Cleft Palates???

[ChiBree]

My vet said my small pup I'm bottle feeding may have a small cleft in her back soft palate. He said with her being so small and so strong (she fought him very strongly) he was unable to get a good look. I'm trying to do research on the net on this since I know nothing about it.
She is doing fine, went from 120 grams last week to 216 grams today. Her eyes are completely open just like the rest (hers actually started to open before the others)
Have any breeders out there encountered this?

[RedyreRottweilers]

I told you from the very beginning that this puppy should be checked carefully for a cleft palate.

It is not an uncommon defect, it's hard to repair in dogs, and most puppies with it do not survive.

Talk to your vet, and if he cannot examine the puppy properly, find someone who CAN.

Puppies should be checked for this at their after birth vet visit. I use a tiny penlight to check each puppy after birth.

Any puppy who cannot latch on and nurse properly should be suspected of having a cleft palate.

[wolfsoul]

I've only seen severe cleft palates, didn't even know you could get a "small one."

There are surgeries to reverse the condition but they are expensive. Most puppies with cleft palates are put down because if they try to nurse they might aspirate and die anyways.

Keep in mind that it's a recessive genetic condition -- meaning both the mother and father dog carry it, so they shouldn't be bred from again, and really shouldn't have in the first place since their pedigrees must not have been researched well enough.

I'd take the puppy to a different vet and have him/her look.

[colliewog]

How strong can a baby Chihuahua be that a vet cannot perform a proper exam? :eek: I'd get that one to a veterinary surgeon (specialist) ASAP for evaluation.