> How common is C-section in Cavaliers. What percentage? How much is size of > the Dam involved? Does smaller size increase the odds she will need > C-section?
All of my c-sections have been for unusual things and all bitches have had normal whelpings as well or I wouldn't breed them again. One was because two puppies were coming at the same time--a traffic jam. They tried to push one back but both were determined so we had to do a c-section. One was elective because I saw green discharge before any puppies were born and was afraid to wait for fear some puppies might die. I may have waited and had no trouble, but I wasn't taking chances! Another girl had 2 puppies normally, then the 3rd would not come. I took her in and they sectioned for the remaining 3 puppies. Turned out the 3rd puppy had died, the fluid had left the sac and the sac dried up around the puppy bending it in half. She wasn't able to deliver both halves of the puppy at the same time. The other two behind him were just fine. A recent one was a bitch who had had a normal litter a day before her due date (normal whelping as well) then aborted her 2nd litter. Since I've never had one abort a litter in 26 years I thought that maybe it was just a *freak* thing so I bred her again. Unfortunately she has a problem keeping her progesterone up. She needed intensive care with progesterone testing and injections throughout the last 3 weeks of her pregnancy. In these cases the vets strongly recommend a c-section because the progesterone injections can sometimes mess up normal labor and I agreed with their suggestion. Two of the 6 puppies did survive, so it was worth trying. However, she will NOT be bred again! Just weird things. It is not common for Cavalier bitches to need c-sections and if one did for *structural* reasons or poor contractions, I wouldn't continue to breed that one. Usually the smaller the bitch, the smaller the puppies so they seldom have trouble because of size. I have had a couple and seen many others who were so *small* they could not be bred naturally the first time and there was concern about needing a c-section, but in every instance the hormones loosened everything up and they whelped naturally and easily--and were easy to breed next time too. I expect them to whelp easily and naturally, but sometimes strange things happen. And the longer I breed, the more strange things I see and hear about. Laura Lang ========================================================= "Magic Commands": to stop receiving mail for awhile, click here and send the email: mailto:[EMAIL PROTECTED]?body=SET%20CKCS-L%20NOMAIL to start it up gain click here: mailto:[EMAIL PROTECTED]?body=SET%20CKCS-L%20MAIL E-mail [EMAIL PROTECTED] for assistance. Search the Archives... http://apple.ease.lsoft.com/archives/ckcs-l.html All e-mail sent through CKCS-L is Copyright 2002 by its original author.
