Nursing Dog need help with weight gain and supplementing!!

[technodoll]

Quote:
I hate to break this to you but the food you buy at the vet's?

Is nothing but marked-up junk that is exactly the same as Dog Chow, Ol'Roy and all that terrible stuff.

The ingredients speak for themselves

You asked for our advice, we're giving it to you - but only YOU can make the decision to change that food and opt for higher-quality stuff.

Good luck with those puppies and YES, I would ask for help from the other dog's owner!

 

[onthespot]

If it was me, I'd be buying some all purpose milk replacer and supplementing those puppies, and make it thicker, like condensed milk or thicker for the mama and give it to her with her food several times a day. Supplement those puppies three or four times a day too, if your schedule permits.

I just googled All purpose milk replacement powder and this showed near the top of the list. You might shop around and find a better value, who knows.

http://www.lambertvetsupply.com/All-Star-Universal-Milk-Replacer-8-lb-pail--pr--015MR018

 

[Redyre Rotties]

You want to use caution with supplementing the puppies, and not do that unless it is needed. If you supplement, they demand less, and she makes less, and this can start the wheel rolling towards you HAVING to supplement, causing further reduction of the milksupply and output.

If puppies are quiet, round, and gaining weight, I would let it alone. OTOH, if puppies are fussy, ribby, and appear not to be getting enough, then you have to do something. With newborns if I had to do it,I would tube them, not bottle feed. I would also supplement the BIGGEST puppies, not the smallest. Supplement the biggest and then make sure the smaller ones get more mom.

 

[lemurchaser]

The veggies are good for dogs, but right now she needs calories. Veggies are low calories, so they'll fill her up, but not really help her.

I would be really careful with all these extras, you don't want her to get diarrhea. I would get a high quality puppy food, like blue buffalo. Not pedigree or corn based diets. Feed her about as much as she wants, I would just dump a cup of food in every time I was up (every hour or 2). As long as her tummy is okay, you don't need to worry about over-feeding (just don't feed massive quantities at once). The kibble is well balanced. Everything you add decreases the nutritional value (dilutes it out). I would add eggs, cooked meat (cook that pig!), or cottage cheese to add protein and calories, but the bulk should be kibble. And kibble is more nutritionally dense than canned.

Make sure she gets lots of water, she'll be losing a lot of fluids. Don't add anything with salt (like broth), but you could water down canned food to get more fluids in. I'd skip the milk replacer as it can cause GI upset.

And I wouldn't supplement the pups. I would watch that they are all growing and getting access to nursing. Weigh and mark them all and track their weights. You may have to help weaker pups get to mom, since mom won't have enough nipples for them all.

 

[mamabird]

I have labs, and we had a litter of 11 a few years ago... Mom NEVER dropped weight and I supplemented very little. At her peak, my mama was eating 14 cups of Pedigree Puppy food per day - 3 meals per day, and I would top that with canned puppy food (split one can per day into 3 feedings) All the water she wanted...NO milk (causes diarrhea). I honestly didn't give veges or raw meat...if she is not used to that, it can cause an upset stomach. If you are going to add these things, add them slowly. I was also giving a calcium supplement 2x per day, Vitamin C 2 x per day, and Pet Tabs (doggie vitamins) 2x per day. The puppy food is higher in fat, and the calcium is really necessary, especially since she is nursing so many babies. Get a small scale and weigh the babies every day and that way you know if all of them are gaining like they should...if so, then you shouldn't have to supplement much. We rotated babies, let the one's that were gaining slower nurse first, then swap out. Good luck...the work is just beginning!

 

[luvzmybabz]

My husband went to TSC and got the diamond large breed puppy as the regular puppy had the by products. I have an ounce scale just have to figure out how to mark them all I have seen people use thin ribbon but I do not have enough colors. Is this OK to use or how do you mark them? I will try to make it to the store tomorrow, will just hold off on the afternoon meds.

I have noticed the mom rotating the pups herself but the only one that is smaller then the rest (the runt) she does not rotate off. She is not drinking that much water at all I would say less then 2 quarts since Saturday evening, that is one of the reasons I was adding water to the ground dog food.

This is what my husband picked up

http://www.tractorsupply.com/pet-ca...lamb-amp-rice-formula-dog-food-40-lb--2800139

I have gotten most of this research off the internet so please bear with me if I am wrong, and please correct me.

This is 342Kcal per cup she is normally about 75+ so I estimated

2000 Maintence X150% for the first lactating week=3000kcal per pay is about 8 3/4 cups per day

 

[Cara]

I'd give her as much as she wants to eat (unless she's the kind to go completely overboard/bloat).

 

[luvzmybabz]

I do not buy dog food at the vet's but go by his high protein recommendation my coop just happens to have the same dogfood that he sells, now that I kinda understand the issues with this dogfood I with most probably be switching both adult dogs.

I just want to be sure with everything I do as 14 I know is huge. I am so glad that she is doing so well she is a first time mom at 5 1/2. I have found many internet sites that state airedales are notoriously bad moms but she seems to be doing great not ignoring puppies at all. I have owned cats with litters, goats that kidded, horses, cows,rabbitsetc but this is the second time in my life I am 35 that I have ever owned a dog that had a litter ( I am having to think everything I type dog instead of the other word. The first time I hada dog with pups I was 9, I also know that 14 is a fairly huge litter,and I want to do everything I can for Misti and her babies.

One of the reasons I was able to adopt her her previous oweners had tried to breed her and were unable to get her to catch. Even saw reports from their vet that she was most probably barren, guess not.

 

[mamabird]

I'd feed her however much she wants...ALL of her energy will be taken up feeding this brood.
Some people just look at protien content - my vet says for lactating mamas, they need the higher fat content of a puppy food (it also is higher in calcium).
Put warm water over the dry food to help increse water intake.
Start puppies on gruel (soak dry puppy food in warm water then mash/blend and make 'soup') at about 3 weeks. This will help supplement puppies plus give mom a little help.
Assume that all puppies have worms. I worm at 2 weeks with Strongid T - then every 2-3 weeks after until they go to their new homes (then they get on a routine with their vet)

 

[pixie74943]

I would raw feed.. thats just me though, switching her while feeding pups might not be the best idea.

But my researching of raw diet has found that raw fed dogs handle a litter better. a healthy adult should be fed 2% of their body weight, I believe for a nursing mother you should double it. It's surprisingly easy way to feed if you're interested in trying. If you dont want to switch 100% you could 'treat' your dog to raw meaty bones every couple of days. My dog LOVES this treatment and looks much healthier for it.