mastitis

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Canine Mastitis

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Canine mastitis is an inflammation and infection of the mammary glands usually due to bacterial infection in brood bitches, usually occuring a few weeks after whelping. In most cases, bacteria are believed to travel up the mammary ducts into the glands. The glands then become painful, red, and sometimes swollen. Since the canine teat has several duct orifices (between 7 and 22), infections can be localized in one area or spread from gland to gland. If it is localized to one gland, the bitch may show no signs of illness except for loss of a number of pups. If it spreads throughout the mammary gland, she may show signs of illnessand it could be life threatening. It is not that common, but you should be aware of it. The mammary glands should be checked daily for signs of warmth, pain, or hardness. The breasts of a lactating brood bitch are normally warm and enlarged, but never red, dark, hot or painful when touched. Advanced canine mastitis presents as a hard, hot and almost black breast segment, which is extremely painful for the brood bitch when touched. Canine mastitis can be caused by weaning puppies too early, severe scratches from puppies claws or some other infection.

The bitch may neglect the pups. The bitch may be asymptomatic in mild cases, but the pups fail to thrive. You should Monitor puppy health by weight. Puppies should be weighed at birth. They should gain about 10% of that weight daily. (i.e. if they weigh 300 gms at birth they should gain about 30 grams daily). If they are not gaining that much they should be examined and/or supplemented individually.

Milk from each nipple needs to be checked daily for color and consistency. Normal canine milk, when expressed from the teat, may be yellowish to white. The yellow tint is apparent early in lactation, due to the high concentration of colostrum in that early milk. Owners should exercise immaculate hygiene when examining the milk since bacteria on the hands can enter the teat orifice and instigate the infection process.

Milk from glands with mastitis may be off-color and clumping. Milk from bitches with mastitis can vary in color from white to greenish-yellow. Severe cases may even have a blood tinged appearance to the milk and the gland can become swollen, hot, and have a bruised appearance.A bitch with canine mastitis may be running a fever, be listless and possibly be off her food. She may not allow her puppies to nurse, and if she does, she will be "snappy" when they touch the affected area.

Neglected cases can abcess, with open drainage of pus evident. Bitches that appear to have mammary gland infections should be presented to the veterinarian for appropriate antibiotic therapy.
Diagnosis is made on a physical exam. Examination of the mammary glands will reveal that they are enlarged, painful, hot, and red. The milk may be off color. There may be a leukocytosis

Therapy
Perform a culture/sensitivity of milk

Treating Canine Mastitis
Treatment depends on the severity of the condition and may include antibiotics, hot packing the affected glands, and milking out the affected glands. Puppies can continue to nurse from the affected gland if the milk remains normal. If your brood bitch shows signs of breast infection it may be canine mastitis, so get her to your vet immediately. He will prescribe some antibiotics that distribute to the milk. Mastitic milk is usually acidic, and bases distribute better into acidic milk. Ampicillin or oxacillin are good choices until a culture and sensitivity results are back You may want to keep the pups nursing the bitch if possible, because this will keep the glands drained.

Invariably the infection will cause the breast will rupture out the side, leaving a large open wound which must be cleaned daily. The antibiotics will prevent further reinfection. If there is an open abscess or gangrene, then remove pups and hand feed. Treat the abscessed gland as open wound. You'll find that when she has litters of puppies in future, she may not produce milk in the breast segment that was affected by canine mastitis.

Chronic mastitis in the bitch can occur, even if the only symptom exhibited is that the puppies are not thriving. The incidence of this condition in the dog is currently unknown. Regardless, bitches diagnosed with chronic mastitis require aggressive antibiotic therapy. Unlike acute mastitis, chronic cases may require the use of special medicines that will cross the barrier between the blood and milk.

Galactostasis
This condition occurs when milk is not removed from the mammary gland promptly. With galactostasis you see hard, caked glands because the bitch is not producing milk. Galactostasis normally occurs in bitches with small litters or when pups utilize only one or two teats. The condition can also occur as a result of a false pregnancy. As long as there is no inflammation and infection, galactostasis is not usually serious. However, a bitch with this condition is often very uncomfortable. The breeder/owner can provide symptomatic relief by soaking the glands by applying cool towel compresses. The veterinarian may prescribe diuretics or pain alleviating drugs. Reduction in food can lead to lowered milk production and aid the bitch with galactostasis. Milking the affected glands may actually lead to increased milk production.

Mastitis
Infection of the Mammary Gland

A Case of Gangrene Mastitis

Mastitis in Dogs