A THEORY OF PUPPY SURVIVAL IN SMALL BREEDS

By Ann Serann

HyPOglycemia HyPerglycemia

Blood Sugar Insulin
Insulin Blood Sugar

Sugar, in the form of glucose (white corn syrup) can save the life of a weak puppy; on the other hand, if incorrectly used, it can cause HyPOglycemia, a disease which, like diabetes, is not normally inherited but is induced by improper diet. To understand how sugar can save and sugar can destroy, one must know a little about body chemistry.

Insulin, a hormone produced by a healthy pancreas, converts glucose into energy; and if this energy is not immediately needed, changes it into glycogen (body starch and fat) which is stored in the liver. Insulin not only enables the body to keep a reserve of glycogen in supply but to release it for energy when needed. This means that both insulin and glycogen must be maintained in correct balance; if this balance is upset, stress occurs.

When more sugar than needed is given to a young puppy, the insulin production increases rapidly in its attempt to transform the excess into glycogen, causing a rapid drop in blood sugar (or HyPOglycemia) to a point where the puppy can lose consciousness. Prior to this, the puppy urinates to a point of dehydration, and fat globules are discharged from the body in the feces. If the puppy is to be saved, a ringer’s solution containing potassium and sodium chlorides; injected by a veterinarian, replaces the loss of fluids, restores the level of blood sugar, and urinary functions become normal.

If too much sugar and starch is included in the diet of the dog over an extended period of time the pancreas becomes tired and its cells are no longer able to produce sufficient insulin to keep the blood sugar at a tolerable level. A rapid rise in blood sugar takes place and, again stress or unconsciousness results. This is known as HyPERglycemia or a form of diabetes and explains why the diabetic must be supplied with insulin to lower the blood sugar level. This knowledge enables us to use glucose wisely and to our advantage in raising our puppies to healthy adulthood.

A newborn’s hold on life is tenuous for the first week and anything that upsets the delicate chemical balance of the puppies system can cause illness and eventual death. At birth, puppies have no subcutaneous fat, and the small supply of reserve glycogen in the liver is rapidly depleted unless immediately restored via the dam’s milk.

Lactating in a bitch after parturition is often marginal for the first couple of days. And many puppies literally starve to death. They may have exhausted their limited supply of glycogen in their struggle to enter this world and do not have enough energy left for the necessary suction to extract the reluctant milk from the dam’s nipples.

About a year and a half ago, we were losing 30% of our puppies (7out of 20 to be exact). Some lived as long as 16 days before quietly giving up their fragile lives. No cries of pain, no vomiting, no diarrhea, but at the time of death, they weighed the same or less as when they were born even though we had tried every imaginable supplementation and medication as soon as they appeared to be losing weight and strength.

Then GAINES PROGRESS published an article entitled, “New Determination for Puppy Survival,” by Dr David D. Van Sickle, which proved rather conclusively that, if a puppy loses more than 10% of its birth weight within the first 48 hours, its chance of survival is extremely poor unless supplemental feedings are instituted.

Where had we gone wrong? We had begun supplementary feedings with an excellent puppy formula after about 24 hours, when a weight loss was noticeable to the eye; still our puppies died. Dr Van Sickle had made is experiments with pointer pups. We were dealing with Yorkie pups. Suddenly it became obvious that these tiny puppies had less reserve in their systems than the larger breed to help them over the trauma of birth; and by allowing them to exhaust their original supply of glycogen, we may have caused deterioration of the pancreatic cells so that no amount of supplementation could re-establish that essential critical balance of insulin and glycogen to sustain life.

We decided not to wait for 48 hours or even 24 hours, and since interpreting Dr. Van Sickle’s in our own way to our diminutive breed, we have not lost a single puppy, As soon as the bitch is approaching parturition, we make a 5% glucose solution by mixing one teaspoon white corn syrup with a few grains each of sodium chloride (table salt) and potassium chloride (salt substitute) with four tablespoons boiled water. This resembles a Ringer’s glucose-sale fluid but, of course, cannot be used for subcutaneous or intravenous injection because it is not sterile. We put the solution into a dropper bottle. As soon as a whelp is dry and breathing normally, it is weighed on a gram scale and given five or six drops of the solution on its tongue. Even the weakest puppy is able to accept each drop before the next is given. Then the puppy is put with its dam for stimulation and warmth.

Every 4 hours we weigh the puppy, record the weight, and administer the glucose solution, giving it as much as a dropper full if it will take it, until it shows signs of gaining weight--Then every 8 hours until it is 48 hours old. Usually even the weakest or smallest puppy in a litter will begin to take hold and nurse strongly with good suction at the end of 24 hours if not before.

No supplementary food is introduced into the puppy’s system except the 5% glucose for the first 48 hours. Energy and a reserve supply of glycogen is what is needed at this point in the tentative life.

After this time, each puppy which has lost 10% or more of its birth weight, is supplemented every 4 hours with the standard mixture of Esbilac (one part Esbilac to three parts boiled water plus one teaspoon corn syrup to each 8 tablespoons of the mixture (½ cup). This reduces the glucose content by 50%. The puppy’s weight is recorded at 8 hour intervals. After 72 hours if a puppy is still not showing a consistent weight gain on supplementation and its dam’s milk we add one egg yolk per cup of Esbilac-corn syrup mixture and, at the end of one week, should a puppy still need supplementation, we omit the corn syrup entirely and substitute protein to the Esbilac-egg mixture in the form of two teaspoons scraped raw beef. The time has now come when it is necessary for a puppy to be able to manufacture its own glycogen without depending on sugar to stimulate the pancreatic production of insulin. If sugar is continued, the pancreas can become trigger-happy and whether the blood sugar rises sharply (HyPERglycemia) or drops drastically (HyPOglycemia), the results are the same--stress and possible unconsciousness or even death.

When we begin the Esbilac supplemental feedings, we give up the dropper bottle in favor of a nurser bottle and prefer a kitten nurser, which can be purchased through Animal Specialties. Bottle feeding is just as fast as tube feeding and is much more satisfying to both the puppy and the breeder. The puppy’s suckling instinct is preserved and encouraged. It can be completely lost if a puppy is constantly tube feed.

We have just raised a litter of another small breed--five unusually small Shih Tzu puppies, following the above procedure. All of them lost 10% or more of their birth weight at the end of 48 hours and were nursing strongly. Two others, each with a weight loss of 15%, were supplemented for 8 days. The one with the greatest weight lose, and incredible 25%, was supplemented for for 15 days. Her name is Touch N’ Go. She owes her life to our increased understanding of the essential and delicate insulin-glycogen balance in puppies of small breeds.