Feeding 3 week old Puppies - Page 1

 Does anyone out there have a suggestions on how and what to feed puppies that are 3 weeks old and the mother doesn't have much milk...The puppies seem to be hungry all the time. 

Thanks....

you must start to wean them and top them up with formula, they should have the ability to lap so make it as runny as possible and add some formula to the food, i feed arden grange weaning puppy, i have just had to do exactley the same with my litter, they are 5 wks old now and completely away fromthe mother. once they are weaned they become lactose intolerant so you should not need to give formula as long as you are giving them a good quality food, start once a day and every day try another meal, untill they are eating 4 good meals a day, it is a slow process. good look.

I had a similar problem last year. I put my puppy food that I was feeding mom ( Royal Canin Lg Breed Puppy) in the blender to crush it up and added goats milk instead of water. The pups loved it and I let mom finish whatever was left over. I had very healthy pups and moms coat looked awsome. Good Luck, I know how stressfull it is!!

Goats milk to start with.  slowly add well soaked kibble as they gt a bit older.  That's what some friends do to supplement the mothers milk.  Though when we raised calves on goats milk we had to water it down to start with, it's extremely rich.

Supplimenting the bitch before whelping helps.  We used MILKADE by Happy Jacks mixed it up with cottage cheese and CONCEPT A BITCH by Solid Gold on her food.  Our bitch produced plenty of milk all the way through the begining stages of weaning.  4 to 5 weeks: We make milk using K9 Puppy Gold and water, mix it with large breed puppy kibble and blend it so that it looks like cream of wheat or oatmeal, feed 3 times daily.  5 to 8 weeks: Fill your biggest pot with water a little more than half way, fill with large breed puppy kibble almost to the top, close it with a lid, let it sit overnight in the fridge, the kibble will obsorb all the water and will be soft, if you need some right away you may boil the water and pour the kibble to speed up the process, make sure you cool it back down, feed 3 times daily.  8 to 12 weeks: Simply soak the kibble lightly and serve, still leaving it cruchy enough so that they can work on their jaws, feed 3 times daily.  12 weeks plus: Dry large breed puppy kibble, feed 2 times daily.  Suggestion only, good luck.

At that age, I feed a raw meat, finely ground, with some puppy formula to make it much mushier, and to add a tasty liquid to their diet. 

You could not quite call is soupy.  You could substitute ground turkey for what I generally feed, Blue Race Diet, which is ground chicken with suppliments, a dog musher's mix I buy locally.  I have fed ground turkey at that age when I ran out of my usual Blue Race Diet.  I start my puppies on meat/formula mix two -four times daily, dependant on their needs, around 2 1/2 to 3 weeks old, the age also dependent upon their needs.  I have not had any problems yet.  I don't feed much dog food of any kind at that age, I feel the meat is just much easier to digest and makes a healthier looking pup.  I've been doing it this way exclusively for the last 7 litters.  Previously, I used some dog food also, but I quit that.  I start feeding kibble around 5-6 weeks so they get used to it.

If they are hungry, they are pretty thirsty too.  If you put a bowl down they cannot tip over, they shall soon discover it and start drinking water on their own. 

Veronica

I meant to say, I do not feed ANY dog food at that age.

Veronica

a very good starter for the first two or three meals for three week olds is to fix cream of wheat or Malt o Meal , real sloppy and add goats milk, and start pups on that....full of folic....and then graduate into the mush meats /kibble soaked with goats milk...withdraw mild, at 4 weeks to 5 weeks,,,

The bitch should have been pre fed before the whelp a content that produces milk......one of the best and not a chemical  is raw liver.....it helps the female produce excellent qualilty and quantity......but u start two weeks before whelp   1/2 to 1 ib a day and continue thru weaning and then go back to raw meat diet with more muscle meats and organs of all kinds..

johntic,  If you would like a full recipe for starting puppies up to weaning to kibble,  just email me I'll send you what I have.

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