Puppy rejected by mother, raising by hand, possible surrogate?

[borzoimom]

I was trying not to say that applesmom- but you are right-. Usually when the mom rejects a pup, there is a reason.. clef palate to who knows.. Lets pray the pup makes it..

[applesmom]

Canis-Lupis you said; "I hand reared two pups of our Mists from a large litter and they went back with the others after about 3 and a half weeks and did just fine from there on."

Did you actually raise the pups without any contact with their mom or littermates for 3 1/2 weeks? If that's the case, I'm curious about the events that led to such an unusual decision.

Usually in large litters, even if it's necessary to supplement the mother's milk, all of the puppies are left together between feedings so they can be raised in as normal a setting as possible.

[applesmom]

I was trying not to say that applesmom- but you are right-. Usually when the mom rejects a pup, there is a reason.. clef palate to who knows.. Lets pray the pup makes it..

I didn't mean to sound overly negative. Naturally we'll all be pulling for the pup to make it and of course there is always a slight possibility that it will.

If the vet didn't detect any obvious abnormalities it may have gotten chilled and any one with experience knows what the outcome usually is when that happens.

[borzoimom]

I didn't mean to sound overly negative. Naturally we'll all be pulling for the pup to make it and of course there is always a slight possibility that it will.

If the vet didn't detect any obvious abnormalities it may have gotten chilled and any one with experience knows what the outcome usually is when that happens.

Applesmom= we are here to address the subject at hand- which is to help this poster raise a pup denied by the mother...

[applesmom]

Applesmom= we are here to address the subject at hand- which is to help this poster raise a pup denied by the mother...

Okay! In that case I can't stress strongly enough again that the other dogs be kept away from the pup as it continues it's struggle for life. Their presence isn't likely to help and could actually harm the pup.

With dogs living together in a family long before the puppies were born it might be an altogether different story.

[borzoimom]

Okay! In that case I can't stress strongly enough again that the other dogs be kept away from the pup as it continues it's struggle for life. Their presence isn't likely to help and could actually harm the pup.

With dogs living together in a family long before the puppies were born it might be an altogether different story.

I agree- this pup should NOT go back to the others to socialize until they can make sure the mother is not going to be around- for the safety of the pup...

[DrKym]

This pup is over an hour away from the mother and sibs as her post stated

The question she asked was did any of us think it was safe to allow her other dog to possibly surragate as warmth factor. She has already seperated it, and is bottle feeding it, her female spayed bitch seems to have taken an interest in it. and while it is possible that the bitch could surrogate it, I would wait until it was a few weeks old before allowing that, there is no denying that having a same specie surrogate will help the pup in the long run. The question at hand is if she should try it now.

I would say from my own experience no, I have had luck with moms that litters were close in birth dates surrogating, and have had a few dogs that were excellent babysitters, and nannies for other specie, but as a rule they all had previous litter experience.

[applesmom]

This pup is over an hour away from the mother and sibs as her post stated

The question she asked was did any of us think it was safe to allow her other dog to possibly surragate as warmth factor. She has already seperated it, and is bottle feeding it, her female spayed bitch seems to have taken an interest in it. and while it is possible that the bitch could surrogate it, I would wait until it was a few weeks old before allowing that, there is no denying that having a same specie surrogate will help the pup in the long run. The question at hand is if she should try it now.

I would say from my own experience no, I have had luck with moms that litters were close in birth dates surrogating, and have had a few dogs that were excellent babysitters, and nannies for other specie, but as a rule they all had previous litter experience.

Well put! I agree!

[applesmom]

I agree- this pup should NOT go back to the others to socialize until they can make sure the mother is not going to be around- for the safety of the pup...

That's not what I said. The dogs in the foster home shouldn't be allowed near the weakened puppy.

Returning the pup to the litter, if it should survive, should be done by re-introducing it to the mother first and away from the puppies. If the mother won't accept it then the pup would have to remain isolated from the litter.

There's also the possibility that the pup as it gets older would be unable to be returned to the litter, even if the mother accepts it. Since the owners both work, there wouldn't be constant supervision and the other puppies could get too rough with it. That would depend on the age of course.

If the pup shows signs of thriving in the next few day's it would be best to try to return her to the mom and the litter before the eyes and ears open. That would give her a far better shot at a normal puppyhood!

[borzoimom]

That's not what I said. The dogs in the foster home shouldn't be allowed near the weakened puppy.

Returning the pup to the litter, if it should survive, should be done by re-introducing it to the mother first and away from the puppies. If the mother won't accept it then the pup would have to remain isolated from the litter.

There's also the possibility that the pup as it gets older would be unable to be returned to the litter, even if the mother accepts it. Since the owners both work, there wouldn't be constant supervision and the other puppies could get too rough with it. That would depend on the age of course.

If the pup shows signs of thriving in the next few day's it would be best to try to return her to the mom and the litter before the eyes and ears open. That would give her a far better shot at a normal puppyhood!

WRONG- if you return this pup to the mother- the mother will not recognize the pup as hers, in protection of her own- possibly get aggressive.
The best way to do this is to wait until until the pup is weaned, the others are weaned- then add- IF AND ONLY IF there is no sign of disease from the returned pup into the the litter..