Amy's notes from

Robert Hutchison, DVM
Canine Reproduction Seminar
November 16, 2002
Worcester Foundation Campus
Shrewsbury, MA

Notes:

IMPORTANT POINTS

 Thyroid has very little to do with reproductive success (see Journal of Veterinary Internal Medicine Michigan State article on the thyroid effect on reproductive hormones).

 Vaginal bacteria is a GOOD thing

 For every bitch that does not conceive, there are SIX possible reasons:
1) poor semen quality
2) did not ovulate
3) incorrect timing
4) anatomical obstruction
5) implantation failure
6) resorption

 bad ties or poorly seminated reduces conception by 50%
 Implantation occurs 17-18 days after ovulation
 After 6 years of age, a bitch’s conception rate decreases 33 1/3% 
 You only get 7-8 viable heat cycles in a bitch

EVALUATION OF STUD

Brucella Canis

 a real disease, but rare
acteria causing veneral diseases
 associated with abortion in last trimester
 orchitis in males (inflammation of testicles)
 RSAT (20% false positives), AGID test
 RSAT not made from dog, but sheep brucella-a sensitive test, but almost too sensitive-can have false positives (or not negative). 
 Don’t panic if come up with not negative-send out to AGID but be 2-3 weeks for the results
Run brucellosis test several weeks before cycle
Stud dogs should be tested twice a year

Physiology of Male

Testicles in scrotum at 5 weeks (left comes down first, hangs lower than right. If only one testicle is in scrotum and it is the right one, most likely the other one will not come down. Don’t wait until the pup is 6 months-don’t prolong the inevitable)
 Usually fertile at 9-10 months
 First ejaculates may lack viable sperm
 Male has 4 billion sperm reserve
 Healthy male can be used 5-7 consecutive days without a drop in sperm numbers
 Before neuter, have a vet find out why testicle did not descend-if genetic type, it is a recessive trait, sex-limited, but dam contributes equally. This is important to determine-some reasons are that the cord is wrapped around the bladder or the cord is too short to descend (not genetic).
 Takes about 54 days on average to form a sperm
 Could use average male every other day for life and he’d never run out of sperm, but if overused, can be 2-6 months before he builds up his sperm reserve again (cannot be used during this time).
 Dr. Hutchison’s frozen sperm bank has an 83% success rate 
If testicles start to feel soft, there is a problem-tubules not working and they start to collapse in on itself
Tone of testicles is very important-stud dog owners should feel and check testicles of stud dog regularly

Semen Collection

 clean sheath and calibrated tube
avoid spermicidal agents
 K-Y jelly, glove powder, tap water, Vaseline
 Pull sheath behind bulb of penis
 Stimulate male with estrus bitch or vaginal smears
 Collect 1st and 2nd fractions
 Stop collection at watery 3rd fraction (prostate fluid)
 Clean equipment with distilled water, NOT tap water (chemicals added to tap water for human consumption will kill sperm)
 Take Q-tips to bitch in prime season, wrap in foil and place in freezer. When want to collect a male, take swabs out, let sit on counter to thaw, and wipe on rear of bitch not in season-pheromones will do the job every time
 1st fraction: lubricant
 2nd fraction: sperm rich
 3rd fraction: prostate fluid
collect until 3rd fraction (looks like water)
volume not important-2nd fraction is important
don’t use latex sheaths anymore-
 use polyvinylchloride disposable sheath with a calibrated tube
 if you have a male that is a shy breeder, it is not because of a lack of testosterone, DO NOT give a shot or oral testosterone-the body will shut down testosterone production and spermatogenesis and sperm production will shut down.
 Reproductive Resources in WI -great catalog to order supplies




