Whelping and odd behavoir!

Question
QUESTION: Hi Denise it's me again!
I wrote you a couple days ago about my 3yr old Yorkie/Maltese (first whelp!). Well its day 62 and her temp dropped from 101.1 to 99.8 just a short while ago. She has been extremely antsy and pacing this afternoon and has not eaten any food today! Now she is doing this odd behavoir of walking (more like creeping low like a cat would) a few steps and then abruptly sitting down, then walking another step and then sitting down really quickly...over and over again. Is this normal or something you have seen before? I am getting rather anxious!

ANSWER: Hi Sheryl:

It sounds like you're describing very near labor behavior. One of my females generally displays what I call "lumped up" walking which sounds similar in theory at least to what your girl is doing. With mine, she walks with her back arched up somewhat and both the front & back kind of tucked. I imagine she's probably beginning to feel some mild contractions & is merely responding to that. I totally understand your anxiety - just remain as calm as possible as she'll need you to help her feel confident. With the temp drop & behavior it's very possible she's ready to "pop" so keep a close eye on her. Once her water breaks, usually the first puppy will appear within about half an hour. If more than two hours passes & no puppy is born yet she's having obvious contractions seek emergency assistance ASAP. Please keep me apprised of her situation - I'll be keeping my fingers crossed that all goes smoothly!

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QUESTION: Well we just delivered four healthy pups in under three hours! The only problem is she did not pass the last placenta and she has been resting for the past couple hours without any sign of it. It is now 3am here and I am concerned about how long she can go without passing it and if it can wait til morning when I can get her to the vet? Now I have so many questions about the new puppies, first being how often should they be nursing, they are sleeping and I am not sure how long they should sleep without eating? Thank you so very much for your help, you are truely appreciated! I am exhausted...

ANSWER: Hi Sheryl:

If you haven't already done so, make an appointment to see your vet. He'll more than likely give her an injection of oxytocin, which helps the uterus to contract more efficiently & helps to expel anything retained. I personally always have my girls receive this the day after whelping, even if nothing known was retained. It's peace of mind plus it helps the milk to "drop" (i.e. become more readily available).

As for the puppies - they'll sleep the majority of the time & eat whenever they feel or smell Mommy! On average, they'll probably nurse as often as 15-20 times in a 24 hour period but sometimes less. The older they get they'll consume their milk a little faster & there's often a flurry of puppies switching nipples - the grass is always greener! As newborns they will usually sleep for several hours at a time but your female should have the innate instinct to feed them regularly. And trust me, if they get hungry & Mommy isn't readily available they'll voice their opinion vocally! It's very difficult to over-feed at this age so don't worry if any seem too plump. Four puppies is a great number - just right! Not too many for food/nursing competition but enough to interact with one another, play, etc.

You did great! Please give the new Mom a hug from me & grab sleep when you can. One rick I use for the first few weeks is I place a baby monitor next to the whelping box & the receiver next to my bed so when I'm sleeping if a puppy should cry or whimper enough that my attention may be necessary I awake quickly enough to avert any problem. For example, often first time mothers may unintentionally lie on a newborn, which could lead to suffocation. Obviously this is a greater risk with larger litters & larger breed dogs.

Anyway, I'm so relieved everything went well. Don't fret over the feeding & sleeping schedule - nature has been in charge of their instincts for thousands upon thousands of years so unless things get really wonky, I am as sure as I can be that both the puppies & new Mom will work it out to everyone's satisfaction. Congratulations!

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QUESTION: Denise-
We did go to the vet and got the clean out shot the next morning, and yes it was a great peace of mind. So far the pups seem to be doing well except the last little girl born (only one), she is the smallest and is having a bit of a problem latching and staying on during nursing...it doesn't help that the first two boys are much larger and keep muscling her out while feeding. Since she isn't gaining weight like the others I am having to feed her in a kind of "rotation" and give her assistance. Is it ok to be doing this or am I not helping her gain her own strength? This is hard work at the moment, and I am not getting much sleep at all with all the worries! Plus the two bigger boys are already quite the explorers who keep wandering into the furthest corners of the whelping box away from Mom, making me worry that they are going to get too cold during the night. I hate to keep bothering you with my questions/venting, but your knowledge is so very welcomed to my worried and exhausted mind!
Thank you so much again.
Sheryl

Answer
Oh you poor dear! I know how terribly stressful this time can be & believe me, you have my most sincere sympathies!

Yes, if I were you I'd do some rotation & ensure the little female gets ample nursing time w/o the big boys. I've found that it's often even better to allow the female to nurse as she pleases & rotate the boys in & out - their movement will stimulate her to fight. Unfortunately you'll have to do this for now practically around the clock - she needs to nurse every 2 to 3 hours, particularly since she isn't gaining as fast as her piggy bros! Just intervene as little as possible but she truly needs to get a leg up for now. Once she's gotten a week or two under her belt she'll more than likely be able to hold her own against them. This is one of those fun things about breeding! You have to balance not babying her too much yet giving her a chance to get enough nutrition to thrive. It's not an easy job but once she begins to develop more muscle & strength she'll probably be quite the little scrappy girl!
If you're concerned about the boys straying too far, you might try either a smaller whelping box, restricting part of the one currently in use or getting a whelping box heater. Even though I live in south Florida I have a heater in every whelping box for the first three weeks. And anything you can do to prevent drafts or cooler temps would obviously help with that.