This has probably been discussed but I seem to have this happen frequently in the last few years. Pups are born all well and no drama. Pups continue to gain weight and then by week 2 one is a bit smaller. Check weights again and yes he is smaller but seems to nurse as okay. Start giving nutripaste and continue giving liver drops. Another day goes by and you notice he is not really nursing but cuddling up. Soon he seems cold while everyone else complains they are hot, I tube feed I do sub-q fluids nothing helps. I have tried a humid room to help but still 1 pup in the litter fades away. Within 24 hours of seeing a change the puppy is gasping and dies in my arms.
What the heck is happening? I have never successfully been able to turn a puppy around and save it. Anyone else ever see this? All others seem to thrive and are healthy.

Heat those puppies up! NOW!
It sounds like you have Canine Herpes Virus and the only way you can save some of them is to heat the room up above 100 F
Use heat lamps, turn on your furnance, whatever you need to do because the virus cannot survive in temps over 100 F (just don't over do it and burn them!)
The pups will complain but you could lose them all if you do nothing.
The gasping sounded all too familiar, good luck to you!

That is what I thought the first time this happened but I only loose one pup. One pup per litter sometimes they all make it but more often then not one seems to fade, no screaming all are warm, one just fades away. Narcropsy shows nothing wrong, they just seem to fade.

Herpes virus is certainly a possibility, although affected puppies usually wail inconsolably. There's always the possibility that they had some sort of congenital defect, as well.
One other thought, though-- although I haven't had a chance to try it out yet, someone posted a recipe for "Liver liquid for fading puppies" to the forum back a couple of months ago. It sounded very promising...
Here's the text of what was posted:

Liver liquid for failing puppies

<
Don't use any of the liver itself- it's way too rich-- just the liquid.

I wouldn't have another litter without a piece of beef liver in the freezer.

I just spoke to a friend who has a much larger breed and she said she gave the 4 drops every hour for 12 hours and then went to every 2 hours- then to 4 hours. So I guess you can vary it for different breeds. She agreed it was amazing. She had two fading puppies and they are fine now.>>

My guess is that the liver liquid, which would be high in Vitamin A, is providing that necessary nutrient to puppies who are undersupplied with the vitamin. Calves who are born to mothers low in Vitamin A often weaken and die, so this might provide an explanation of why this works? Just a thought.

Good luck!

Liver liquid for fading puppies

Large piece of Beef Liver-little bit of water-boil slowly, about 5 minutes
until the blood comes out. Let cool-drain the liquid and put just 4 drops (no
matter the breed) into a dropper and give to puppy. At first you give it every
2 hours for 12 hours, then every 4 hours. The article says you can do this for
however long you have to until you feel the puppy is thriving. I did this for
2 days and the turn around was miraculous. This was the smallest puppy --
just 4 ounces -- out of a litter of 7. He was doing fine for 3 days and then
began to fade. After only the second dose he came around, but I continued for 2
days.

Don't use any of the liver itself-it's way too rich--just the liquid.

I wouldn't have another litter without a piece of beef liver in the freezer.

I just spoke to a friend who has a much larger breed and she said she gave
the 4 drops every hour for 12 hours, and then went to every 2 hours -then to 4
hours. So I guess you can vary it for different breeds. She agreed it was
amazing. She had 2 fading puppies and they are fine now.

I had one vet tell me that most times they either need glucose or heat if they are fading.

--- --- --- --- --- --- --- --- ---

Replying to:

This has probably been discussed but I seem to have this happen frequently in the last few years. Pups are born all well and no drama. Pups continue to gain weight and then by week 2 one is a bit smaller. Check weights again and yes he is smaller but seems to nurse as okay. Start giving nutripaste and continue giving liver drops. Another day goes by and you notice he is not really nursing but cuddling up. Soon he seems cold while everyone else complains they are hot, I tube feed I do sub-q fluids nothing helps. I have tried a humid room to help but still 1 pup in the litter fades away. Within 24 hours of seeing a change the puppy is gasping and dies in my arms.
What the heck is happening? I have never successfully been able to turn a puppy around and save it. Anyone else ever see this? All others seem to thrive and are healthy.

GAIL THANK YOU for posting that again.

The crying is not always the case. We have dealt with herpes and there was no crying at all.

sorry it is Nurtipet (dietary supplement for verterinary use only)
Wouldn't herpes affect more then 1 pup in the litter? It seems more a failure to thrive but I don't understand how one pup can fade yet the others do well.
Surely someone else has had this happen without it being herpes? If not then it is obviously something I am doing very wrong.

