Unexplained Puppy Sickness

Question
I need to see if you can answer a couple of questions I have regarding my litter of puppies that will be 7 weeks tommorrow.  Here goes:  
They are a full blooded Boxer and the total litter size was 13. One was still born and the rest lived.  As they progressed in age, some were smothered by the mother and then what we thought was the heat has us puzzled.  The mother became sick with massitis and was put on Cephlaxin at the vet.  She continued to nurse and the day we took her one of the puppies had died mysteriously.(We assumed from the mom being sick.) We had only 8 left at this time.  At the time they were 5 weeks of age she had weaned them and with tempatures rising we so a dramatic weight loss in some of them and opted to bring the litter in the house to watch over them.  We wormed them and they were very wormy.  This seemed to work for some but as you know with worming even more weight was lost.  In the next three days they seemed extremely week and 3 out of 8 died with no apparent reason why.  They did not have symptoms of parvo (from experience and vet bills close to $1,000) I can detect parvo.)  They continued to eat small portions of Science Diet Puppy Food and drank big amounts of water and also I was advised to offer buttermilk which I did and they drank it.  I began to administer 1.25ml of Cephlaxin liquid to them every 8 hours or so and they really began to perk up but no apparent weight gain was coming.  Two of the puppies are very healthy and normal size for their age but the others are very abnormal in size and weak.  I put a heating pad on medium and they stay on it constantly.  The two that seem ok play and act normal for their age but the other surviving pups are very weak acting but struggling to stay alive.  They have regular bowel movements and urinate on a regular basis.  The smaller ones bowels are not runny but almost jelly-like.  They seem like they can not gain or get better.  Last night everything seemed like it was going to be better and not the smallest one but the next size one died. (I guess in the middle of the night)  I really don't understand all this.  And here is the next scenario of this nightmare:  Our friends have a litter of pit bulls and the same thing has happened to them.  I haven't taken them to the vet for fear of having to put them down.  The mother of the litter and my other dogs(children) are doing well.  They are all grown and over 1 year of age.  This is the second litter she has had and the first litter was a litter of 12 with one dying.  All the rest were fine with no complications at all.  

Answer
Hi Wendy!Congratulations on your puppies!

As for the heating pad,if you still use it I would recommend putting it on Low as if it is on high it could burn your puppies skin.

HOOKWORMS AND WHIPWORMS: Occur in both puppies and adult dogs. Microscopic examination of fecal samples is the means of detection. Symptoms: jelly-like, black stools, sometimes containing traces of blood. Medication: Panacur, which can be prescribed by your veterinarian. (Panacur also eliminates several other types of worms.)

Diarrhoea is defined as the more frequent passage of liquid faeces. It is always worth while taking note of the frequency wity which your dig passes faces and their consistency, type and amount, so as to be a ware of any changes from normal. If a change is seen, close observation should be kept on the dog for other signs of disease, as diarrhoea is a common indication of many illnesses, some relatively trivial, but some of a serious nature.

Amount of faeces passed by normal dogs

Normal faeces contain the elements of food not used by the body, together with digestive juices, bacteria and the discarded cells of the gut lining.

A dog which is not eating at all will still produce a small amount of faeces from body waste.

Average amounts of faeces produced daily by dogs fed on canned foods are:

Miniature Dachshund          70g

Beagle          190g

Newfoundland   500g

These amounts will be different if complete dry diets are fed. Modern dry diets such as Pedigree Chum Formula are specially formulated to reduce the amount of faeces produced.

It is normal for an adult dog to pass once or twice daily but 4 times daily can be regarded as normal. Puppies defecate 2-6 times daily.

Color of normal faeces

The colour of faeces is affected by the type of food being consumed. The faeces will be pale when white meat is fed, dark if raw meat is given and often dark red when the dog has eaten commercially prepared food.

Digested blood from the throat, stomach or small intestine produces a black stool. There may be streaks of fresh red blood on the faeces, in conditions where the lower bowel is damaged. Where as much as a teaspoonful by telephone immediately as this sign is associated with the major cnine diseases of hemorrhagic gastroenteritis and canine parvovirus infection: It may also occur in some cases of poisoning.

Diarrhoea is most frequently caused by digestive problems. The bowel looseness is likely to cease when the food which started the problem is withdrawn or if dietary changes are made gradually.

First aid treatment:

Withold food for 12 hours to rest the intestines.

Water must always be freely supplied; diarrhoea cannot be 'dried up' by with holing water.

Begin feeding again using fooked eggs, or fish, with plain boiled rice-fed in small quantities.

If diarrhoea persists, or if there are other signs of illness, contact a veterinary surgeon without delay, since it may be caused by bacterial or viral infection, or an enzyme deficiency. It may also be associated with an endoparasite infestation. Diarrhoea merits even earlier veterinary consultation in young puppies, as they quickly become dehydrated.

When giving the history of the case it is important to distinguish between the types of loose stool. Is the dog passing:

A greater number of stools than normal, buit of a normal colour and consistency?

A normal number of stools, but very loose or accompanied by quantities of fluid?

Stools containing jelly-like mucus?

Foul-smelling, pale, bulky, fat-laden stools?

Very loose or watery stools, uncontrollably?

Blood-stained stools: how much and what colour?

Note: It can be helpful to take to the veterinary surgeon a small quantity of freshly passed faeces for examination. Pack the sample in a small carefully washed yogurt pot or similar container and label with your name and the date. Be prepared to tell the veterinary surgeon whether the dog strains to pass the stools or whether they are produced relatively easily.

Other causes of diarrhoea

Over-feeding in young puppies.

Feeding liver and offal in large quantities.

Too much milk-mor3e than the equivalent of one pint (568ml) to a Labrador. Some dogs may react to even small quantities of milk.

Lack of fire in the diet may cause diarrhoea and constipation alternately.

Raw eggs.

Sugar and honey.

Onions.

Currants, sultanas and raisins.

Nuts.

Carrots and broad beans.

Decaying or putrid food.

Scavenging.

Sudden dietary change.

Note: Bitches that eat large numbers of afterbirths when whelping may have diarrhoea temporarily.

It is worth noting that diarrhoea may be associated with stress, particularly in dogs with a nervous temperament. The bowel of the dog reacts quickly to shock, fear and stress, and diarrhoea and failure to gain weight in an otherwise healthy dog may be due to nervous causes.

The tension of dog shows and obedience competitions, bullying by humans or other dogs, re-homing and even too great a desire to please the owner by instant obedience to demands, have been known to cause chronic diarrhoea in dogs. A peaceful, less demanding life without stressful episodes may be all that is required to effect a cure.

As for the six weak and small dogs,this could be something serious and needs immediate veterinary care for proper care and treatment.

I hope this has been helpful and I wish you the best of luck!Please keep me posted and give that mama and her puppies millions of kisses for me!Sending wagging tails your way!
Nicole