mastitis in dogs — Teletype

In some cases, it happens that inflammation develops on the teats. The inflamed mammary glands are then very painful, and purulent discharge can form. Find out what to do if your dog has mastitis and how to feed the mother and puppy here.

mastitis in dogs

What is mastitis?

Mastitis is an inflammation of the breasts. The udder consists of several components, from the mammary gland to the milk duct to the teat part. Inflammation can occur in this complex of glands. The inflammation is triggered by the penetration of bacteria. The most common pathogens that cause inflammation in the eyes are:

Staphylococci
Streptococci
Escherichia coli

The bacteria enter the tissue through small injuries made by the puppy's claws or teeth. Mastitis can affect one or more teats and vary in severity.

If the inflammation is severe, the bitch may refuse to suckle the puppies. In that case, consider hand-feeding the young. In other cases, only one teat is affected. Try to make sure that this is left out when you suckle. You should also make sure that there is no blocked milk. Otherwise, other mammary glands can become inflamed, and the mastitis worse.

If the puppies drink from the inflamed teat, it is possible that they ingest pathogens or germs. The young immune system is often not yet ready for this load, so complications can arise.

Symptoms of mastitis

Reddened and swollen mammary glands are a clear symptom of inflammation in the eyes. They are also often overheated. The bitch feels pain in these areas. In severe cases, several glandular complexes are affected, and the bitch refuses to feed the young.

In addition to these characteristics, purulent, bloody secretions can emerge from the teat in exceptional cases. Make sure that the puppies do not eat this!

Other possible symptoms are fatigue and decreased appetite. A fever may occur in connection with the inflammation.

Causes of Mastitis

The most common cause of inflammation is bacteria that invade the mammary glands through small injuries. The injuries result from the untrained use of teeth and claws by the young animals.

In rare cases, it happens that the mother produces too much milk. If the puppies do not drink enough milk, milk congestion occurs, which promotes inflammation. This phenomenon also occurs in pseudo-pregnant bitches

Treatment of inflammation

Depending on how the inflammation progresses, you have different options for proceeding. In many cases, only one teat is affected. You can then make sure the pups use the other teats. If the bitch does not nurse her, you can express the milk and give it to the puppy in a bottle (more on this)

If the dog is in severe pain, she will completely refuse to allow anyone to go near the mammary glands. In this case, you have to reduce the diet of the mother animal to the normal level. In this way, you achieve that milk production is inhibited.

With an average course of inflammation, you can use anti-inflammatory ingredients, such as B. flower pollen, grapefruit seed extract or peat drink. If the dog allows it, you can make her cool compresses. To do this, use moist compresses that you treat with marigold, aloe vera, quark, healing earth, propolis, honey or vinegar water.