antibiotics

Question
How long does it take for an antibiotic to get out of a mother dog's system?  My dog has been on Clavamox and Baytril.  She has completed her 10 day doses and still seems not to have completely dried up.  Can she still nurse after this long?  I'm getting awfully tired of bottle feeding and think it is best for her to continue.  What do you think?

Answer
This is a question for your veterinarian. All drugs react differently in the dog, and some will affect puppies through the milk and should not be given to nursing bitches. Baytril is an extremely powerful antibiotic as it is one of the few that can penetrate bone. Antibiotics can give puppies diarrhea, and when they are that tiny, it doesn't take much to kill them.

Be sure to give your bitch a small bit of plain yogurt each day to replace the good bacteria in her system that is being killed off with the bad, and I would have her thoroughly examined to make sure that she is clear of whatever her problem was before attempting to put puppies back on her. It might already be too late to get her milk supply up and running again.

If she had mastitis or sour milk, no, the puppies absolutely should not be put back on her.

Any time a bitch is bred, there is a chance that something will go wrong and we will have to intercede in some fashion. Being a dog breeder is not all puppy kisses and puppy breath.

Karen