How do you feed a puppy with a cleft palate?
Feed them soft foods. Do not feed them any food that they have to chew. Your vet will have specific instructions for their post-surgery diet. If they have a soft palate cleft, you can feed them canned food for two weeks. If they have a hard palate cleft, you will need to blend their food.
Can a puppy live with a cleft palate?
There are degrees of severity with both cleft palates and cleft lips. In some cases, it’s entirely cosmetic, but many cases require some type of surgical intervention. Dogs born with cleft palates can live wonderful lives.
How does cleft palate affect feeding?
A cleft is an opening or split in the palate. This cleft can make feeding hard for your baby. Most babies with a cleft of the palate are not able to use standard bottles or solely breast feed because they cannot create the suction needed to draw the milk out of the nipple.
How long do you have to tube feed a puppy with a cleft palate?
Treatment of Cleft Palate in Dogs Your puppy will need to be fed with a tube every three or four hours around the clock for two to three months. After the puppy is old enough to undergo surgery, he will enter the hospital for a repair of the cleft.
What causes puppies to be born with cleft palate?
Cleft palate is most often a congenital disorder, likely inherited. Cleft palates can also be caused by exposure of pregnant female dogs to teratogenic chemicals (chemicals which interfere with normal embryo development.) These include griseofulvicin and excessive vitamin A and vitamin D.
How long do you tube feed a puppy with cleft palate?
Treatment of Cleft Palate in Dogs Your puppy will need to be fed with a tube every three or four hours around the clock for two to three months.
How often should you tube feed a puppy?
It is preferable to feed at least 2-3 meals a day by bottle to allow the puppies to suckle. This may help decrease the amount the animals attempt to nurse on each other, which may result in skin sores.
What happens if cleft palate is left untreated?
Left untreated, a child born with a cleft palate will face problems with feeding, growth, development, ear infections, hearing and, most significantly, speech development. It is important to correct the cleft early in a child’s life, usually between 6 and 18 months of age, but sometimes later.
Can you breastfeed with cleft palate?
Babies with a cleft lip, but no cleft palate, can usually breastfeed. With a cleft palate, poor suction can make it very difficult. You can pump your breast milk and feed your baby with a special bottle provided by a feeding specialist or speech therapist.
What causes cleft palate in puppies?
Although genetics is considered the main cause of this problem, nutritional deficiencies, viruses, and poisons that affect the mother during pregnancy may also increase the risk of cleft palates. Signs and Symptoms: Pets with primary cleft palates are obvious (Figure2). Teeth and gums of the upper jaw may be showing.