I have started giving them solids now but she did another watery poo today and had to have another injection from the vet to re-hydrate her.

We are preparing ourselves for the fact that she might not make it. It's just hard to know when to say enough is enough...

Will let you all know how things go in the next week. Thanks again for all your help I really appreciate it


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## Malmum (Aug 1, 2010)

Good luck with your puppy, fingers crossed here that she pulls through. 

I am surprised your vet didn't tell you to wean the pups at three weeks as that's the norm  even the healthy pups need real food by then. My Mal pups were on four raw meat meals a day by four weeks plus a bowl of goats milk after each meal. Poor mum wouldn't have coped if they weren't!


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## Sarahnya (Oct 27, 2008)

Georgia12 said:


> I am in desperate need for some help. My Chocolate Lab recently had a litter of pups (pure bred), they're now four weeks old. One of the puppies is not thriving and the vets don't seem to be very experienced in helping.
> 
> The little puppy weighs 635 grams, while the others weigh 2 - 2.5 kilos. She is doing smelly poos that are like off-white/yellowy water and is getting dehydrated (she's had a few shots of water from the vet to get her hydration back). She looks like a chiwawa next to the other puppies - her face doesn't look healthy, her eyes buldge out a little and her face is very pointy. She put on 80grams last week but lost 10grams a few days ago.
> 
> ...


Hi there,

the pup does look abnormal but may yet turn out to be okay, it actually looks like it has hydrocephalus but I would have thought the vet would have picked up on this.

If it's still dehydrated try injecting it with 0.5ml of glucose to 4.5ml of preboiled water, if they are dehydrated they won't feed and if they don't have enough energy they won't digest their food properly either. You can get the glucose from a vet who will also show you how to inject if you are unsure of how to do it (you can also get some needles from them also which they normally provide free, get the blue needles if you can as they are smaller).

I wouldn't worry too much that you are still feeding formula but I would definitely stick to 6 feeds a day and try adding a small amount of wet puppy food or Hills AD to the milk mixture and mush it in. Also up the feeds to at least 15 - 20mls per feed, at first alternate between adding the puppy food and feeding pure milk to get them used to digesting meat.

Is the pup acting normally other than the fact it's small, is it lying normally (not flat out on it's side) and are it's movements okay or does it look like it lacks co-ordination? At 4 weeks mum usually starts leaving the pups for longer periods of time. If the pups only 600g it won't be large enough to stay warm so it might be good to separate it and keep it in a box with one of those microwaveable heat pads that last a good 6 hours.

Also what milk substitute are you using?

Goodluck and let us know how it goes x


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## Sarahnya (Oct 27, 2008)

Oh I forgot to say it might be worth asking the vet for some Synulox as it may have an infection who could explain the unusual poop.


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## Georgia12 (Apr 14, 2012)

Hi everyone thank you all for your help unfortunately the little pup died this morning. The vet's autopsy showed that she had defects, she had two stomachs. We tried everything we could but she couldnt survive that way.

I am new to pet forums and it's amazing to be able to get so much support. Thanks again to everyone

Georgia x


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## Lauren6 (Apr 9, 2012)

So sad  Hope your ok xx


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## Sled dog hotel (Aug 11, 2010)

So sorry to hear the little one didnt make it. At least you know that there is nothing you could have done poor little mite.


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## swarthy (Apr 24, 2010)

Georgia12 said:


> Hi everyone thank you all for your help unfortunately the little pup died this morning. The vet's autopsy showed that she had defects, she had two stomachs. We tried everything we could but she couldnt survive that way.
> 
> I am new to pet forums and it's amazing to be able to get so much support. Thanks again to everyone


I did try to post earlier, but the site was playing up.

Run free little one xx

sometimes, despite our best efforts, mother nature does know best.


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## dobermummy (Apr 4, 2009)

im sorry, you did everything you could

run free little one


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## specialagentgibbs (Jan 29, 2009)

So sorry to hear of your loss


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## *Amber* (Oct 22, 2010)

I'm sorry your little pup didn't make it. xxx


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