Newborn Pug Puppy With Deformity

Question
Hi!
My pug just had puppies and had a litter of four. They were born a couple of days ago on April 20th. One of her puppies died this morning (she wasn't eating and she seemed very thin).
One of the other puppies was born with a deformity of the upper left side of his lip making it look like there is a split between the lip and nose. I'am also concerned about one of his back legs aswell because he can't keep himself on his belly, he always plops over to his side. He moves but he doesn't feed off of his mother. I feed him Mamolack (a supplement for milk) in a seringe and he eats. I took his rectal temeperature and the thermometer just says LO, it won't give me a direct temperature like it does with the other puppies.
I have him sleeping on a heating pad hoping it will help. I also wighed him and he weighs less than all the others. Im getting worried and I don't want to lose him.
If you have any ideas about what I can do to help him, let me know!
Thank you for your time!
Jen

Answer
Hi. It sounds like he has a cleft lip. You want to check on the inside of his mouth on the roof of it to check and see if he has a cleft pallet as well. This may be why he's not eating. These types of puppies are very hard to make live, and many people have them humanely put down. You may want to let your vet have a look at him to see if he thinks this problem is slight enough that the pup may live a normal life, or if it will cause the puppy problems. If his temp is low, he won't want to eat either, it's never a good idea to feed a cold puppy. Warm him up until his temp is normal and then try to feed him. I would also have the vet look at his back leg to see what he thinks it is. It could be a deformity, or just that he was cramped in the uterus, but paired with the cleft lip, you may be looking at something worse. I wish I had better news for you, I'm sorry. Good luck, and please let me know how it goes.