I breed Japanese Chin and have come across something in the last few minutes with which I have NO experience. I have a friend's female Chin; she delivered last Sunday. She should have never been bred, in my opinion, as all but 2 of her nipples are inverted. The puppies have been able to manage thus far with some assistance (me lightly pinching the nipples up every 2 hours so the pups could get the proper mouth positioning on them).
We were out a few hours today. When we came home (a couple of hours ago), she'd had diarrhea; however, she was fine in that regard earlier. I cleaned her and the baby room up and put the puppies on to nurse.
I just went to get her to take her out and, when i brought her back in and helped her to adjust and was helping the puppies to nurse, i found a very large, very hard lump under one of the nipples!
Anyone know what this is? As I said, i've never encountered this with any of my dogs and i need to know if this is an emergency.
Thank you.
2006-10-20 15:56:02 · 4 answers · asked by just common sense 5 in Pets ➔ Dogs
No, it is not the nipple, itself, nor is it the surrounding tissue, necessarily. It is more as though someone has implanted a quarter-sized, rather thick rock under the nipple. The nipple and the surrounding skin remains soft and pliable.
2006-10-20 16:07:27 · update #1
Mastitis was the first thing that came to my mind so, of course, i'm running every search i can on that. Can Mastitis come on that suddenly? Does it, or can it, cause diarrhea?
I'm very grateful for everyone's input. As I've said, this isn't my dam and that makes the burden of responsibility feel all the heavier, you know?
2006-10-20 16:10:15 · update #2
No, teat does not appear to be enlarged; it is not any warmer to the touch than any others. Yes, i can express milk from it and, no, the milk does not appear discolored, either. It does not seem to cause her any pain and everything i'm reading on Mastitis indicates it is painful for the dam.
Ya'll are all helping me so much. I'm truly, truly grateful. I'll keep checking this to see if anything new pops up on here. At this point, i'd like to just bang my head in a wall. Of the 3 dams (all pregnant) my friend had to send to me: One had only one pup that was cleft at both ends and hand to be euthanized; the other had 4 beautiful pups but was, according to my Vet, too nervous to let her milk down ... and now, this. *arghhhhhh!!!!!!* My girls are so easy!
2006-10-20 16:19:09 · update #3
Okay - now I'm fishing in my memory now . If it was I think, it has been a few years.
The first thing that comes back is infection - mastitis
What is the color of the teat - does it looked discolored?
does it look enlarged?
Can you express any milk? any discoloration?
Usually one of the first signs is that the gland under the teat feels hard or warm. The other signs may follow later.
Don't let the babies nurse on it until you can get her in. Cover it with adhesive.
Keep expressing the milk 3-4 times a day by hand. Keeps her from drying up on that one whhile the infection is being treated.
Warm moist packs help draw it up.
Give the vet a call in the AM. She'll need antibiotics.
2006-10-20 16:08:54 · answer #1 · answered by Ann A 2 · 1⤊ 1⤋
Hi. I am a Chihuahua breeder of 8 nyears, but have not had any experience with what you are describing. Is it with the nipple itself or just the breast tissue around the nipple that is hard? It could be a problem because of the inverted nipples. I wouldn' think it is an emergency, but I would call the emergency vet and describe the symptoms to them and see if they have any advice.
I don't think it is an emergency, so just call your vet in the morning and see what he says. He may want to see it tomorrow just to make sure. If it was mastitis, it would not just be a hard lump under the nipple. It could possibly be a blocked milk duct tho??
2006-10-20 16:03:06 · answer #2 · answered by Anonymous · 1⤊ 0⤋
This sounds like mastitis. Apply warm compreses, and Milk her! She may need antibiotics, so please call the vet. She should be milked every time it's feeding time for the pups, and she should be able to feed off the affected nipple with no adverse reaction to the pups. This can be serious, and it is VERY painful for the mother, so it is important that she does not become engorged, which is what it sounds like she currently is. Hope this helps.
2006-10-20 16:07:12 · answer #3 · answered by dolly3371 2 · 0⤊ 0⤋
The milk duct is to full. You are gonna have to try and squeeze it out of her nipple. This does happen to small dogs for some reason. Good luck. Patience. ( She may try to bite you, cause its gonna hurt her. Be careful).
2006-10-20 16:07:20 · answer #4 · answered by Kerilyn 7 · 0⤊ 0⤋