Update: Puppy OK. Please stop replying.

[ptsluvsnfl]

My sister and I are caring for a week-old puppy whose mother rejected a few hours after birth. At about 11pm central time, the puppy fell about three feet onto the hardwood floor. We called the emergency vet, who told us that there was nothing they could do for a puppy as young as him and that it would be a wasted trip.
We're trying to figure out what is wrong with him. If he's suffering, I'd rather just have him put out of his misery, but I'd like to know if there's something that can be done to help him. He has been crying constantly for almost three hours and cries harder just as he's about to fall asleep.

He cries or barks constantly, -like breathing.
He urinated a few seconds after falling.
The back seems intact as do the legs. He cries more when his head is touched.
His crying occasionally whistles but not always (could this be due to a lung/rib problem, or just tired from constant crying?).
We were able to get some milk replacer into him via an eyedropper and he licked it off his lips, although he ignored the bottle (which we've used to feed him with for days).
He has eliminated waste and urine normally (his crying calmed down a bit when stimulated but went back to his tirade afterward).
He hasn't slept since the incident and has never been awake for this long before. It's like he doesn't want to sleep.

I'm sure if the crying could be due to something other than being dropped; he might possibly have colic.

[Vailwolf]

I would give him a few days. It is possible he is crying just because he's a baby and even baby puppies cry. The fact he can go to the bathroom is a pretty good sign. If something is actually wrong with him he should start showing more signs. Try gently bending all his legs and see if that makes him cry as well as gently rubbing his stomach and back and neck.

I think it would also be worth calling a different vet because that one sounds full of s**t. Even if they couldn't save it most vets should offer an assessment.

[Blackrose_Knight]

Vailwolf

I would give him a few days. It is possible he is crying just because he's a baby and even baby puppies cry. The fact he can go to the bathroom is a pretty good sign. If something is actually wrong with him he should start showing more signs. Try gently bending all his legs and see if that makes him cry as well as gently rubbing his stomach and back and neck.

I think it would also be worth calling a different vet because that one sounds full of s**t. Even if they couldn't save it most vets should offer an assessment.

This. Also, watch out for lack of eating/drinking. That is generally not a good thing when an animal refuses food. I second the second opinion on vet. You could get an x-ray to see if anything has happened.

[ptsluvsnfl]

Blackrose_Knight

Vailwolf

I would give him a few days. It is possible he is crying just because he's a baby and even baby puppies cry. The fact he can go to the bathroom is a pretty good sign. If something is actually wrong with him he should start showing more signs. Try gently bending all his legs and see if that makes him cry as well as gently rubbing his stomach and back and neck.

I think it would also be worth calling a different vet because that one sounds full of s**t. Even if they couldn't save it most vets should offer an assessment.

This. Also, watch out for lack of eating/drinking. That is generally not a good thing when an animal refuses food. I second the second opinion on vet. You could get an x-ray to see if anything has happened.

Thanks for the advice. He is taking the food, but just not the bottle. He licks his milk right up when I feed him with the eyedropper (which I've done twice now since the accident). He just won't sleep. He keeps crying and crying. I'm worried about why he doesn't want to sleep.
The vet we called is the only one in the area, unfortunately. If puppy makes it through the night, I want to call again.

[Angeltear1716]

The crying is probably the usual 'distress' calling that young animals use to get their mothers to pay attention to them, or if they're separated. Once we had a baby hedgehog in our garden that made a piercing scream every few seconds because it was alone, and it took us a while to find it and actually click what was going on because we didnt even know hedgehogs made that kind of noise! Although we wanted to leave it a little longer to see if its mother came back for it (it had only been an afternoon) the neighbours got to it first and had it taken away.

Keep the puppy warm too! Usually if you see abandoned animals on TV they keep them wrapped in a towel so if youve got one that you dont use anymore, that'd be recommended. It'd be used to the mother and the other pups to keep it heated.
You're doing fine with keeping it hydrated, and even human babies can be a pain in the butt when trying to feed them when they need it but you need to remain persistent. If the little guy is just licking it up and taking on the milk then stick with that, he may get used to the dropper.

If he gets through the night I'd definitely get more help with this pup. Even if it means passing it on to someone who knows what they're doing (reputable breeder might even give you some tips if you want to keep him)

[LORD ZATAN]

He could be very hurt, and the vet shouldn't have denied help. A wasteful trip or not, it's a puppy. A week old, and it fell. The puppy is extremely fragile and needs to be AT LEAST x-rayed to make sure he isn't injured. He sounds like he is in a lot of pain and could be very seriously injured. I had a kitten who was dropped when I was a kid ( Had epilepsy ) and had a broken paw, but it was intact, or so it seemed. Not everything is as it seems.

[ptsluvsnfl]

Angeltear1716

Satans Bloody Valentine

Thanks for the advice. I thought I would update:
Puppy made it through the night, vet said he was OK. Will definitely be more careful with him (my 18 y o sister was very tired when holding him to feed and cried for half an hour after it happened)

My sister and I have been caring for him since a few hours after he was born. Thankfully, he was only rejected after at least getting one feeding off his mom and was able to get some colostrum.
We've been keeping him in a box with several towels that are changed regularly and a heating pad (there's still room for him to crawl off if he gets too warm).
My concern about the crying was not the fact that he did it at all (he's very vocal whenever he decides it's feeding time) but the fact that he cried for five hours straight, refusing to go to sleep. Thankfully, he eventually did sleep and seems to be doing better now.
The vet gave him a pass, so we're all very relieved over here.

[Vailwolf]

I'm glad to hear he is better. He may have been crying simply because he missed the comfort of his mother and his siblings. I forgot to mention before but I hand raised a newborn kitten after it's feral mother abandoned it in our backyard. It cried nonstop as well at night and then I put a soft stuffed animal in the crate I was keeping him in and it actually seemed to help. Naturally he would be curled up against his mother and siblings so having a stuffed animal in there seemed to take the place of that. So maybe you could try that as well.

When feeding him do it in a safe place, like on your lap while laying on the couch and not like on a chair or table. That way you know he wont be hurting himself. I would keep trying to encourage him to learn how to suck from a bottle. It may help to make the hole in the n****e a bit a bigger for him.
And also make sure you are helping to stimulate him to go to the bathroom. Newborns cant do that on their own.

[xXFurygeistXx]

It's good he's okay. He may just be lonely. Does he get to spend time with his siblings at all? Does he have a stuffed animal to snuggle up to when he's in the box? He likely needs something to combat the lost and alone feeling. Towels just won't cut it. You could leave the toy with his siblings and mother for a little bit to pick up their scent and then give it to him so he feels like he's still with his family. How exactly did the mother reject him? She wouldn't let him feed or pushed him away from the other pups and herself?