Sperm Count

 volume
 color
 motility
 Ph (normal 6.2-6.6)
 Count/mm³
 Total count
 Morphology

 If semen clear in color, not good (not talking about prostatic fluid)
When dog has no sperm (aspermia)
1) incomplete ejaculate
2) retrograde ejactional (shooting into bladder-Benadryl will tighten bladder neck)
3) sperm granuloma
4) testicular hypoplasia (never worked or stop working-lot of work/research in this area right now)
5) immune-mediated orchitis (body destroys own testicles)-epidemic in Labradors right now. If caught early, can put on immune drugs and can save some fertility-some genetic base at least in Labradors
 3) through 7) are genetically-based
 blood not sperm-killing-if blood in sperm, due to TWO reasons:
1) overzealous collector-broken blood vessels
2) 6 years or older-as age, testosterone changes to dyhydrotestosterone and causes the prostate to swell-starts to contract and get blood leakage

Prostatic Disease

1) benign prostatic hyperplasia
2) prostatic (acute/chronic)
3) prostatic abscess
4) prostatic cyst
5) neoplasia

 see more prostatic cancer in neutered dogs-lack of hormones-do not overlook possibility of prostatic tumor in neutered dog-sometimes see weakness in hind end
 pus, fever, roached, hunched, vomiting, thirst, electrolytes screwed up
 blood-hormonal
 Neutered dogs have higher incidence of prostatic cancer than intact males. 
 Blood means problem is hormonal, whereas pus is infection.
 Ultrasound is only way to see prostatic problems.
 Ultrasound is important in looking at prostatic problems
 Ovaban tablets: magic medicine that shrinks prostate and doesn’t kill sperm
1) Progesterone-based
2) Prostar phonestoride (human) does same thing-stops enzymes that cause change, but is more $$---this drug is VERY BAD for women of reproductive age-Dr. Hutchison does not prescribe.

Benign Prostatic Hyperplasia (dog not ill, blood in ejaculate)

1) Prostate enlarged-nonpainful
2) Blood in ejaculate or from penis
3) Hormonal rather than infectious
4) Diagnosed by ultrasound
5) Neuter
6) Ovaban/Megace (dogs can be used while on Ovaban-wait until after collected to give the pill)
i. ¼ mg/lb body weight
ii. give 1 time/day for the first 21 days
iii. from day 21 forward, give 1 time/day every 10 days

 testosterone cycle is 10 days

Motility

all dead (what did collector do to kill them? If this happens, wash off the belly of the dog with clean distilled water, take a walk and try again).
 Side to side movement
 Rapid side to side movement
 Occasional forward progression
 Some forward progression
 Strong rapid progression
 Should be rapidly moving

Ph (normal 6.2-6.6)

 As moves closer to normal, semen looks like clumping-moving head to head and moving toward neutral-have to consider bacteria as a cause

Morphology

 may have a ton of sperm, but if not normal-sterile-if not normal, cannot attach to egg (head)
 Head and tales popping apart-due to heating of testicles too much-can be an internal or external cause
Big heads-megacephalic-not usable
Put all abnormalities down on paper-localize problem and look at what can be done
 Immature sperm cells do not freeze or chill. They mean you are overusing the dog.

Normal Semen Evaluation

Number 10 million/# body weight 
Color White 
Motility Greater than 80% 
Ph 6.2 - 6.6 (slightly acid) 
Morphology Less than 20% abnormal 

The volume of total semen is measured, and the volume that is placed on the slide is measured. One drop is placed on the slide.

 Best reproductive age for a male is 2-7 years of age
 Aging itself does not cause sperm to change or reduce ability to be used
 Infection may cause high amounts of abnormality, but not the count

Fresh Cooled Semen

 no need to ship bitch
 semen can be sent for freezing
 allows breeding when male is not available
 some use internationally
 there are procedures available to make semen last longer

