st bernad

Question
Just looking for a bit of help. My st Bernard had 2 pups today the 1st born dead. I am very upset about this. I am just looking to know if their would be a reason why she would only have 2 as i was informed that they don't have small litters. She was checked by vet, but she did'nt believe their was any in the birth canal but she prescribed something to give her contractions but their is still no more pups yet. Would she also be the same if we breed her again.

Answer
Hi Clair:

I'm so sorry for your loss & can truly understand your feelings. Although most breeders routinely anticipate the loss of one or two puppies per litter, personally I have never become accustomed to this & always feel very saddened when it occurs.
Yes, it is unusual for a breed like a St. Bernard to have such a small litter. I'm assuming you were present from the onset of labor & there's no possibility she may have had more puppies & mistakenly ingested any along with the placenta. This is often a situation with a first-time mother who simply is inexperienced & over-anxious. If you were there for the entire whelping the possible reasons for such a small litter are numerous & quite frankly you may never know the exact cause. I'm assuming your vet gave her an injection of oxytocin, a drug which helps the uterus to contract & expel anything that may have been retained. I'm surprised she didn't perform a quick Xray which would have shown if any puppies were remaining. As for whether or not she'd have such a small litter if bred again much would depend on why she did this time. Some possibilities are the stud's sperm may have been insufficient or of poor quality, your female didn't produce a high enough number of eggs to be fertilized or they were of a nature which made fertilization difficult, or possibly additional puppies were produced but were absorbed by the female's body between conception & delivery. Also it's possible very small litters may be genetic in one or both dogs so it would be worth looking into both lineages. I would suggest having some reproductive screening testing done well before the next time you may plan to breed & have the male tested as well. Also if you breed her again have your vet take an Xray when she's at 50+ days gestation so you'll know in advance approximately how many puppies to expect. The smaller the litter the more likelihood of potential whelping problems since there is less competition for nutrition & space & therefore litters of only one or two puppies receive almost excessive nutrition & are often over-sized, which can lead to vaginal whelping difficulties. If this was the case with this litter, it's possible the first one died as a result of remaining in the birth canal too long if he/she was too large to pass through in a timely manner. Unfortunately it's impossible to say whether or not the same scenario would occur if she were bred again but if you should choose to do so, you might consider using a different stud if all her screening tests come back normal.

Again you have my most sincere condolences. Unfortunately the majority of breedings will encounter a problem of some sort, whether it be an emergency C-section, a still-born puppy, a puppy with a birth defect like a cleft palate, etc. It is an extremely wonderful occurrence when all goes perfectly but heart-breaking when problems arise. I hope you'll be able to take heart in the healthy puppy you have & wish you all the luck in future endeavors!