Gasping puppy and bottle feeding...

[lemonie]

I'm currently fostering two puppies from animal control. They were dropped off 5/7/07 and reported as coming from a junk yard and that mom had dried up. They look like pitties and I'm guessing they're about 5 days old. They were very lethargic and I honestly thought they were dead when she gave them to me.
Well, after a full night of constant bottle feeding and fluids, they are thriving. However, the little girl does not crawl around at all and the little boy keeps crawling out of the basket and all over the floor. Also, she has been groaning and started gasping this evening. Her appetite seems ok but her tummy almost looks bloated. She doesn't poop as often as he does and pees about half as much. I've been stimulating her with a warm cloth and nothing has changed. Every now and then she starts jerking almost like a siezure but it could just be if she's hungry too.
Any advice from those who have done this before would be much appreciated.

[Deb's Tiny Dogs]

I have no experience with this, but hope you'll get some answers and keep us posted. Bless you for taking them in! Have you called a vet? If they know it's a foster, I'll bet they'll try and help you.

[lemonie]

Update: the little girl ended up passing shortly after I got off line last night. We've confirmed that she was siezing but not sure what let up to that. Coming from a junk yard and a sick mom, odds were against her.
However, I'm happy to report that the little boy appears to be doing very well and am quite impressed he can scooch around with that fat rollie-pollie belly of his. I will try to post pics later this evening.

[Bellas_mom_4]

ohhh sorry about the lil girl....so sad. Poor thing. I wonder what made her sieze? Well your a saint for doing what your doing and and giving her the love while she was here. Good luck with the lil boy. I have no idea why this popped in my head but the name Chance came to me. As did Tres. Chance for a chance at life.....
Tres for a second chance at life.....
Keep us posted!! Good Luck!

[Reyven]

Aww that's so sad about the little girl, but especially not knowing their background, she could have seized for a number of reasons...
Great to hear about the little boy though! I bet he's a thrill to have around!
Do you have an appt. set up with avet to get him checked out, or has he already been looked at? It would be imperative because if the mother had worms or any sickness she could have passed them on to him
Good luck!

[Luvmyjob]

So good of you to try to save the pups. I'm sorry the lil girl passed.

[Deb's Tiny Dogs]

Originally Posted by Reyven

Aww that's so sad about the little girl, but especially not knowing their background, she could have seized for a number of reasons...
Great to hear about the little boy though! I bet he's a thrill to have around!
Do you have an appt. set up with avet to get him checked out, or has he already been looked at? It would be imperative because if the mother had worms or any sickness she could have passed them on to him
Good luck!

Yes, and that could be part of the reason for the roly-poly belly. Best to get him checked out for worms, etc.

[Heart_Song]

A puppy of 5 days old won't show any signs of having worms since they have a 2 week incubation period at the shortest. The seizures were likely either toxin or trauma from being in the junk yard. You will have to be careful about what the puppy is exposed to since there's no telling if he got any colostrum from his mom and he'll probably need to be wormed at 2-3 weeks old.

Does the Animal Control cover any vet bills or are you left to deal with that stuff on your own?

[FairyDogMother]

Those poor babies... Why oh why can't owners of junkyard and the like, spay/neuter their tied up or loose behind chain dogs???? Never has made any sense to me!
I'm glad you are there to give the little guy the best chance possilbe!!! My best wishes for success with the little fighter you've got left. Sounds like he's definately got the will.

[lemonie]

Thank you all so much for the continued support and great advice. I will have to post pics soon, but you'll see that there is a big hole where the girl's umbilical (sp) cord was. This could have also led to a build up of infection in her belly. I'm just glad she went quickly and was as comfortable as possible. There's only so much you can do.
...Great news with the boy. He is very vibrant and healthy. Vet checked him over today and he only needed to be treated for the white discharge from his eye at this time. He was thriving so well that he got the ok to go to a pitt bull rescue where they likely will have nursing mothers available (hopefully healthy enough he can join). I was very sad to let him go but so glad that he looks like he'll make it and hopefully have a great life in good hands.
To answer some questions:
Vet- we have an in-house vet that volunteers a full day each week and treats at very minimal cost. For emergencies, I have to get it ok'd to run them in. They'd be less likely to spend the little money they have on a pup that is still a low chance of survival vs. a healthier adult or older pup.
Names: I was already coming up with names which made it harder to say goodbye, but was really planning on not naming until I knew they would survive. I was thinking the boy's "show name" would be Zoolander's Blue Steel... or "Blue"...since he was a good lookin' blue boy.
Parents: yes...they call it job security, we call it certain death. I really wish there was a hunting season for bad pet owners. Of course, there would also need to be one for stupid parents too!
I was given gold stars for my efforts and success by the staff and they are guaranteeing me more litters this spring. Yay!!!