Sending fresh cooled semen

 collect second fraction only
 centrifuge for 5 minutes to take the clear prostatic fluid off
 gently mix with extender (no air bubbles-very damaging to semen)
 package to maintain at 40ºF
 put in refrigerator for 1 hour to settle
 FedEx or counter to counter
 Energy conservation is important-if add 3rd fraction, which is designed to provide more motility, you are wasting the energy of the sperm while in transit-“bouncing of walls of vial” and are dead upon arrival
 Centrifuge for 5 minutes-take the clear off

Using fresh cooled semen

 First evaluate ONE drop for motility-put rest back in refrigerator
 DO NOT warm sample
 Vaginal, transcervical or surgical AI, and a 4th method will be presented today 
 timing of bitch is more important than sperm count-inseminate 48 hours post-ovulation, after the day the bitch’s progesterone goes above 5 ng/ml

Canine Frozen Semen

 AKC recognized frozen semen I 1981-first freezing started in 1972

Reasons for Freezing Canine Semen

1) Bitch is not shipped
2) Disease prevention
3) Cost effective
4) Better use of genetics, line breeding and inbreeding
5) International semen market
6) Preservation of genetic material not limited by health or life of dog

Frozen Semen Concerns

1) Cervical anatomy
i. Must be put into uterus-83% success rate
ii. Vaginal insemination-11% success rate

2) Shortened semen life-no room for error
ü Proper timing and understanding ovulation timing of bitch
3) Protoplasmic membrane “pitting”-from freezing and thawing
4) Reduction in acrosin and proacrosin (enzymes necessary to penetrate egg)
5) Lowered sperm numbers/breeding

Method of freezing

 in canine get better sperm recovery by freezing in pellets (study) vs straws (Dr. Hutchison freezes in pellets)
 Straw is a jar-depends on what’s in jar that determines how many breedings you can get
 Divide pellets into packages-each package is enough for one breeding
 Stored in thermos filled with liquid nitrogen at -322ºF
 AKC charges an additional $30 to register a frozen litter

DNA Testing for Male

 Required on frozen or fresh-cooled semen after 10/99
 Sire of 3 or more litters yearly
 Sire of 7 or more litters yearly

BITCH PHYSIOLOGY

 First cycle at 6-12 months-don’t worry until bitch reaches age 2 with no cycle
 Average time between cycles is 7 months
 Cycle consists of: proestrus, estrus, diestrus, anestrus
 Bitch born with 500,000 potential ova
Progesterone wears “white” and “black” hats
Caberglin-antiprolactin drug with no side effects-used to short cycle them so they come in on their own. 
 Prolactin is hormone in brain that triggers season.
 It takes 4.5 months (135 days) to get over inflammation of uterus from previous cycle
 Cheque drops are back on the market-huge fan of Cheque drops

Proestrus Bleeding 
Estrus Breeding time (ovulation) 
Diestrus 1st day of diestrus you can see on a microscope-retrospectively can determine when ovulated, etc. Only allows you to look back, not forward 
Anestrus Ovaries quiet, but hormones active 

 Bitches never go into menopause
 Bitches were made for embryo transfer (surrogates)
 Cannot do now because cannot bring bitches’ cycles in together, but anticipate this in the future
 Currently freezing ovaries-cannot do anything with them now, but will be able to in future
 Progesterone is evil that wears bitch’s uterus out-wear on uterus after each cycle
 Progesterone lasts as long in bitch whether she’s bred or not bred 
 By Day 16 of cycle, if not bred, the process starts all over again.
 There is no difference in progesterone between pregnant and non pregnant bitches

How Often to Breed and Health of Uterus (Heather’s heading)

