Page 56 - Chow Life - Spring 2016

attendant’s schedule, inevitably heat. A brand new little body that is on. As previously explained, hot
becomes an adult with a quiescent just learning how to react to outside pups crawl away from the heat
personality, diminished reasoning stimuli shows the effects. He source. Although mom will uncurl,
ability and a lackadaisical attitude develops painful stomach cramps, even roll onto her back to allow
about life in general. Never having “bird-seed diarrhea”, and breathing mammary heat to escape, she
experienced the most basic neo- difficulties. Improperly diagnosed can do little to change an overly
natal struggles and achievements, and treated, he will die. The telltale warm environment. When whelps
if at some point in life, he suffers yellow liquid stool with tiny scatter, they are at high risk of being
hunger, cold, pain, or fear, he is the greenish lumps is undigested milk. squashed or smothered as opposed
poor doggy that will just sit and Just as a chilled whelp cannot digest to properly regulated whelps
whimper in befuddlement. milk, neither can an overheated snuggled to the teat or neatly piled.
By the way, when pups are hand- one. The trip to the vet wherein he Depending on the breed, the
fed, we're told to gently stimulate is taken out of the hot environment Cuddle Curl has some variations
evacuation by cleansing the genital is often the first relief he has. He but accomplishes the same
area with cotton balls moistened quiets down, grateful for the respite. remarkable objective. The snugness
in warm water. What we are not But all too soon, he’s brought home of the curl regulates temperature as
told is that it should be very warm and hurriedly placed back in the effectively as does a mother hen’s
water. Shocking a newborn with overheated nest whereupon he fluffing of feathers over her eggs.
tepid bitch's milk replacer (the again begins to crawl and cry. The bitch’s body holds the moist
“wrist test” is for human babies) or I used to get frantic calls from heat resulting from her post whelp
cleansing his bottom with cold wet breeders who, home from the vet drainage. It traps and magnifies
cotton is a common mistake. "Body with dutifully medicated pups, find the hormone-laden scents which
temperature" in a human feels them no better off. A few careful evoke all sorts of poorly understood
cold to a dog whose temperature questions often results in my best mechanisms designed to comfort
averages 101.5 degrees. prescription, “put them in the the whelps, promote healing, and
bathtub and call me back in five slow down her metabolism so that
minutes.” The results are nothing she will in fact “lay in” for 72 hours.
Heat Lamps, Heating sort of miraculous! Hot puppies
Pads sprawl achy tummies on cool
Contrast this with the poor baby porcelain, whimper one time and New Mothers Lay-In
forced to lay on a dry heating pad or fall (gratefully) asleep. Left to her own devices, she
under the harsh light of an equally A word of caution. Should you lay would survive the first few days on
dehydrating heat lamp. Pups are this aside or fail to grasp the overall the consumed afterbirth. It may
born in dark places. Their eyelids concept, please be sure the pups are be repulsive to you but healthy
are closed for a reason. Close your in fact trying to crawl away from placenta and birth fluids are laden
own eyes. Shine a flashlight towards the heat source. If they are fanned with enzymes and hormones
your eyes. Got it? The brightness out like spokes in a wheel, “crying needed during her laying-in period.
filters through your closed lids. If and crawling,” the bathtub trick We interfere in ways offensive to
you won’t allow her to whelp in the confirms you must remove the heat her and to nature when we deprive
closet or a dark, quiet room, at the lamp or heating pad! If however, her of placenta and then solicitously
very least, throw the heat lamps out! they are “piled” on top of each offer fake food that speeds up her
If you have orphan pups, give them other in the nest, or if after three metabolism at a time when she
a hospital quality moist-heat pad minutes on the cool porcelain they should just sleep quietly for a few
or a hot-water bottle in a corner of do not fall into exhausted sleep, the days. When she then becomes
the nest. Don't cover the entire nest problem is not overheating and you agitated, we give her drugs or
with it. Pups with mom will do just need to find another vet. herbs to relax her. Then instead of
fine if the ambient temperature is leaving her alone, we force her into
above 50 degrees. They are in your activity, making her leave the nest
house, right? The Cuddle Curl to empty a bladder that is possibly
If the artificially heated pup The protective, collective cuddle performing some miraculous
becomes too warm, there's no curl is an ingenious tool used by all recycling job which converts waste
fluid into milk! Who knows?
escape, no way to regulate his barely carnivores; felines, canines, bears,
functioning thermostat. Human even rodents. Bitches deprived Take her out to eliminate only
hands helpfully put him back in the of the natural birth process may when she lets you know she is ready.
heated area and the more he cries never fully develop the nurturing You can encourage her to change
in discomfort, the more he's curl that regulates temperature, sides but if she resists, do not
placed again and again in the controls a large brood, and insures force her but do watch for udder
the babies are not laid or stepped inflammation. Change the bedding
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