Dog Owner's Home Veterinary Handbook.pdf - Mr. Walnuts

482 •DOG OWNER’S HOME VETERINARY HANDBOOK
week, a nursing dam should be eating three times the normal maintenance
ration. These amounts may need to be decreased if the litter is small. Slowly
reduce the size of the portions after the fourth week in preparation for weaning.
Be sure to keep clean, fresh water available at all times.
Vitamin and mineral supplements are not necessary, and can even be
harmful. Avoid them, unless the dam refuses to eat her food or has a preexisting
deficiency or a chronic illness. In these circumstances, seek veterinary
consultation.
Raspberry leaves are advocated by many breeders to help a bitch when
whelping. Whether or not to add a pinch of dried raspberry leaves to the
bitch’s food throughout pregnancy is more controversial, and some veterinarians
believe it may increase the need for a C-section. Consult your veterinarian
before adding any supplements to the dam’s diet.
DRUGS AND LACTATION
Note that many drugs are passed on to puppies in the mother’s milk. The
amount depends on the blood concentration and whether the drug is soluble
in fat. Fat-soluble drugs are stored in body fat and will be secreted in the milk
for prolonged periods. Keep in mind that a newborn’s liver and kidneys are
immature and cannot detoxify and eliminate drugs as readily as those of an
adult. Avoid giving the dam any drugs during lactation, unless they are prescribed
by your veterinarian.
Postpartum Problems
Problems that can affect the dam after delivery include subinvolution of placental
sites, acute metritis, acute mastitis, caked mammary glands, absent
milk supply, and milk fever. Occasionally, a mother has problems accepting
and caring for her puppies.
SUBINVOLUTION OF PLACENTA SITES
The uterus normally returns to near-normal size (a process called involution)
by four to six weeks after whelping, and completes the entire process by 12
weeks postpartum. During the first four to six weeks, the dam will have a light
pink to bloody vaginal discharge called the lochia.
A vaginal discharge that persists for more than six weeks is caused by
subinvolution of placental sites (SIPS). These sites, where the placentas formerly
attached to the wall of the uterus, are invaded by placentalike tissue
called trophoblasts. The trophoblasts prevent the uterus from completing the