 It is better to do back to back breedings-better for the bitch and healthier for the uterus-thinking the bitch needs time off is one of the biggest fallacies
 After a C-section, it is not bad to breed a bitch on the next season (if planned C-secion)-if tough labor, can still be tough on uterus
 Tears and torsions-iffy-based on each bitch
 After a bitch whelps a litter, and look at uterus 12 weeks later-uterus is usually totally healed 
If skip cycles between breedings, litter size drops
 After age 6, 1 in 6 bitches become infertile
Huge advocate of Cheque drops-saves the uterus
 When breed a bitch for the first time, check out the bitch’s reproductive structure-look for strictures
 Vaginal wall prolapse- no reason to spay bitch-goes away when estrogen decreases
 Vaginal culture is a waste of time
 Culture is not necessary unless there is an abnormal discharge. They have long swabs that they can use for culturing-you need to culture the inside not the outside (uterus s/b sterile, not vagina). No place for antibiotics pre-breeding. If have abnormal discharge (especially if coming from uterus), Something about tigalin swam-20”
 Cervix is near the abdomen and bladder, not in vagina
 Even if we need an antibiotic, it is only 25% effective and it kills the good bacteria

Mycoplasma/Ureaplasma

 look at 1991 AKC Gazette article
normal flora -all of us have it at every body opening
opportunistic (immune-stressed)
 variable signs (vaginitis in bitches, balanoposthitis in dogs which is goo at end of sheath)
 non-conception, resorption, fetal death, fading puppy, semen anomalies (if get in stressful situation, this can happen, but is NOT THE CAUSE)
 treated with Baytril, tetracycline, doxycycline (tetracycline and doxycycline are cheap and effective)
 biggest problem-reduced motility in dogs
presence tells us immune system is compromised--that’s all it tells us 
 non-contagious
 like hot spots-explains whole phenomenon
 E coli and mycoplasma often run together-treat for secondary infection but still need to find primary reason for infection-otherwise can come back
 Baytril in small and medium breed dogs can damage cartilage

Bitch Cycle (Heather’s heading)

 2-3 weeks before a bitch comes into season she will put out LH
 FSH is the same whether a bitch is in season or not in season
 then comes in season-LH changes pheromones and odors
 follicle starts to go up-estrogen
 FSH actually drops when come in season
 FSH more important in maintaining placenta
 Estrogen rises
 Layer of cells in follicle, when follicle ripe, puts out progesterone
 By releasing progesterone at 2-3 ng/ml, releases LH, which 48 hours later triggers ovulation
 Flagging-LH release
 Average bitch starts standing and flagging 5-6 days before ready to be bred
 Count day from LH surge

 Chilled semen-inseminate 48 hours after ovulation
 Frozen semen-inseminate day of ovulation

 Dr. Hutchison does not believe in LH testing
 The male has nothing to do with litter size 
 Litter size depends on:
1) Timing
2) as bitch ages, litters decrease in size-uterine lining supports less implantation sites due to cysts, etc.
3) genetics-tighter linebreedings concentrate recessive genes-reduce litter size (i.e. lethal genes).

 on day of insemination, if bitch is less than 14.0, the percentage of ovulation decreases
supplementing progesterone in bitch causes birth defects in bitch puppies-is very damaging
 only need 2.5 ng/ml of progesterone to maintain a pregnancy
 the ovary is the primary source of progesterone-it is rare for a bitch to lose a litter due to a decrease in progesterone
 only supplement progesterone if it drops below 5 ng/ml

Breeding Timing

 physiological signs
 estrogen testing
 determining LH spikes
 monitoring progesterone levels


Sperm Survival Times

 fresh-5 days
 cooled-3 days
 frozen-12-24 hours

Cheque drops were dropped from market because not enough profit

 Do not always do progesterone after ultrasound-depends on situation

Vaginal Smear Reading

 Measuring fat sassy cells, starving and starved cells
 Describes the different stages of dehydration
Getting idea of what follicle is doing
3 days before LH surge, bitch is fully cornified-6 days post ovulation-11 days totally fully cornified
 Smears tell us two things only:
1) is she in season?
2) Is it too late?
 for timing, vaginal smears are of NO VALUE

 first time a bitch comes in to do a progesterone test, you should do one smear-confirm whether she’s in season, and is it too late (diestrus)
 as dehydrating, cells shrink, darken, nucleus shrinks-does not tell whether she ovulates or not
 bacteria does not mean there is infection-timing is probably right
 as cells multiply, it blocks out the white blood cells-that is why you will see more bacteria because the white blood cells are not fighting off the bacteria
 for smears to mean anything, you need to start taking smears when start breeding

