Contribution of Weight and Ear Skin Temperature in Health of Vaginal Delivered Canine Neonates

A retrospective study (Study 1) involving 89 births and 137 newborns was evaluated based on data from two breeder centers during 2019-2021. The sixteen pregnant household dogs were monitored for their weights and ear skin temperature (EST) of the mother and their puppies at birth (study 2). Study 1 showed an early neonatal mortality (ENM) rate of 89% among the births and 10.6% among the neonates, while in study 2 ENM rate was 18.8% of the births and 8.2% of the newborn puppies. Healthy neonates of various breeds showed different mean daily weight gains either during 5 or 7 days of birth (Study 1). Moreover, the average of puppy to mother birthweight (WB) ratio is 0.04, with significant variation among breeds (Study 2). The mean EST of puppies at birth (35.3°C) was less than that respective mothers (37.9°C), showing no significant variation among breeds. A significant correlation (r² = 0.6) was detected between puppy EST at birth and with neonate to mother WB ratio (p = 0.0003). The ENM rate is higher in breeder centers compared to household dogs. EST measurement at birth is a simple procedure to monitor mother's and puppy's body temperatures.