Neonatal severity indicators in dogs

Despite the increasing interest for canine neonatology many aspects of canine neonatology are still not completely studied and perinatal mortality rates are high. The identification of newborn puppies at high risk at birth/hospitalization is the main goal in advancing veterinary neonatology, as well as the improvement of newborn assessment protocols. The identification of at risk puppies should rely on objective indicators of severity, allowing a differentiated clinical assistance according to neonatal conditions and allowing canine perinatal mortality reduce. This paper presents and discuss the neonatal severity indicators presently useful in the dog, as demonstrated by the specific scientific literature. Among them, some can be used only at birth, others only during the subsequent neonatal period and some useful at both times. Despite the availability of some useful severity indicators, the development of severity score systems are considered necessary also in dogs as in humans.