Diestrus

 diestrus 1-6 days post ovulation (20-30 ng)
 vulva reduced in size, discharge dark brown or gray
 progesterone above 15 ng/ml

Serum LH Testing

 precise
 correlate with progesterone
 LH surge lasts 24 hours
 Daily samples required (at same time every day)
LH species specific
 In the bitch, as goes through the kidneys, LH breaks down into 5 different metabolites
No lab currently running commercial LH tests


Progesterone Testing

 Luteinizing hormone before ovulation
Rise triggers LH release
Not species specific
 Post-ovulation rise lasts about 60-75 days
 Not affected by pregnancy

Timing of tests (Heather’s heading)

 Start running progesterone levels on Day 6
 Run every 3 days-as get closer to 5 ng/ml, run every 2 days
 It is the day she goes ABOVE 5 ng/ml, not the day she IS 5 ng/ml
 Cannot have too high a progesterone level for breeding-if she has a progesterone level of > 15ng/ml, run a smear to make sure she is not in diestrus-if no red blood cells and looks okay, it is not too late
 Must run progesterone tests until she goes above 5 ng/ml-once she goes above 5 ng/ml, will not go back down-she’s ovulated
 Ship bitch day after she goes above 5 ng/ml-breed next day, and then ship bitch back the next day (less stressful on bitch)

 Split cycles are much more common than we thought-after 1st cycle, will usually come in season 4-5 weeks later and ovulate during the 2nd cycle, not during the first

Estrous Postponement

 Great for bitches being shown and hunted
 Allows uterus to rest
 Protects uterine lining from progesterone
 Progesterone drugs (Ovaban , Megace, Promone) DO NOT USE
 Cheque drops

Side Effects of Progestational Drugs (Ovaban)

 Endometritis
 Mammory tumors
 Diabetes mellitus
 Increased appetite
 Temperament change (more bold)

Cheque Drops (mibolerone)

 Not liquid Ovaban
 Liquid given daily or every other day (no less frequently than every other day-bitch will come back in season)
 Androgenic medication
 Must start 30 days before cycle
 Must have had first estrous cycle
 Average of 70 days before recyclying after stop giving Cheque drops
 Growth plates close in bitches triggered by progesterone
 Bitch can be on Cheque drops for 2 years (labeling). Dr. Hutchison has had bitches on Cheque drops of 3 years or more
 Prevents pyometritis (can only have pyometritis if there is progesterone)

Mibelerone Side Effects

 Thickened hair coat
 Masculinization
 1% get epiphora (runny eyes)
 clitoral enlargement and vaginal mucous (treat with warm water and cotton ball)
 occasional liver irritation
 get baseline liver enzyme before begin drops
 check liver enzyme every 6 months (like Rimadyl)

 after comes off Cheque drops, bitch needs at least 3 weeks before she can be bred 

Vaginal Discharge

 any time a vaginal discharge-do a smear
infectious vs noninfectious
 hormonal vs non hormonal
 inflammatory vs non-inflammatory


Causes of Vaginal Discharge

 pyometritis (only when progesterone is up)
 vaginitis
 Cheque drops
 Pre-whelping
 Post-whelping
Vaginal tumor
 Cystitis
 Pseudocyesis (false pregnancy)
 Over respond in normal manner

Pyometritis

 End result to endometritis and CEH
 Result of mixing progesterone and estrogen (ECP for mismating)
 Primary uterine disease with secondary infection
 Occurs during diestrus
Not caused by abnormal bacteria-putting on preventive antibiotics will not work




Signs of Pyometritis (signs of endotoxic shock)

