I have one which was born to my chi Teigan. I was unaware of how much care and attention a singleton puppy would need from ME aswell as Teigan. I was told by a brilliant member leashedForLife about some of the problems they can have, which I was unaware of, She advised me to read up on it, which I have started to do, I think this is one thread that should be made into a sticky for other members who end up having a Singleton Puppy and did not (like me) know much if any about these little babies. I am so please she contacted me and explained some good facts. It have opened my eyes and now I will be keeping an eye on Puppy from now on and putting everything I am learning into action from NOW.
This is some information I have found and pasted to here for anyone who want to read, also if anyone have anything to add onto this please do so....

Singleton Puppies do not in most cases help start labour like 2 or more will do, so many times labour will NOT start spontaniously DUE dates go over and intervention will be needed, unless like me and the puppy was small and labour started ok for Teigan.
Issues for Singletons and Dams
The occasional dam may become overly attentive to a litter of only one or two babies; she may lick them obsessively and cause skin damage. Breeders should try to stop this, distracting her as much as possible, reassuring her that she is doing fine. Such dams usually calm down and relax after a few days.

A single puppy, or even two puppies, sometimes does not stimulate milk flow in all nipples as well as a normal-sized litter would. It's important to try to rotate the puppy through all the nipples to avoid swollen breasts and the possible onset of mastitis in the dam.

The problems that singleton puppies are prone to having are the result of not being raised in this standard puppy environment. Typical problems in singletons are lack of bite inhibition, being unable to get out of trouble calmly and graciously, an inability to diffuse social tension, inability to handle frustration, lack of social skills, lack of impulse control, and touch sensitivity.

If you find out about a singleton puppy early -- anytime before the puppy heads to its new home particularly, there are things that can be done. Be sure to work on teaching bite inhibition early and often, and handle the puppy a lot to avoid issues with touch sensitivity. Any gentle, regular handling is likely to help. Push the puppy off the nipple once or twice a feeding to get the puppy used to interruptions and handling the resulting frustration. Have the puppy spend time with puppies of the same age a lot and as early as possible.

If at all possible, consider raising the puppy with another litter. Getting to spend a lot of time with another litter lets a singleton puppy have a more typical or normal experience as a young puppy. The play time that puppies spend with each other goes a long way towards teaching puppies many of their social skills, including bite inhibition, frustration tolerance, impulse control, self control, and the ability to be flexible in all sorts of social interactions.

The adorable play between puppies, which is so enjoyable to watch, is anything but light-hearted frivolous behavior -- it provides puppies the foundation for normal, healthy social behavior as adults in many contexts and is a critical part of a puppy's development and education.

__________________

siggie by Dawn............Smudge'smummy

Glitter Text Maker

Excellent thread

__________________

I have never helped anyone deliver a singleton and never know anyone who had one, so this was a shock when I was told about what can and cant happen by leashedForLife. I think it would be good for other members to know JUST IN CASE.

__________________

siggie by Dawn............Smudge'smummy

Glitter Text Maker

Totally agree. So many good points written there.

I must admit I never had a singleton and too read your post really made sense but probably would not have ever thought about some. ie pushing the pup off the nipple....I would never have thought of that.

I too think this should be made into a sticky

__________________

here is a thread from awhile ago, this solo-baby was a scare -
[link below]...

his maiden-mum would not nurse him or tend him at all, which can happen especially with primapara
(1st-time mums) as they have not done this before - AND cuz the solo-pup does not trigger the same intensity
of oxytocin, the bonding-hormone that makes us tend, befriend, defend another person...
a single pup does not secrete enuf/cause mum to produce enuf hormone (just like the problem with triggering labor -
strength in numbers )

a whole litter of hungry, squeaking, seeking, blind pups would normally excite intense curiosity in a bitch, even a 1st-timer,
and sniffing + licking usually follow - the stimulation of puppy NURSING helps to squeeze-out more oxytocin,
gets the uterus contracting to reduce bleeding + get the next pup out, and creates the glue-like bond
between dam + infants. no oxytocin?
no bonding. too little oxytocin? the dam walks away when the pup has not finished suckling, does not
keep the pup warm, fails to stimulate the ab/gen area for voiding, etc... and the pup can die, either chilling or toxemia.

Pet Forums Community - View Single Post - yorkie pup just born

in THIS case - the breeder had another F who had just whelped 4 pups; she put the solo-pup in with them,
and his foster-mum took him right on... meanwhile, his ditzy young mother was galloping about like a loony,
utterly disinterested in her only child. better living thru chemistry, OXYTOCIN rules!

an alternate would be to feed mum while she lay in the whelping-box with the room-door closed, have Pup nurse
while she is eating, and let the **nursing stim** trigger the oxytocin - which also brings more milk down.
washing mums breasts with a warm, clean washcloth, and firm strokes, is another safe stumulation - NO soap tho,
just clean warm water.

__________________
terry pride, APDT-Aus, apdt#1827, CVA, TDF
*wolves R wolves, dogs R dogs, + primates R us.*
tmp, sept-2007

this is a sad thread -
1 Puppy?? - Pet Forums Community

single pup who may or may not have had a heartbeat at birth; very possibly stillborn.
nonetheless, there are helpful posts sprinkled thru-out it by members who HAVE had solo-pups, explaining the
very high-likelihood of super-sized single pups being too huge to whelp,
the higher than normal chance of a Caesarian-section/surgical delivery instead of vaginal whelping,
and so on.

it is worth reading - but have tissues at the ready.
RIP, little angel...

OXYTOCIN RULES!!!!!!

Another great post

Real interesting reading Welshie and Terri

__________________

predisposing factors toward large litters, the importance of nutrition,
HEREDITY - small litters *run in the maternal or paternal line?*
cope with the solo-pup, precautions to improve future-behavior + outcome... etc.
BATTAGLIA DVM - highly recommended.
Powered by Google Docs


Golden x Poodle - single-pup and size issues -
D & L Doodles




Google-books result with *trish mcConnells* experiences of solo-pups -
Animals make us human: creating the ... - Google Books
trish is a vet-behaviorist and a magnificent trainer, i can only presume she is a good breeder as well

__________________
terry pride, APDT-Aus, apdt#1827, CVA, TDF
*wolves R wolves, dogs R dogs, + primates R us.*
tmp, sept-2007

Great thread. This is the reason many experienced breeders have their bitches scanned. Everyone knows a scan can be inaccurate, but they can rule out singletons in the majority of carer and the breeder can relax a little about an up coming labour. If only one pup was seen but more are present there is no harm done as you are prepared with the vet, which costs nothing if you never need to use it as your bitch begins labour on her own...

__________________

SOMETIMES YOUR KNIGHT IN SHINING ARMOUR IS MERELY AN IDIOT WRAPPED IN TINFOIL

Well he is in the box with his Beanie brothers and sisters now, climbing all over them to get to mum lol. He was cuddling into one of them last night which looked so sweet.

__________________

siggie by Dawn............Smudge'smummy

Glitter Text Maker