High Caliber's Celestine Stella

Labor Day 2009

Stella's Last Day, Her Story

Stella had had a very rough weekend. She was very pregnant with 12 pups. She couldn't get comfortable and went off her food on Saturday. I had cooked some hamburger and rice for her but she wouldn't touch it. I thought she might eat later that night but instead, I awoke to a pile of bile that she had vomited. I got it cleaned up and I was able to get some water into her and some Nutripet. She settled and did get some sleep but it's difficult trying to sleep sitting up when you're a dog.

At 5:30 a.m. I got up and cooked her some fresh liver and some chicken but she didn't want any of that. A bulldog breeder told me to crate her and put pillows under her so she could get comfortable and put a fan on her as she was panting a lot as well. I did that. She moved in the crate a bit but was able to get comfortable. Finally on Sunday at 3pm I was able to get her to eat some liver. Only a handful but it was something. We made it through the day on Sunday.

Monday came and she was quite relaxed in her crate. I was able to get her to eat a bit of baby food the evening before and tried that again in the morning. It didn't work, she wasn't interested. Some other nice breeders told me to try ice cream. So I went and got some ice cream and about 3pm I was again able to get her to eat a bit. She was always drinking her water. I took her out to pee and noticed a wet spot in her crate. I became concerned that her water had broke. She went out and peed and we came back in. I put her in the crate and watched her closely. It looked as if she was having contractions - but then what do I know? I've never had a kid nor bred a litter. So I called the emergency vet but didn't get an answer right away. So I called a few local breeders. She wasn't nesting, or showing other signs of being ready to deliver. The emergency vet did call me back and told me I was doing everything right and she probably wasn't going through labor as it was still early.

I left and went to dinner with my family came back at 7p.m. and Stella was very comfortable in her crate. I offered her some food but she didn't want anything. I think took Ms. Sophie for a walk to visit her Belgian Shepherd friends. She played for about an hour and then we headed home. Laurie decided she'd like to see Stella as she hadn't seen her in a long while and walked with us. When we got home, Stella was very comfortable in her crate. So much so that she was urinating in there and didn't want to move. I fed her some ice cream and some water.

I needed to clean her crate so I got her out and carried her outside so she could pee. She immediately wanted to come back in but I asked Laurie to watch her as I wanted to change the bedding in her crate before putting her back in. As I was cleaning the crate, Laurie came in to tell me that Stella looked like she was going to vomit. I asked her to watch her as she had been doing this all weekend. (When a bullie doesn't eat, they often throw up bile - or in this case she had been throwing up mostly water that she just drank). Laurie went back out and immediately came back in to tell me that Stella was on the ground. I went out but she was gone, she had aspirated her own vomit. It was very quick. I called the emergency vet and she needed to consult with another vet. We were giving Stella chest compressions but she was gone. I knew we needed to try to save the babies. We took her to the vet clinic but it was 12 minutes away, even doing illegal maneuvers. It was too late to save any of them.

"If only" I had taken her in in the afternoon... if only I had done this or that... if only I had listened to my gut... she would still be here with us.

The pups were all well developed, there were 9 boys and 3 girls... all very beautiful, 3 whites with a bit of brindle and the rest were all red brindle and white, very flashy pups. There were no cleft palates and with the exception of one with a hernia and one with a leg that was a bit watery I think they all would have survived a c-section earlier in the day.

Stella would have been such a great mother too. These pups would have been beautiful. So when people ask why bulldogs are so expensive, I have my story to tell of the heartache, not to mention the money that went into the showing, the breeding and the after care.

Ms. Stella, I love you very much, you will be deeply missed and I appreciate all the suffering you went through to carry this litter for me. Momma is heartbroken that she did this to you. I love you sweet girl. Rest in Peace with all of your 12 pups.