Greiving Bitch - Any Hints?

[Weinvy Weimaraners]

Hey DOL'ers,

I have a bitch that I thought was having a phantom pregnancy, but turned out she wasn;t. She has had the course of Alazin injections to abort the puppies.

She's given birth to one so far, what should I do with the dead puppy? And does anyone have any tips on how to console the grieving bitch once the puppies have been taken from her?

I'd REALLY appreciate any help you can give.

[OSoSwift]

I would let her see them, I am assuming that they are far to early to be viable, then remove them either when another puppy comes along or she loses interest. Remove the last on after she has had a chance to see the puppy and register that it has died. She is going to go through a lot.

I would also be giving her regular doses of Rescue Remedy - the human one from the pharmacist. One drop onto the tounge every 15 minutes for 4 doses, then you can give one drop an hour for a few then every 4 hours.

I would try not to get to upset yourself, she will need comfort and will need you there, but don't over do it.

I feel for you, it would not be nice watching your dog going through this.

[OSoSwift]

Oh while I think about it my bitch had horror phantoms and the vet gave her some valium, she only needed a couple of doses it just helped to settle her frantic searching and not settling. After a day or so she would be fine. Obviously different to what is happening with your bitch, but may be helpful

[Kirislin]

Never been through it but I think I'd be inclined to leave them with her for a while until she realises they're dead. Poor girl, poor little pups.

[Sandra777]

Never been through this, but have had a bitch who gave birth to two stillborn pups (full term). I left her with the pups and she abandoned them after about 4 hours, went and curled up in another bed I had put nearby for her. She didn't produce milk and seemed to recover very quickly but each one is different.

[persephone]

I agree- let her see that they are dead.... then when she leaves them - clean away any smells- and then just keep her really busy and with lots to do /sniff/chew...

DON"T coo over her, or sympathise or pay her any extra attention unless she is up & doing stuff Cut back her food a bit .. so she's a bit hungry and keen to work for her food ....

[Aziah]

Allow her to see them then remove them and then it's very important her routine returns to normal...no pandering or treating her differently, they bounce back very quickly when a normal routine is established.

Sorry to hear of your sad situation...