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Whelping Puppies
Sometimes things do not go as planned

Things started off VERY normal. Temperature dropped 18 hours prior to labor to 98° F. We knew labor was to start, and then things didn't go as planned.

At 4:15 Catreeya's first water sac broke, looks like coffee on the floor.

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At about 4:30 her second water sac presented and she broke in about 10 minutes.

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Normally Labor would be next to start, (in about 20 minutes) but it didn't.

NO contractions... not one (sometimes they take up to 2 hours)

Then at about 4:45pm, she was jumping up as she is VERY mother driven DESPERATE to have her sisters puppies, blocked in the next room.

We got a large pool of bright red blood. (This is not always a concern, but not normal)

I did an internal, as the bright red blood did concerned me, as we still had no contractions.

I did an internal, around 5pm , and there WAS a puppy in the birth canal. I could feel feet and tail. no sac, breach doesn't worry me, but the canal was not big enough for him to get out. she wasn't dilated enough. hmmmm... do I panic?? >>>>>>> Not yet, but worry and wonder set in.

GREAT, so we waited and no contractions. I feathered and feathered, but could hardly get contractions. I could feather the pup almost far enough to grab feet but no luck, so I would push her back up inside hoping to re-position, And also so the cord was not pinched off in the birth canal. There was NO green discharge, so I was sure the placenta hadn't detached, which was good.

You cannot give ocytosin with a pup in the birth canal, not that I like that stuff and if there are NO contractions, Feathering is not working >>>> what do I do >>>>> and how long do I leave a puppy in the birth canal? My mind is Really starting to worry.

2 + hours of a puppy in the birth canal, and NO contractions was enough to fry my nerves... so OFF to the vet.

During ALL OF this, Catreeya was Catreeya, bouncing, and lively, but she did get a little tuckered by about 6pm. At no time was I worried about the Dams safety, she was in no stress. My decision was... Do I do a c-section and try to save the one pup before it detaches, is the puppy already dead? The decision for me was an easy one. Things are not normal, we have a puppy in stress, operate!

It is a happy ending...

2 boys

and 2 girls

One was way down in the birth canal. The vet said the last girl was way far up. She was the hardest to get out and her placenta was way way up and it was not letting go.

Forcing could cause too much blood loss, so we left that placenta in her and gave her a shot of OXYTOSIN, and that didn't do a thing. We will just be careful. I think the placenta did come out the next day.

The pups are doing well. The one little girl was a little slower to revive. 3 pups were screaming within 5 minutes, and she was going strong within 10 minutes.

All pups are nursing and Catreeya is totally beat...
 

OF ALL DAMS, Catreeya is my healthiest. I couldn't believe that she would not go into labor.

Normally after the water breaks, it is ½ hour before labor starts, but waiting up to 2 hours with out a vet exam is ok. But my advise to all, is GO WITH your GUT feeling.

I did my own internal, and new a pup was engaged in the birth canal, so I totally assumed, all was going fine, however after waiting and waiting and waiting with no contractions, NO contractions... then I got scared.

In a situation like this, most new breeders will wait it out, as they do not have the experience to know this is just not normal.

In many births with a problem like this, one or two pups will be still born. And they will be told there was nothing they could have done to save them. There is... and that is having someone around that knows what is normal, and what is not. We call these friends.

Mid-Woofs.

It is understanding the difference between normal and not normal, that saves puppies.

Going on Intuition, knowing your dog, and go with your gut feeling.

Courtesy of MistyTrails Havanese

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Video clip of a dam in distress. A puppy was breech. The breeder had to assist the dam by putting a feeding tube into the dam's vagina and injecting lube paste around the puppy, and pulled. There is a way to pull, towards the dams head. You try to touch the puppy to the dam's belly button. You do not just pull, or pull outwards. This should only be done by a very experienced breeder and you should always contact your vet before performing any such methods. If your dam is in distress, take her to the vet. Someone without many litters of experience or a vet present would not have gotten this pup out alive. This dam pushed on this puppy for 1.5 hours, and this is NOT normal. A Dam should not push on a single puppy for more than 2 hours.

We have domesticated these dogs, to where most dams need our help. Do NOT listen to our ancestors that used to let dogs whelp under the front porch. They now need help... We have completely domesticated them, and they rely on us. This dam would not have got this puppy out by herself. - Courtesy of MistyTrails Havanese

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Another case where things did not go smoothly. Everything turned out ok in the end, thanks to the breeders experience, however in this case things could have turned out very badly. The dam and pups could have died.  Courtesy of MistyTrails Havanese

The dam is ready to deliver her pups.  It is 5pm, and she has been in mild labor all day. She if fully dilated, and a pup is in the birth canal. We are just WAITING for some strong contractions. Calsorb was given orally, to make the contractions stronger but she vomited it up. She is quite exhausted from the mild labor all day, so we are also giving her small amounts of nutrical. She is also a little dehydrated, as she has not taken any water for 12 hours. and spits it out when we syringe it. Things are not going normally, but there is no reason to panic yet.

The x-ray shows four puppies. One is on top of the other.

It is 8pm, a pup has been in the birth canal for 3 hours, with very week pushes, and an exhausted Dam, it is time to go to the vet. This dam had NO push, so she had to go to the vet for a calcium drip. She kept vomiting up the calsorb. The iv gave her fluids and Calcium was given, and we had 2 pups out within 1/2 an hour.

PUP #3 was stuck solid, breach... you can see her feet out, and no sack and the cord is gone. She was scared, and stuck solid.

The stuck puppy, that we are pulling by the feet would have been easier to get out, if a contraction came, but they did not. This pup was stuck, head in, cord cut, and basically was drowning/suffocating. The shoulders were stuck. The puppy lost all color. The pink feet wiggling went still and white. It was VERY VERY difficult to get out, but we got her out, and she revived very fast. The dam, screamed and tried to snap on every contraction and every puppy, this is NOT her temperament, and it was just fear biting, She fought delivery all the way. Video clip of dam delivering puppy (this was puppy #2, and a fairly normal delivery) The clip is a normal birth, but NO sac to break. Remember if the pup comes out IN a sac, which is the normal, get the sac, OFF The puppies face ASAP.

Puppy #2 normal delivery

 Everything turned out fine in the end, however, I would not have gotten that pup out, without about 4 years of whelping experience. If I had not known what to do, the dam and the pup's could have lost their lives.

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Courtesy of MistyTrails Havanese

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