QuestionI have a yorkie who just had her first litter of pups a few days ago. She did
really well the first two days. My husband docked the tails of her four pups
the third day and she has been acting crazy ever since. She in anxious, wines
all the time and races around the house. Sometimes she tries to hide her
pups. She settled down today but started acting crazy again tonight. It took
me several hrs. to settle her down. She is still nursing and puppies are
growing but when she scratches at the door and runs back and forth, not
sure what I can do to help her out. Any ideas? Thanks for the help.
AnswerKristi,
First let me start by saying Congratulations! Your a Grandma!
What you are describing is normal behavior. When she runs to the door and scratches and then runs back and forth it is because she is torn between having to use the bathroom and leaving her puppies. The usual pattern is for them to not eat or drink or go outside until the 4th day after they have their puppies and then it is only a quick trip outside and they are right back inside. Some Yorkies are a little more stressed out than others and some are just plain spastic. Since this is your little girls first litter it is not surprising that she is a little stressed out. Having the puppies tails docked on day three was probably not a good idea. She is probably worried that you are going to take her puppies away from her again and do something to them. I usually waited until they were at least 4 days old before I would dock the tails.
The best thing you can do for her now is create a secure environment. Place her bed and the babies in an area of the house where there is a minimum of activity. If the box or crate or whatever she is in does not have a cover on it you should put a cover on it so that it is like a cave. If she feels that the puppies are hidden and safe she will be less likely to try and move them. You should also put her water and food as close to her as possible so she does not have to leave her puppies to eat or drink. Whenever you do go by the puppies you should speak to her and tell her in a calm voice that she is a good mother and that everything is all right. Until she appears more secure you should limit the amount of contact that you have with the puppies. Just peaking in and making sure they are all right is enough for the first week or so and by not disturbing them she will probably calm down some.
Don't worry too much. As I said this is perfectly natural and you will find that it will probably go away just as quickly as it began. If however, she is still having this problem after about a week or ten days you may want to visit the vet. It could be a hormonal imbalance that could be corrected by a simple injection.
