Dumb question.

[wombat]

Where on the mother would her teets be located? I just looked at my female, who just had a baby a week ago, and I can't see her teets...I'm beginning to think that my chins had an immaculate consception.

 

[Silverrose]

A female chin has 6 nipples. If she isn't pregnant or nursing, they are small and kind of hard to find under all that fur. Otherwise, if the female is able to nurse, the nipples will be easy to see; they get quite elongated. Here is a picture of a nipple from a female who is currently nursing.

If your female just gave birth and you can't feel any nipples at all, I would assume that her milk has not come in. It probably won't come in anymore, although I did have one female who produced milk almost 3 weeks after giving birth, but I consider it a weird fluke. You will have probably have to completely take over handfeeding and just return the baby to mom for warmth and cleaning. And mayyyybe there will be a super small chance that her milk comes in, but I wouldn't count on it.

 

[Mt. Zion Chins]

could be he is looking at the stomach area for the nipples - Look under the front paws and the side of the chin near the front paws

 

[ABBY W.]

Kind of on a side note, I remember reading once about a breeder who used fenugreek to help females who were not lactating enough. I have not tried it myself, and haven't been able to find any info on it since then. Does anyone else know anything about this?
I know it can be used in human females for the same purpose.

 

[irishattitude]

I own the chins Nick (wombat) is talking about with him... and she gave birth a week ago. We have been handfeeding the kit since Sunday. Right underneath Mom's front paws her hair is all matted like it has been wet... I'm assuming this is a sign that she is producing at least some milk... But other than that, there are no signs that she has milk

It's been a bit of a guessing game since we were surprised with Stella's birth.

 

[Becky]

Blow into the fur to find the nipples. They are located much more up the side of the mom than you would think. It tends to be where the top color of the chin meets the belly color.

 

[Laurie]

Colleen you can definitely see them and feel them if they are there. The teats are elongated. I didnt know there were 6 though so that surprised me. Is Stella gaining any weight?

 

[mishalaa]

I use fenugreek - I have capsules which I open up then pour a tiny amount of the powder into the mother's supplement. I can't honestly say if it has helped any - I've had one mom who on her first litter her milk came in the first day and she fed triplets without any fighting at all, and had another mother who never got her milk in and I fostered the kits. Everyone else has gotten it in a day or two after birth, which I would consider normal.

 

[ABBY W.]

Thanks Mishalaa! I had checked with my vet about this and we couldn't find anyone who knew how much to give and if it was safe. Thankfully, I have only had one female who has had trouble with milk production so it hasn't been a big issue. But now that I've said that I am sure I will have more.

 

[jmdebb]

I just wanted to say, if you can't see them, maybe if you try to feel them. Again someone mentioned under their paws, so just put your hand there and feel down and around the area and see if you can feel them.

Also just wanted to say, no question is dumb. If you don't know something that is the only way to find out and learn [but I have to admit I do the samething..lol]

Jean

 

[AZChins]

There is a pair rather low on the belly that the moms only seem to use when they have a big litter. The other two sets are higher on the chest and my mother chins tend to use those to nurse a lot more than the lower set. I think that's because the moms can get to the babies more easily with the ones that are closer to the front legs.

Nope...not a dumb question at all! I think it's a rather good question.