my dog just ate her newly born pups....WHY?!?!?

Question

she gave birth this morning and she are her 2 pups... the only one remaining has a would on his tummy..I DONT KNOW WHAT TO DO HELP!!!!

Answer 1

if ur dog is a new mom, she just isnt sure on what to do with them, all of a sudden she has these things following her and feeding off of her, she doesnt realize what they are, us as humans expect babies, and we know what exactly to expect but the dog has no one to tell herwhat they are or what to do with them, therefore poor thing has no clue.

Answer 2

I have heard of several dogos who have eaten their litters. None of them ate live pups though. They ate their pups who were born dead or died within the first few days. I also know of a Presa female who ate her pups -- litter after litter (secretly, I was thankful, the dogs were in the wrong hands).

From what I have noticed (not with my dogs) through talking with others who have lost pups, is that the female becomes very nervous & piles her pups up & lays on them. This causes pups to suffocate. The female then eats the dead pup to keep the whelping pen clean. This is not an aggressive action, but rather a maternal reaction to keep the pups close and clean. The female dogos I know of who have done this in the past were okay with their pups once they got the litter down to 2 or 3 -- anything more was far to stressful.

Before I got my [female], she was bred several times in Argentina. She arrived in [the states] pregnant as well. She had her litter of 6 or 7 pups and w/in 24 hours, she was down to 2. From what I was told, she then continued to pace and pace in her kennel with a puppy in her mouth & when she went to get a drink of water, she dropped the pup in the bucket & couldn't get it out -- it drowned. The remaining single pup had the same fate when it was less than a week old.

[She] was the sweetest & most loving dog I have ever had. She had a very strong mothering instinct - I think that if she had had her pups in a different environment where she didn't feel that she needed to protect them, they would've survived. Her 2 litters in Argentina survived.


1. She could feel/sence that the pup has a problem/sickness.
2. She doesnt feel safe enough.
are a few reasons I know they will eat or bury there pups, some bitches are just not meant to be mums, in this case I believe the 1st and 2nd option to be possible.

stress is also a factor. A dog must feel secure totally to be a good mum.
In the wolf nature ..A screamer puppy, is in nature a puppy that reveals the litters hidingplace..could be dangerous - natural enemies can spot the pups.

1. young nervous mother
2. young mother, doesn't know what her pups are, they cry and she goes into a high prey drive killing the pups
3. while chewing the umbilical cord off the mother goes too far, accidentally killing the pup
4.nervous mother "eating" the pups to protect them from harm.
Item #4 made me think of Trinity, she's in a kennel situation with all those other dogs making all kinds of noise right? (or is she in a secluded area away from noise, distraction and other dogs)

What a lot of people don't realize is that mothers will often eat their young if they didn't get the nutrition they needed while pregnant. The babies are born weak, sick, or malformed, and the mother eats them rather than allow them to potentially enter the gene pool. It's also a faster death, and the mother is able to essentially reabsorb the nutrients from her offspring.

Answer 3

This happens for several different reasons
1) dog too young to be a mother
2) dog has an aggressive or nervous temperament
3) dog feels that her babies are being threatened in some way
4) there is something wrong with the pups taht only mom can detect

There are others but these are the most common.
The remaining puppy needs to be removed from the mother and taken to the vet immediately.
The mother also needs to be examined and a spay appointment set up asap. This dog should never be bred again.

Answer 4

Some dogs just do this. Maybe the pups were early and would not have survived. Or maybe the mama dog was bred too early and didn't know what to do with the babies. The remaining pup may not make it if it has been wounded. You should take it away from the mother and try to feed it on a bottle.

Answer 5

If this her first litter, she probably is hurting and scared as well as nervous-bad combination! If its not, and she is a proven "good mother", its possible that there is something wrong with the pups, and she is just acting with instinct. Either way, get that last pup to the vet, to check the wound and make sure there really isn't anything wrong, that would make mom reject, and eat the pups. Your vet will give you the best advice,and you need to be prepared for whatever he/she says-whether its bottle feeding the little one, or getting the mom spayed, or both. Breeding is best left to breeding the best dogs, with the best traits to be passed on. Please consider what the vet will tell you carefully-but get that baby to the vet asap! Best of luck and hugs! Its not an easy thing!

Answer 6

alot of times if there is something wrong with the pup (sickly or deformed) the mom can tell and its natures way of putting nutrients back in the body depleted from the birth, the same way they will eat the sack and placenta. its gross but it nature.
As far a the other pup with the wound on his belly its probably just his belly button. It will scab up and fall off within a few days. no need to worry about it. Just watch mom and if you feel like shes gonna do something to this one take it from her and hand feed it for a few days. I know its said no to touch them after the birth but in this case i would think it would be in the pups best intrest. I handled my pups from the second they were born and even washed them a few hours after birth and mom was fine with it.

Answer 7

Wow, sorry to read this sadness, but yes it is true if there is something wrong with the pups the mother will do this. You'll see this a lot in cats also. Make sure the pup that is still alive gets to the vet in time. Also while your there the vet can give you all the details on why they do this. Best wishes and sorry again.

Answer 8

Immediately dress the wound with alcohol. Some mammals do this, and there's no real indicator what turns this instinct off and on -- male rabbits do it frequently, as do many tigers. Usually women will only do it if there's something wrong with the pups. If they were born prematurely or if they were ill this might be it.

Answer 9

Nature is like that. Although it's horrible, it's true. You can take the newborn pup to the vet and ask him for the reasons that your dog ate the puppies.

Answer 10

Our cat did that same thing. Later we found out that she had gotten mated by her brother. Animals have instincts we'll never be able to understand. She knows what's best. Take the pup to the vet and when you get there ask him why he thinks she did this.

Answer 11

Dogs will eat their young, they seem to know when something is wrong with the pup.My female dog had nine pups, she tried to eat the last one, because it was stillborn.But I got it away from her and buried it.Cats will do the same thing.