Won't nurse puppies

Dr. Marie replied:

Aw, poor Maya. Raising puppies can be a challenge sometimes!

This is not something that happens very often. I have done lots of tail dockings and have never had a mom reject the puppies as a result of one.

However, some dogs are betting moms than others and I have seen many who will just suddenly decide not to nurse anymore. I'll give you a few things that you can try, but there's no guarantee that we are going to get them to nurse again.

One option is to try to force mom to allow the nursing. So, this would mean holding her and reassuring her and petting her while someone else puts the puppies on the nipples and gets them to nurse. Once she gets some hormone release from allowing the nursing she may relax a little.

It's also not a bad idea to have your vet examine Maya and do some blood work on her. It may be that we are assuming she is not nursing because the pups had their tails docked, but perhaps there is something else wrong. For example, if a dog gets eclampsia (milk fever) they will refuse to nurse their puppies and they will be anxious. This is a really serious problem and if she has it she needs to be treated right away.

Another thing that you could try is something called a DAP collar. This is a collar that releases something called dog-appeasing-pheromones. It helps to relieve stress levels in a dog. Having mom wear one might help. Here is an article that I recently wrote on the use of DAP in dogs. Unfortunately any prescription anxiety medications would likely be harmful to the puppies if she is nursing them.

You may need to purchase milk replacer for the puppies as they really need to eat!

In the meantime, do all you can to keep Maya as quiet and stress free as possible.

I really hope she is ok and starts to nurse soon!

Dr. Marie.


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