Why are my 4-week-old puppies weak, raspy, seizing, and dying?

I'm so sorry this is happening to your puppies! I doubt this is due to poisoning, although seizures can be caused by toxins. I would be more concerned about an infectious disease like Distemper or certain parasites, or a hereditary disease. It may be that the females are falling sick due to chance (and the male puppies might start getting sick). I don't think there would be much for you to do for the remaining puppies if you are unable to see a veterinarian, but you may want to consider having a necropsy (animal autopsy) performed if another puppy dies - this is often the best way to get a diagnosis since many tests cannot be performed on very young puppies.

I’m so sorry for your losses. The only way to determine what the babies have died from would be to have a necropsy or postmortem exam done. I understand with foster pets this might not be financially feasible, but it may give answers and potentially help the remaining kittens. If all from the same litter they could have a congenital Disorder causing the seizures and death, or they may have been exposed to a virus while in utero or shortly after birth. Some toxins, exposure to flea control products, or medications can cause seizure and death. Diagnostic testing can be difficult with kittens this little but it may be worth discussing running a Health screen or viral panel on the remaining kittens to assess their health. Otherwise, the best thing to do is make sure they are on a good plane of nutrition, use only Anti-parasite products recommended by your veterinarian, and vaccinate as they get old enough. Thank you for taking care of these kittens, best of luck with the rest of the litter. Thank you for using Petco Pet Education Center, formerly Petcoach.

Thanks for using Petco Pet Education Center, formerly Petcoach! This may be due to having a low blood sugar from being so small. Usually small breed dogs require to be fed throughout the day every 6 hours or so. However, this could also be due to something else like a toxicity of some kind. Seizures can be detrimental to a dog's health and this warrants an evaluation as soon as possible by a veterinarian for further assessment and treatment. Good luck and have a great day!

I’m sorry to hear about your pups! I recommend taking all of them to a vet right away. They could have gotten into something toxic while you were gone and might all need de-contamination therapy. That is usually meds to make them vomit and to soak up any medications left in the system. They may also needs medications to stop seizures and fluids to flush the toxins from their body. At their age, if they continue to vomit they will quickly dehydrate. I would go to an emergency vet right away. Good luck and kisses to the babies!

Hello. I am so sorry for the loss of your beloved pet. He, unfortunately, suffered a severe cardio-pulmonary event, either from the presence of heartworms, cancer, or severe cardiomyopathy. He was probably sicker than you realized, & also sicker longer than just the past 6 weeks. We all try to do the best we can for ourselves & our pets & sometimes we just run out of time to do anything. I know you feel bad, but you have to be honest with yourself & know that even if you had the money, he may have been too sick to do much for him. If you loved him with all your heart up to that last day, then he had a very good life. Please accept my condolences on your loss. Thanks for using Petco Pet Education Center, formerly Petcoach.

I am sorry to hear about your puppy. In a puppy that size we do worry about hypoglycemia, which can present with these symptoms. A severe liver shunt, a cardiac defect, and a toxicity would also be suspected. If you have other puppies I would recommend getting a necropsy done on the puppy who died to try to help identify the underlying cause in case it is something you need to monitor in the other puppies.

I am so sorry. I know that must be hard. Unfortunately, without a necropsy (autopsy), I can't tell you what could have happened. Many causes of sudden death in pediatric pets is due to a congenital heart disease.