Breeder Education: The 64th day Pomeranian puppy is "dead"?

The Vet has to let the breeder handle difficult cases to gain competence.

"Focus on the dam," I reminded Nurse Ann who was responsible for general anaesthesia when she indicated to me that the breeder handling the Pomeranian puppy in the consultation room was not able to revive it after 15 minutes.

"James, use the hair dryer and get the breeder into the consultation room!" I shouted to the receptionist at the waiting area. This was around the 4th Caesarean done for this breeder. I had taught him the basics. Now, he had to practise. If the 64th day Pomeranian had to die, it would be a learning experience. If I did everything for the professional breeder, he would never know how to handle difficult cases.

And this case was touch and go. I advised him that 64th day sole pup would require a Caesarean delivery as it would die inside the womb if there was further delay. The sole pup syndrome. Normally they are large pups. But this was a small one. Like a grown up Syrian hamster.

The breeder had swung the puppy. Mucus had come out. He had pinched its neck skin. Rubbed and did everything. There was no cry. He was despondent. No hope. When I did the Caesarean this morning, it was just life-less. Limp. Not a twitch. It might be too late. The puppy was inside the amniotic sac and the tongue colour was a maroon red. It just was not crying after more than 15 minutes.

So, I shouted to James to get the hair dryer while I quickly stitched up the Pomeranian. She was as small as a Chihuahua. She had milk and that was good.

I would not want to help the breeder as he must learn himself. If I do everything for him, I become too powerful an individual. I know everything and the breeder knows nothing. This leads to the negative management term called "The Tyranny of Competence" according to Robert E Quinn's book, Deep Change - Discovering the Leader Within.

That is not the way to make the new breeder be successful in his business. If he knows how to handle difficult dystocia cases, he has confidence and the veterinarian has time to do other more important tasks. There are so many things to do in private practice. Reviving puppies can take a lot of time and who better to do this than the breeder.

The breeder was glum. He seldom smiles when he sees me. Caesarean deliveries mean extra costs and veterinarians are a necessary evil to many breeders in Singapore. I hope they will appreciate veterinarians as friends in the future.

Back to the puppy. As I finished stitching the dam's muscle layer, there was a loud cry piercing the stillness of the consultation room. Nurse Ann eyes lit up as she switched off the anaesthetitc gas. It was one of those unexpected surprises. After half an hour, the puppy could still cry. Was it the warmth of the hair dryer, stimulating him to breathe? It was more the efforts of the serious-looking breeder.

The puppy was weak but it could suckle. The skies were dark and the heavy July rains splattered outside the Surgery. I drove the breeder out to the main road to get a taxi back to his kennels. He seemed a contented man.

As for the 62nd day mini-Maltese, he had wanted a Caesarean delivery to save him the trouble to coming back for the mother. I advised him to put the dam for observation. There was no hurry. She did not have milk at all. She was due but the breeder did not have surrogate mothers.

"I can use bottle feeding," he said.
"It is not as simple as that for small breeds," I advised. "Many don't survive on bottle feeding. Some have died at the hands of surrogate mothers too."

The breeder accepted the recommendation to wait. I put her in the cage. Once, she started to dig or scratch newspapers or has milk, that would be the best time for a Caesarean delivery. It is extremely hard to tell when.

The veterinarian has to let the breeder handle difficult dystocia cases. The more the breeder does it, the better he becomes in his profession. More puppies survive. There will be losses initially, but breeders can learn from the losses. There is no college teaching dog breeding and even if there is, nothing beats the experience of losing money and losing puppies due to the lack of experience. I am sure this breeder experienced the thrill of reviving his own puppy. I think this was the second time but I cannot remember. "You are good," he said to me. "Your hair dryer recommendation is excellent."

I must say that this breeder has excellent public relations. He never failed to show his appreciation.

"Actually, you are the one who saved the puppy," I acknowledged his efforts as his smiles radiated on this dark and gloomy morning.

Pictures of the puppies and the dams (Pom and the mini-Maltese) should be at www.toapayohvets.com August 3, 2005. Education Article for Dog Breeders.
Written by Dr Sing Kong Yuen, lunch time, NLB Lee Kong Chian Reference Library. Opened in July 25, 2005. A most impressive modern library.