How to Detect Canine Eclampsia (milk fever)

Eclampsia; more commonly known simply as 'milk fever' or more technically as 'puerperal tetany' is a fast acting, potentially fatal condition. It is imperitive that if you are going to breed your female dog, you MUST be aware of these signs as it requires immediate vet care and all females are at risk; small breeds or those with large litters especially.

Difficulty:

Moderate

Instructions

Things You'll Need

• A pregnant or lactating b-tch
• A phone

1. These signs progress very rapidly, sometimes in a matter of minutes. Act fast or your girl could die.
   First thing you will notice is that she will act 'off'. She won't want to tend to her babies. She will likely be very 'needy' of your attention and appear worried. She will become restless and begin panting. The panting will get increasingly worse to the point of not only drooling a little but A LOT.

2. Very soon after this - maybe minutes, maybe an hour - she will start staggering around, tripping and even falling right down. This is very scary. It's almost as if she were drunk or having a stroke.

3. She may then get to a point where she can not stand any longer and just keep moving her legs in an awkward paddling motion as if she were having seizures. Her neck and head may even thrust backwards as she arches her back. By this point, if she is not at least on the way to the vet, she may die. It is SO important that you get your girl rushed to the vet the moment you see the first signs and NOT wait until this stage, yet if this is the first you see of it, don't give up, the vet may still save her. Get her to your vet NOW.

Tips & Warnings

• Feeding puppy chow, which is high in calcium, to a lactating female will help to prevent eclampsia (milk fever)

• Your vet may be willing to supply you with a tube of gelled calcium that you can give yourself at the very early stages of milk fever - along with his/her instructions on it's use. They are not likely to offer this to a first time dog breeder but if you've already experienced it, they may give you some to have on hand.

• Do NOT feed calcium enriched foods or supplements to pregnant dogs despite the many suggestions you will find in books and the net to do so. By doing this, you are tricking the body into thinking it can 'throw out' calcium as it has an overabundance. By doing so, you will actually INCREASE your risk of eclampsia. It can also have the unwanted side effect of prolonged labors. Wait until your female has her litter to feed calcium enriched foods.

Resources

• Controlling Pests and Parasites
• Ethical Dog Breeding
• Temperament Testing Puppies