 Fever
 Elevated white blood cell count
 Polydipsia/polyuria (drinking lots of water, can’t absorb water-always urinating)
 Elevated kidney & liver values
 Average age of bitch with pyometritis is 8 years
Vomiting/depression/dehydration
 Injected scleral vessels (eyes)
 Vaginal discharge (if cervix is open)
Enlarged uterus (ultrasound/xray)

 Impossible to treat with just antibiotics
Getting bacteria out of uterus more important than getting rid of bacteria
Doesn’t make a difference if cervix open or closed to use prostaglandins-neither need to be spay

Treatment of Pyometritis

supportive care
 antibiotics (Baytril-good for E coli)
 ovariohysterectomy (they can get so bad that they are not good candidates for surgery-use prostaglandin injections)
 prostaglandin F2a-injections last a minute
 when cervix closed, progesterone still rises
 prostaglandins decrease the progesterone
uterus cannot contact when progesterone is high-prostaglandins lower progesterone so uterus can contract and push pus out
 use injections 3-4 times a day
 use until uterus empty on ultrasound
 does not increase risk of uterine lesions

 bitch will usually have equal number of pups in each horn-if see in C-section that 5 pups in same horn and none in the other, there was previously a 10-11 pups litter

Prostaglandin F2a for Pyometritis

 lutalyse (Upjohn)--.22 mg/kg (.1mg/# body weight) tid/subcutaneous
 use until no discharge from vulva post injection within one hour
 monitor uterine size with ultrasound
 usually hospitalize the bitch in 90% of cases

Side Effects of Prostaglandin

 side effects are decreased by walking bitch after injections
 salivation
 vomiting/diarrhea
 trembling
 panting
 generalized weakness
 estrogen closes growth plates.

ARTIFICIAL INSEMINATION

 Cervix is down and backwards and up and frontwards
 Opening is as small as insert in Bic pen
 Tie important to conception-releases oxytocin which triggers contractions which pumps sperm up to uterus
 Male creates the tie

Vaginal Artificial Insemination

 Mimic mother nature
 When drawing semen up, leave last bit in syringe 
 Do not want any air in tube, air will agitate sperm.
 When putting in rod, twist clockwise so you don’t get hung up on tissue
 When in right spot, feels like you’re up against a rubber doorstop-some give, but a blockage
 If in right spot, semen sucks in to vagina-sucking sound
 Use not more than ½ ml of air to flush syringe out and rest of semen-most of the time it will get sucked back in
 Feather the bitch at roof of vaginal track
 Keep on ramp 5-6 minutes
 It takes 30 seconds for sperm to get into ovary

Intra-Uterine Deposition of Semen

Indications for Surgical Insemination

 Frozen semen
 Fresh-cooled extended semen
 Suspected uterine or ovarian disease
 Giant breed
 Males with lower spermatozoa numbers
 Need minimum of 100 million sperm to get fertilization

 Transcervical insemination-for bitches under 4 years of age
 Urethrascope-visualize cervix-catheter put into uterus
 Not looking into uterus-doing no uterine evaluation

 Trans-surgical insemination: for bitches age 4 and over
 On maiden bitches, it is much harder to do
 Allows for non-surgical, intrauterine semen deposit
 Does NOT allow uterine evaluation
Not an easy procedure



Surgical Intra-Uterine Deposition of Semen

No incision in uterus itself
 With multiple breedings-do surgical on 1st day, then come back 2 days later and do transcervical
 7 minute procedure
 incision is 1-2” long
 couple sutures/staples
semen redistributes itself in uterus
 if compromised semen, sometimes will insert at ovary
 puppies in 1 horn sometimes due to scar tissue, lesions, cysts

Laprascopic Surgical Artificial Insemination (brand new procedure)

 1 ½ “ section-see television monitor like transcervical
 no incision-go thru little holes
 does use anesthesia
 look at uterus and ovaries-but cannot do as good of an evaluation as you cannot feel the uterus
 7 minute procedure
 costs slightly more than surgical 
 They can see if uterus looks suspect, and can then do surgical.

