Posted by margaret | Posted in Planned Litters | Posted on 12-09-2010
Started but no progress
What a week we have had! Nina had been getting bigger by the hour! I just knew we were in for a rough time!
Her pups were due 12th September, and when scanned at 24 days she was confirmed in whelp but no accurate count of pups. I was told 3+, but even to my layman’s eye (and I have seen a fair few scans) I could see it was more like 9+. She had been very slim when she was mated (a girl has to look her best!) and kept her figure until almost 6 weeks. (She won 2 RCC’s when 5 weeks in whelp!)
However from 6 weeks onwards she just expanded and expanded! One week before her due date her hock joints began to swell (the canine equivalent of our ankles) The swelling gradually extended all the way down her back pasterns and eventually her feet. Her hocks and back pasterns were twice their normal size. Every day last week she was at the vets. Two further scans showed puppies jammed packed, lined up like soldiers. Nina is not a big bitch and these were big puppies! The swelling of her legs and feet was oedema, caused by the shere weight of the pups compromising her circulation.
The problem with a large litter is the uterus expands so much, there is no elasticity for it to contract and total, primary, inertia results. As the days slowly passed Nina became more and more uncomfortable, not able to sit or lie down properly. She spent the last day standing up all day, which made her legs swell even more.
After a restless (and sleepless) Tuesday night, at 6.00am on Wednesday 8th September (day 59) her temperature dropped to 36.7 C so I knew she was entering first stage labour. As any breeder will tell you, this is a most anxious stage, as the timing from the first contraction is crucial, and she must be monitored closely. The problem with inertia is there are no contractions at all, so I had to rely on other signs. She was obviously uncomfortable and very restless. She did not dig, which is unusual but she did pant, looking around at her sides as the puppies moved into position, ready to make there appearance. If only they had! The hours ticked by without any progress. At 3am on Thursday morning I just knew a cesarean was the only answer, but it would be emergency service with only a vet and one nurse in attendance. No backup team to help revive the pups, as vet and nurse must firstly attend to Nina. The timing of a Ceasarean is crucial; too early and the pups’ lungs are not properly lined and they drown; two late and the pups run out of oxygen from the detached placentas and again they drown.
At 7 am I contacted my vet and by 8am he was out examining Nina at home. He agreed the pups needed to be out and re organised his day so he could operate on her that morning. I have great faith in Ian and trust his judgement. He agreed that the oedema and her compromised circulation could be a complication, but we had no choice and I have faith in him.
For what seemed a lifetime I sat and waited in the surgery, trying to remain positive and blotting out the memory of the message I had received via UK Goldens from another breeder who said she once had oedema in a pregnant bitch, but it did not end happily as her bitch died as a result of the anesthetic whilst having a ceasarian. I am sure this person could have no idea how much distress this message gave me. I prayed that Nina would be OK, but I wanted my babies to be all alright too.
After an hour Karen, one of the nurses brought out a basket full of lively, noisy pups. My first question was “Is my Nina OK?” “Yes she’s fine” was just the answer I had prayed for. There were 11 puppies in the basket. Karen said they had no idea how many boys or girls, they came out too fast to keep track. Karen said there were 12 puppies in total, but one little bitch, the last one to be born was very weak and not breathing properly: she had been put on oxygen. Sadly she did not make it. They gave her to me and I tried to revive her, and she did take a few gasps, but as so often happens with a ceasarian involving alot of puppies, the anaestheic reaches the pups via the placentas and usually the last to be born get the highest dose. No matter how many puppies I breed I will always mourn the ones I lose.
However, I had 11 heathy pups to dry and try to pacify whilst they wait for their first feed. Ian came to say Nina was OK and she was round after the anaesthetic but she had lost alot of fliud and he must replace that before she can go home otherwise she could go into shock.
An hour later I brought Nina home with our lovely (if noisy!) litter of 7 girls and 4 boys. Nina was still drowsy and a little confused as to where all these wriggling babes came from, but she trusted me and was soon feeding and cleaning them up. The odeama had totally disappeared.
The first few days have not exactly been text book, but I will keep that for another post.
Few Hours old
Bye for Now
from Margaret and her Brood