I have had both herpes and what you are describing :-( When I had herpes I was fortunate (if you want to say that) ONLY because I did not have to deal with the screaming of the babies either. It was horrible, probably the worst thing I have experienced to date with respect to a litter.

I have also had puppies simply fade and it has not been just after birth. I have no idea why, only trying to be honest, and although we tested after, we just didnt find an answer. I have to say that I do not do a litter without the liver in my freezer. Thank goodness I have not had it happen in a very very long time but since learning about the liver for fading pups, wouldn't do it without.

Wouldn't it be easier just to feed the mom fresh raw liver and the pups would get the same benefit through her milk?
I always feed my nursing bitches raw liver and have never had a fading pup in all of my 14 years of breeding.

Sorry in my first post I did say I had given liver drops without success. Thank you for posting it though, hopefully it will help someone else.
Breeder too: how often do you give the liver drops. This time I gave them for the first week (4-5 times daily) second week (3-4 times daily) and then third week is when I lost the puppy.
Thank you for letting me know you have had this happen. I just wish I could find out why & what to do.

I had a very similar thing happen with just one pup in a litter of 10...the first week and a half, everyone thriving, gaining, eating, pooping....life is wonderful. Then about the 12 day mark, one puppy suddenly gets cold, feet and toes and lips turn light blue, begins fading. Rushed to the vet with the pup and the mom, took blood sample, did transfusion with the mom's blood, checked all vitals. Went home, stayed up all night tube feeding every 2 hrs. By 3am, the pup lets out a mournful squeal, and dies in my hands. Necropsy reveals the valve in the heart that was supposed to close over the week following after the pups are born never did on this one....all others were (and are) normal. I was sooo sad...thought it was something I'd done. Now I watch the little buggers like a hawk for those first 2 weeks!! Good luck with your little one....I'll say a prayer!

I wonder if it's a genetic abnormality in your lines? It seems odd, though, that you tend to lose a puppy in each litter. I've not bred a ton, around 15 litters total, and have only ever lost one puppy after birth, and that was the 2nd day due to some sort of sepsis (sp?). And most breeders I personally know haven't seen this sort of mortality. Are these litters all related?

Fortunately I have not experienced a fading puppy in a very long time. I just wanted you to know you are not alone, many of us have. When I did experience it, I did not know about the liver drops. We also tried to find out what caused it but came up with nothing, no heart problem, no liver failure, nothing was showing..

Since seeing Gail's posts about the Liver and knowing what has happened in the past, I just do not have a litter without this in the freezer.

Regarding how to use it and IF you should use it if there is not a problem.... Ask Gail, I don't have the answer but would like to know. Is this something to use on a puppy no matter what? If so how often and how much? Is this something we ONLY use if there is a fading puppy??? I tend not to intervene with anything unless there is reason letting a healthy bitch with great strong milk do the job

There is more than one Gail on this forum, so I identify myself with my last initial.

If you are saying to ask me(Gail R), I don't have an answer. I have not had the occasion to use the liver formula. I just had the liver recipe saved in my files and someone wanted it, so I posted it.

Fading puppies, one key test, pull up the skin at the neck to check for dehydration. If skin doesn't drop promptly down, puppy needs fluids immediately
(esp. if not strong enough to nurse). Saline solution (warm, test as you would a baby bottle on your wrist) inject at top of neck, about 1 1/2 cc's.
There might be a bubble effect, massage until it disperses. Repeat according to response, every hour or perhaps two, depends on puppy, how bad the dehydration.
Keep this up until the skin responds normally, immediate drop after checking.
Once took a puppy into my Vet. by fading, pup was put on an IV drip of saline. Next time I had this decided to try an at home attempt, it worked, puppy
made it and thereafter, at least twice as I recall in about 5 yrs. I've saved 2 others with no ill effects, kept both, they are healthy as can be as adults.
No recipe can I provide, it's just go by gut and tasting this brew myself, not too salty but enough to do trick.

I think you should buy Ringers solution from your vet not inject homemade saline solutions into a fadding puppy!!

thank you to all that replied I am sorry I am not alone, missery loves company. though. I did some sub-q fluids and yes she had the bubble up on her neck. I wonder about doing a drip solution instead of the sub-q injection. When I did use the saline she was not extreemly dehydrated but I decided to do it anyway.
Thank you all again.