PREGNANCY DIAGNOSIS

 Earliest diagnose with ultrasound
 Implantation occurs at Day 17 -18
 Ultrasound-day 19-most effective at day 26-28
 Palpation-day 23
 Relaxin-day 26 (witness test-wait until day 30 to do-placenta produces relaxin hormone-does not start producing relaxin until day 26-if test at day 26, may be too early, especially if a small litter)
 Xray-day 45-most effective at day 52-54

All an ultrasound can tell you is:
 is she pregnant?
 Are puppies viable?
 Is it a big or small litter?

 WhelpWise is an additional tool in your toolbox, but should not be given any more consideration than your vet’s advice and your common sense. 
Do not bother with WhelpWise if your own vet does not have an ultrasound

PREGNANCY AND WHELPING

 25% - 30% of pups that are born will die before 6M of age (multiple studies have shown this)
v the last 11-12 days of gestation, puppies double in size-premature labor places pups at significant risk
 the heartrate of newborn pups should be about double that of the bitch
 it is MORE dangerous to have a whelping box that is TOO WARM-
 newborn pups are 80% water-boxes that are too warm will contribute to dehydration as pups try to get rid of heat, diarrhea, and other problems-bitch will be too hot, not care for pups
 newborn pups need no additional warmth than what the bitch gives them-
 keep box at 70-72ºF
 heating pads dehydrate puppies

Neonatal Mortality

1. dystocia and prolonged labor (hypoxia-lack of oxygen)
2. physiologic
3. environmental
4. genetic
5. infections
6. behavioral

primary infections are pretty rare
herpes such a common virus that it is rare to have problems-part of the kennel cough complex
most bitches have antibodies to herpes-it is dangerous when the bitch does NOT have antibodies to herpes that do not get passed on to the puppies through the colostrums
if bitch has no antibodies, in the last 3 weeks of pregnancy and the first couple of weeks after whelping, you must keep the bitch isolated
 puppies can absorb colostrums for the first 16 hours-after this, it is of no use
 you can freeze colostrums so you can use at a later time
 every drop they get is more protection-1/2 the antibodies the bitch carries, then gets cut in half every other day thereafter
 you can give colostrum as a serum
 Why is it so devastating?
 Newborn pups’ temp is 96º - 100º to about 4 weeks of age
 If a newborn pup has a temp of 100º at 4 days of age, it is the equivalent of 106º in an adult dog-VERY SICK
 Urine should be the color of diluted lemon juice
 Skin turgor not method of determining dehydration
 With a body temperature lower than 100º, herpes is devastating-hemorrhaging from everywhere

Nutrition During Pregnancy

 Up to 25% animal protein
 Do not use calcium supplements
 Neonatal vitamins
 Multiple meals
 Raspberry tea leaves? (or Concept-A-Bitch)
 Have urgatomy (chemical in tea leaves)
 Research shows it can be dangerous-Dr. Hutchison says it is up to the breeder to determine if necessary



STAGES OF LABOR

Stage 1

 Progesterone causes the temperature to drop
 As progesterone drops, the temperature drops
 Period of uterine contraction
 Period of cervical dilation
 Minimal external contractions
Lasts average of 6-24 hours
 Temperature drops-as long as temperature is lower, nothing should be happening
 Nesting, shivering, anorexia, panting
 When temperature increases to normal, bitch should start pushing in a few hours

Stage 2

 Cervix fully dilated
 Active labor
 Alternates with Stage 3
 Pushing pups out

Stage 3

 Begins when placenta is passed
 Alternates with Stage 2
 Ends when last puppy born

DYSTOCIA (Uterine Inertia)

 Temperature rise with no labor beginning (3-4 hours)
 Weak or ill bitch
 Previous history of dystocia
 Xray or ultrasound signs of fetal stress
 Great than 68 days post-ovulation
 Comes a time when size outgrows placenta’s ability to support fetus

