Watching and waiting

A lot’s been happening with Lily Rose and the puppies. The pups turned 2 weeks old on Tuesday; Lily started coughing. I don’t think there is any correlation…

Vet said to keep an eye on her and to bring her in if she lost her appetite or it got worse. Kennel cough can be bacterial or viral, so antibotics are not guaranteed to help. The next morning, her energy was low and she didn’t eat as much. But by afternoon, she’d perked up.

And then the puppies started to sound congested, a couple of them sneezed. They’re too young for medication, so I watched and waited.

During careful observation, I saw that from one day to the next, they no longer fit comfortably side by side to nurse. They had to stack. And that meant that the little ones were getting pushed out of the way.

So, now, we’re separating them for nursing sessions – about half at a time and I can actually feel them plumping up a bit (weigh-in tomorrow will get us the data to back up my plump-test).

The pups are nursing frequently, or trying to. That’s a sign that with each nursing, they’re not getting enough to keep them satisfied in order to have a nice long nap. And they’re too young for solid food – their guts just aren’t developed enough yet – which would keep them satisfied longer.

Looks like I’ll be up every 3 hours for the next 3 or 4 days to help Lily nurse just 5 or 6 at a time. By then, they might be ready for solid food.

Helping a mama raise her puppies is not always easy. With 11 puppies, there’s always something to watch for and worry about.