Can a dog survive with a cleft palate?

 

Can a dog survive with a cleft palate?

Sometimes puppies are born that can't suckle properly, and it's nearly always because they need a birth defect. A birth defect is often an entire division up the center of the palate, or roof of the mouth, or it can just be a little hole within the palate.

A canine birth defect may be a failure of the 2 sides of the palate to fuse correctly during the embryonic stage of development. It can just be the soft tissue, during which case it only presents as a cosmetic malformation, but if the surface is affected, it inevitably spells doom for the newborn pup. A cleft pales in dogs is often either a genetic disease or thanks to something occurring during the event of the embryo.
Surgical correction of birth defect

All puppies should be examined for a birth defect as early as possible, by opening the jaws and searching at the roof of the mouth. If the breed is extremely small, it's going to be necessary to urge your Vet to see for you.

It is possible to correct a birth defect surgically, however, the pup must be sufficiently old to undergo an anesthetic, so within the early stages of its life, the puppy will need hand feeding with a stomach tube.

The birth defect of the outer soft tissue, sometimes called canine hare lip, can repair surgically at about six months aged. Small holes within the roof of the mouth can self-correct because the pup grows older, but can also be corrected surgically if so desired.