Danger Signs (Heather’s heading)

 colored vaginal discharge pre-whelping (black, green, red)-sign of placental separation
 Stage 2 lasting over 60 minutes with no delivery
 Stage 3 lasting over 180 minutes (3 hours)-after given Oxytocin
 Weak, non productive contractions
 If bitch goes longer than 3 hours with no pup, give 1 dose of Oxytocin (20 units/ml)-2 units per 10 lbs. of body weight pre-breeding
 if give too much or too frequently, uterus clamps down on pup and squeezes it
 Oxytocin increases the blood pressure which is a good thing-if you give too much, it can have the opposite effect
 if Oxytocin doesn’t work within 20 minutes, give one more dose. If it doesn’t work the second time 20 minutes after the 2nd dose-go to surgery!

Don’t be afraid to stick a glove on and feel around
 Hold pup so doesn’t go back in-use gauze for traction-don’t pull, but wait for next contraction to push puppy out
 Breech puppies- worry about pinching of cord
 Don’t forget to use rectum-can push puppy down and pull with other hand
 Atrapene helps to get a pups heart rate up

Indications for a C Section

 Pelvic problems
Puppy not deliverable
 Oversized
 Malpositioned
 Uterine inertia
 In utero fetal death
 Colored vaginal discharge
 Convenience (timing critical)

Timing

 Ovulation date
 Temperature drop (98.5º - 99º)
 Progesterone level below 3.5 ng/ml
 Active labor
 If below 3.5 ng/ml, going to deliver within next 24 hours 

Anesthetic

 Easy, rapid induction
 Safe for bitch
 Safe for puppies
 Rapid, smooth recovery
 No lingering side effects
 Have to keep bitch calm so don’t take oxygen away from pups

Types of anesthetics

 Local/epideral
 Tranquilizers
 Barbiturates
 Dissociatives
 Opiods
 Inhalants-good
 Propofol (Diprivan)-best
 Hypnotic given in vein
 Lasts about 10 minutes

 DO NOT intubate-bitch can vomit and regurgitate-will kill bitch
 Sevothane-anesthetic-very good-will wake up faster
 Isoforane is another good anesthetic

Factors Affecting Neonatal Mortality

 Stressed bitch-affects blood flor
 Partially whelped litter
 Large litter
 Not using intraoperative fluids (to keep BP up)
 Not using isoforane or sevothane.

 Do get more live puppies from a C-section than natural whelping
 Less puppies at university vet clinic vs private vet (more bureaucracy)

 ALWAYS have bitch lying on left side when delivering or during C-section

 There is no upper limit in the number of C-sections a bitch can have-uterus is in better shape with a C-section-less stressful on the uterus

Reasons for Resorption

1) Uterine lining not supporting pups
2) Genetic problem-tighter linebreedings
3) Different types of infection (herpes, parvo)
4) Metabolic/toxic problems
ü Drugs a bitch might be on/toxic problems
5) Hormonal-prematurely dropped progesterone

 If a bitch resorbs-it is good to take a biopsy of the uterus about the time the pups would have been due-you want to see the uterus in its worst shape
 The culture should be sterile at this point
 Run blood panels (liver irritation?)
 Check cortisol levels
 If resorbs once and you do nothing about it, there is an increased chance it will happen again
 If do something and bitch still reabsorbs, will monitor pregnancy more closely, check progesterone levels, and do more ultrasounds-perhaps supplement with progesterone
 Increase in mummified puppies to live puppies-look at biopsy, but also look at genetic problems
 After Day 38, usually have mummified pups-have calcified enough

Uterine Biopsy

Do at anticipated whelping date
 Sample uterine lining-Bouin’s solution
 Intrauterine culture
 Flush to remove discharge or break adhesions (blow uterus up)
 Should be sterile