I am pleased to report another successful night!
It really is wonderful that Dear Husband is a natural Night Owl and is willing/able to sit at the whelping box all night so I can sleep. The puppies are not only kept safe from suffocation but he tends to Daisy, keeps things clean, and rotates the puppies at the Milk Bar — and I wake up rested (sort of).
The puppies are not the only ones obsessed with nursing — we are also pretty obsessed with their efforts at the milk bar.
To maximize survivability, it is critical puppies nurse early and often so they receive the benefits of colostrum and do not lose too much weight in the first 2 - 3 days; both of those things are related to puppy survival.
Colostrum is produced by moms in the first two days following delivery. It contains a higher concentration of immune-system supporting immunoglobulins than milk and it has some other important benefits as well (Chastant‐Maillard, Aggouni, Albaret, Fournier, & Mila, 2017).
BUT there is a short window for absorption of these high-value benefits of colostrum.
One study, which supports other studies I have read, reported “…the canine intestinal barrier remains permeable to immunoglobulins mainly during the first 12 hours after birth, but with a sharp decrease in absorption as early as after 4 h.” (Chastant‐Maillard et al., 2012, p. 193).
Four hours.
Lupine in a Milk Coma
This is why it is critical newborns start nursing immediately.
All of Daisy’s puppies, including the four born by c-section, nursed well within the four-hour window. Daisy staggered back to the room where we were camped and went back to sleep — but the puppies all nursed before we left the clinic.
They have continued to nurse well, and one way we know is by their weights.
Very accurate scale but new and bigger one is coming soon.
In humans, breastfed babies normally lose weight in the first two days — this is expected. The amount of “normal” weight loss is typically understood to be between 5 - 7%, although there is variability reported in different studies of human newborn weight loss (Thulier, 2015).
In puppies, similar weight loss should be expected.
Following a large study of newborn puppies of one breed — and their review of existing literature — the authors concluded, “in healthy [newborn] puppies weight loss should not exceed 5%, and in any case no more than 10%…” (Bigliardi, E., Ianni, Parmigiani, Morini, & Bresciani, p. 480). The authors further note puppies should be back to birth weight within 3 - 5 days.
Why would newborns lose weight? Primarily because they are born (and weighed) with fluid and stool inside that exits the body in that first day or two, and colostrum is not typically present in copious amounts.
The important point — some weight loss in the first 2- 3 days of a puppy’s life is not cause for anxiety.
Clarkia on the top bunk — Larkspur and ?? on the bottom
Let’s look at how the Wildflowers are doing in the weight department — all were between about 37 - 47 hours old at the time of this morning’s weigh-in.
Puppy Name: First Weight/Current Weight (approximate increase/decrease)
Paintbrush: 12.45/13.35 (+7%)
Mallow: 12.15/13.4 (+10%)
Clarkia: 17.85/17.6 (-1%)
Sage: 18.85/19.5 (+3%)
Mariposa: 17.45/16.95 (-3%)
Lupine: 18.6/19 (+2%)
Buttercup: 13.75/15.05 (+2%)
Larkspur: 17.85/18.15 (+2%)
Clover: 16.55/17.35 (+5%)
Those are surprisingly good results given they are not yet two days old. And no — we have not supplemented; I am strongly against routine — or anxiety-provoked — supplementing of puppies for all kinds of reasons, and that will definitely be a post for another day.
Too many words with no photo so here is the Day Two Morning Puppy Pile.
Okay — back to words: Keeping records is important.
Every puppy has a page like this
Because of our record keeping, I know to give Mariposa and Clarkia first dibs at the milk bar today. I selected them plus two others from the Puppy Pile and let the others sleep while Mariposa and Clarkia had prime nursing time.
Daisy continues to do well and surely is in competition for Dog Mom of the Year. She is wondering who sent this hilarious toy???
I have my suspicions — and THANK YOU!
Photos from the Day
Larkspur
Mallow
Paintbrush
Daisy with Paintbrush
Mariposa and Larkspur
Sage
Larkspur and Buttercup
References
Bigliardi, E., Ianni, Parmigiani, Morini, & Bresciani. (2013). Physiological Weight Loss in Newborn Puppies of Boxer Breed. Italian Journal of Animal Science, 12(4), E77-e77.
Chastant‐Maillard, Freyburger, Marcheteau, Thoumire, Ravier, & Reynaud. (2012). Timing of the Intestinal Barrier Closure in Puppies. Reproduction in Domestic Animals, 47, 190-193.
Chastant‐Maillard, Aggouni, Albaret, Fournier, & Mila. (2017). Canine and feline colostrum. Reproduction in Domestic Animals, 52(S2), 148-152.
Thulier, D. (2015). Weighing the Facts: A Systematic Review of Expected Patterns of Weight Loss in Full-Term, Breastfed Infants. Journal of Human Lactation., 32(1), 28-34.