My puppy died. Should I be concerned about the rest of the litter?

I'm so sorry you lost two puppies! Yes, it is entirely possible that these puppies died from fading puppy syndrome, but it doesn't mean the the other two puppies will die as well. I will put a link below to a website that gives more information about fading puppy syndrome. Keep bottle feeding them for now, and start to slowly switch them over to puppy food completely. They should be fully weaned in around two weeks. https://vcahospitals.com/know-your-pet/puppy-fading-puppy-syndrome-in-dogs

No, that's not common. Puppies can suffer from fading puppy syndrome, but to have all of them is not usual. It suggest something is wrong. Have Chloe and her remaining puppies checked out by a vet immediately.

They could have it or not. Liver shunt can have a congenital origin. I would strongly recommend to check all of them at your local vets. Abdominal ultrasound and specific blood tests are very sensitive way to diagnose this disease.

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.

Poor puppies. It is hard to say what exactly was the underlying problem but these puppies undoubtedly suffered from fading puppy syndrome. Fading puppy syndrome affects puppies during the first 2 weeks of life and can be caused by a multitude of things including: cleft palate, infection, pneumonia, or other congenital abnormalities to their physical structures. on average we see about a 30% loss of life and puppies during the first two weeks. Although in your case this % is much higher. I don't know what you mean by your statement "the other two couldn't understand"? Unfortunately in most of these situations the puppies cannot be saved despite our best efforts. However you can do your part to give them the best chance of survival, by: 1) Providing warmth but don't overheat 2) Feed every 2 hrs if mama dog isn't nursing well 3) Stimulate to pee and poop every 2 hrs if mama dog isn't doing so 4) Get puppies checked out by the vet if any aren't eating well, appear blue in color (means not getting enough oxygen) or are not active (good energy level). Here is an excellent resource website to help guide you along the way. Hopefully you won't lose any more puppies from this litter and they all grow up to be happy healthy dogs. Best wishes!

The puppy may generally be weak, have a birth defect or did not develop properly. This is actually why dogs have many puppies, as there may always be one that will not do well and possibly die. I suggest you take the whole litter and mother to your veterinarian for an exam. There are so many possible causes for this that is not possible to determine the cause from your description and without a hands-on exam.

Hello. You have beautiful puppies & have done a great job raising them. If your veterinarian detected no abnormalities in the smaller puppy that concerned him, like a heart murmur or enlarged liver on general palpation, then I would not be concerned at all. Many times a smaller sibling will grow to eventually catch up to or surpass the larger one. I have definitely seen this in the larger breeds such as shepherds & malamutes. But given that nutrition has been the same to both puppies, it may just be a normal genetic difference in the size disparity. Do not worry. Thanks for using Petco Pet Education Center, formerly Petcoach.