The last story reminded me of a gal I looked after in labor once.
I attended the birth of another very nice couple. She just happened to be a veterinarian assistant.
The labor went well, the delivery was uneventful and baby was laid on mom's chest.
"Ohhhhhh......does he need to be suctioned??" she asked
"No...he's perfect, just a little mucus....but you can see that he is doing ok....his nostrils aren't flaring - and his color will get better as his circulation improves to his hands and feet....he's a normal little guy."
She probably had all kinds of experience with animal deliveries. It got me thinking....
"What do you do when you deliver a baby animal....say - a puppy - if they are mucusy?"
"Oh - well - we swing it between our legs.....and that helps to drain the mucus....!"
I think I did a double-take to see if she was really serious. "Hmmm......I can certainly tell you, we won't be doing that today or at any time here....!"
I always wondered about that....so I looked around to see if I could find information on this.....and found the information that confirmed my suspicions about this practice:
"At birth, resuscitation efforts were instituted because of a lack of spontaneous breathing and bradycardia. In an effort to remove amniotic fluid from the airways, the puppy was "swung" by an experienced attendee in an arch from mid-abdomen height to knee height while cradled in both hands with the head stabilized. Initial evaluation of the puppy revealed normal blood glucose and no ultrasonographic evidence of hydrocephalus. Because of continued seizure activity, euthanasia and necropsy were elected. At necropsy, there was gross evidence of subdural hematoma formation. Subsequent histopathology of the brain, liver, lung, spleen, small intestine, colon, and kidney revealed subdural and intracerebral hemorrhage. Findings were consistent with high-velocity deceleration trauma ("shaken baby syndrome"). Traditional neonatal resuscitation via "swinging" is a dangerous and potentially lethal practice capable of inducing significant brain trauma in the canine neonate."
Seems there is a lot we have in common with our animal friends....
2 comments:
I note that your patient was a veterinary assistant, NOT a veterinarian.
For puppies born via caesarean, I was taught to first suction, then stimulate those that aren't breathing by rubbing with a rough towel, similar in intensity to licking as the mother dog would do if she weren't unconscious. Oxygen is useful, too. "Swinging" is an old practice, still unfortunately favored by some breeders and veterinarians trained in an earlier era. IOW, no one I know who keeps up with the standard of care "swings" puppies, ever!
In my state, veterinary technicians are not licensed, and no training is required (high school diploma optional). Many veterinary technicians learned on the job and, unfortunately, their knowledge is sharply limited by the knowledge base of the veterinarian who provided training. It sounds like your patient fell into that category; had she attended a quality training program, she would have known better than to "swing" a puppy.
This was approximately 15 to 20 years ago too.... so the time lapse may have something to do with the quality of care also.
It was a comment made that stuck with me - that I wasn't able to investigate on my own until the internet ... :)
Interesting though how we still see the "Shaken baby syndrome" when it has been known for years that you don't do it....animals brains and human brains are similar in this way...
Thanks again for your comment! :)
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