Guidelines For The Hand-Rearing And Care of Neonates (हाथ-पालन और नवजात शिशुओं की देखभाल के लिए दिशा-निर्देश)

Guidelines For The Hand-Rearing And Care of Neonates

New-born puppies must be handled very gently as they are extremely delicate and can be easily injured. It is therefore advisable for the young to be handled and fed by experienced people alone. Children may be allowed to assist in the care of the pups but only under adult supervision and they must be carefully taught how to hold, handle and care for the pups. Young puppies are especially wriggly and children must always be seated before holding the puppies. In my experience, allowing children to be involved in the care of young puppies not only gives you an extra pair of helping hands but it also instils a sense of responsibility in the child and encourages a deep and special bonding between the child and the puppy.

The Umbilical Cord

In most instances, the mother will chew up the umbilical cord after birth requiring little intervention on your behalf. In rare instances, you may find a puppy with the cord attached and  you might be required to have the cord cut but it would be advisable to seek help from a veterinarian to do so. The cord must be cut with sterile equipment. Using unsterile equipment will only lead to infections. The cord dries up on its own in a few days and the scab drops by itself in about a week or a maximum of 10 days. The navel is prone to infections until the cord completely dries up. It is crucial to keep the puppies and their bedding extremely clean and dry in the meanwhile. Unhygienic conditions will lead to infections. In most cases, it is absolutely unnecessary to interfere but if required, Calendula, Neosporin or Betadine powder or any appropriate antiseptic powder used for dressing wounds] may be sprinkled lightly on and around the cord a couple of times a day. In addition to forming a protective layer over the  cord, the powder will absorb the moisture and allow the cord to dry up without any infections. Hygiene Young animals have underdeveloped immune systems and are extremely susceptible to infections. It is vital to maintain very high standards of hygiene when handling the young. 

Hand-raised animals are at a further disadvantage of not having received their mother’s milk and the anti-bodies they would receive through it and need special care in terms of handling and hygiene. It is essential to always wash your hands thoroughly before handling the pups especially when they are under a month old. It is important to clean your fingernails after cooking or eating food, chillies, pickles, chiwda (a spicy, savoury mix), etc. as the spices get caught under the nails. Fingernails must be kept trimmed when handling neonates. Owing to their small size, the hands and nails inevitably come in contact with their eyes while handling the pups, thereby, unintentionally scratching them or smearing the eye with spices that may burn or irritate the eye intensely. Also wash your hands thoroughly after touching any harmful chemicals like mosquito mats, insecticides, bleach, etc. Although rare, it is important to keep in mind that the puppies may have been infected with rabies, especially if the origin of the puppies is unknown. You must therefore follow high levels of both personal hygiene and safety for the first two weeks. It is important for your safety that you do not permit biting/teething or sucking on your hands for the first two weeks. In case of a bite, contact a doctor or veterinarian immediately and follow the necessary treatment. N.B. Once the puppies start teething, they will want to chew up everything in sight. They will particularly enjoy biting/chewing on your hands as it will give them some relief. Do not confuse this with aggression or rabies. This is a natural stage in the growth and development of the puppy.

Hypothermia

Animal young have higher basal body temperatures and should feel warm on touch. Prolonged exposure to the cold can result in hypothermia, a condition in which the body temperature falls substantially below normal and can prove to be fatal. Thermoregulation is poorly developed in young infants and they are unable to produce body heat to warm up. Consequently, rescued neonates are often in a hypothermic state when found. Even though thermoregulation develops by the time the pups are densely furred, injured and sick puppies may require an external heating source to maintain their body temperatures until they recover and regain their strength.

Heat Stress

If the young have been separated for a longer duration and are in a warm location, their body temperatures are likely to be elevated beyond normal. Thermoregulation being poorly developed, the puppies will be unable to cool themselves down either. It is important to first slowly bring down the young one’s body temperature by placing them in a cool and well-ventilated area. They can also be offered a cold (mildly cold,never chilled) hydration formula as it helps in hydrating the young and bringing down their body temperature. N.B. The young must never be either cooled or warmed too quickly.

Dehydration

Water constitutes a high percentage of body weight in young animals and they get dehydrated  easily when not given suitable feeds or fed at regular intervals. Due to the time lag between having separated from their mothers and having been found and reached a rehabilitator, most young animals are quite dehydrated when they first arrive at rescue centres. The young can easily withstand the lack of food for a day but will not survive if dehydration levels peak. Dehydrated young are unresponsive and listless. Their skin appears wrinkled; they have a weak grip and are unenthusiastic to feed. The Skin Turgor test, commonly referred to as the Tent Test, can be used to test the young for dehydration. Gently pinch a small amount of skin on the puppy’s back, to form a tent, then let go. The skin quickly goes back down to normal when well hydrated, but takes longer to go back to normal, making the “tent” evident when the young are dehydrated. A very hot hot-water bottle must never be used for the young as it dehydrates them very quickly. The ambient temperature in the box can be gauged by placing your hand in the box five minutes after placing the hot-water bottle. If the box feels too warm and uncomfortable, the warmth of the bottle should be reduced immediately and the box ventilated to bring down the temperature.

Re-Hydration

An Oral Rehydration Solution (ORS) must be used for dehydrated pups. Lactated Ringers and Pedialyte are excellent oral rehydration solutions and are advisable for cases of severe dehydration. A homemade oral rehydration solution can be made using 1 litre of water, 1 teaspoon of salt and 3 teaspoons of sugar, but must only be relied upon as a last resort as it cannot replenish other essential salts received through Lactated Ringers or Pedialyte.

Although the pups must solely be offered a rehydration solution when they are severely dehydrated, they can be offered a diluted feed if they appear to be mildly dehydrated. Feeds can initially be begun with a ratio of 60:40 feed and water with a teeny pinch of electrolytes, e.g., Electral powder. The electrolytes must be discontinued when the pups start to appear hydrated. Smaller and frequent feeds must be offered to the young until their hydration levels reach normal and normal feeds must only be begun once the pups are adequately hydrated.

Water And Digestion

The pups must always first be re-hydrated before putting them onto a regular feed a srehydration and digestion are both mutually exclusive processes. Water is not only a prerequisite for digestion but also enables the body to perform other vital functions. When food is introduced in to the stomach, the stomach draws out water from other cells of the body to aid the process of digestion. Even a dehydrated body will give up fluids to aid digestion, leaving the body further depleted of fluids. Water in the stomach is only absorbed after it reaches the small intestines and proves to be insufficient to refill the deficit that has already been created. The digestive demands made by food thus cause a further depletion of body fluids and exacerbates dehydration which can prove to be fatal for the young if not addressed

immediately.