Puppy formula, or goats milk. cute pic!

[mgw]

We took our mini doxy and her seven new puppies to thier first vet visit. Vet says things are fine but in a wek or so she wont have enough milk to feed seven puppies, so we may need to suppliment. We were wondering if puppy formula or goats milk would be better. your thoughts are welcome.

 

[taraann81]

I don't breed dogs..so take this advice with a grain of salt. I would attempt to supplement mom and keep her nutrition up really well. Its best if they are kept on moms milk...or if you really must supplement(alternate pups you supplement) But rememeber the more you supplememnt the less milk she will produce...My aunts Doxie raised 8 with out supplememntation..I wonder how the vet could forsee a shortage? I would personally just weigh them daily, make sure they are gaining and only supplement if they appeared to not be thriving..

When I've raised puppies or kittens for our local OSPCA or rescues I always used formula..Once I raised 13 lab mixes form 2 days old..That was alot of work!

 

[mgw]

Quote:
She didnt say she wouldnt be able to produce enough milk , but to be prepared if she doesnt. So we were going to make sure we were ready to help if she has trouble. T/Y for you reply

 

[rebelcowboysnb]

The puppy stuff dont work real well but its better than nothing. Never had a goat to try but have heard good thing about using goats milk. For the mom, the main thing is good food. Meat products if ya can. I have Frankie on a decent dry food an giving her all the rats I can catch which is about 50% of her diet right now.

 

[taraann81]

Quote:
This part confused me, sounded like the vet said she wouldn't have enough milk in a week or 2 to feed them all. Good for you for being prepared! And that phot is adorable!

And a fitting Joke...

Why did the Texan go out and buy a Dachshund?

(drum role please.....)

Because the sheriff told him to "get along little doggie"(spoken with a texan drawl)

 

[mgw]

Quote:
Rats sounds yummy, we have been giving her condensed milk, eggs, meat,cheese, and yogurt. she is doing great right now so hope this trend continues.

 

[mgw]

Quote:
This part confused me, sounded like the vet said she wouldn't have enough milk in a week or 2 to feed them all. Good for you for being prepared! And that phot is adorable!

And a fitting Joke...

Why did the Texan go out and buy a Dachshund?

(drum role please.....)

Because the sheriff told him to "get along little doggie"(spoken with a texan drawl)

To know me is to be confused alot. Ask DW lol
love the joke lmao!

 

[Haviris]

I'd go w/ goats milk if you can get it. We raised my mom's youngest schnauzer on it from two weeks old.

 

[hunterjumper999]

as far as puppy milk goes- our vet told us Esbilac was the ONLY good one- the cheaper brands have 12 % + less fat and calories for puppies

We're starting to suppliment the sausages ( our litter) with it.

You can also top dress mama's food with it to help boost the milk- the other stuff you are doing is also good but why not just go the easiest way possible

I have never used goat milk exclusively. Honestly I don't know enough about it to advise but i would assume like all 'production' animals the goats milk is only as nutritional as the goats diet... for example we supplemented ours with calf mana and the milk tasted like anise . I DID feed goat milk by the Quart Pail after milking to my puppies once they were about 12 weeks old and in the kennel and off of wet food. They seemed to enjoy it and it was added nutrition- but i knew what went into my goats! so beware of goat milk sources where the goats are eating poor quality food. Esbilac has a goats milk formula for sensitive stomachs.

 

[BlacksheepCardigans]

Hi!

How often are you weighing them? Are they gaining well, everyone staying on their curve? The little guys can go downhill really fast, so at their age I'm still weighing at least twice a day and looking for a steady gain (I would guess 15 grams or so a day from your breed would be normal). You won't get a lot of warning that mom's not keeping up anymore; puppies don't like to make things easy for you. They will get hypoglycemic long before they'd get thin.

If you notice anybody falling off on the weight gain, you can supplement with a homemade formula; I don't know very many serious breeders who like the powdered stuff. Leerburg has a good homemade formula here: http://leerburg.com/bottlefeeding.htm. You can use goat's milk in place of the evaporated milk (as he lists) but you still need to add the extra fats and sugars. Don't feed straight goat's milk to a puppy who is not thriving.

I start solids at 3 weeks - goat's milk and ground beef mixed to the consistency of pudding are how we start them - so you may not need to bottlefeed if they're old enough to lap that texture. You will almost certainly have a very needy mom by that point. It's a huge drain on her. Feed mom as much as she can possibly eat of really high-quality stuff, and I don't mean just kibble. Her kibble almost certainly isn't nutrient-dense enough to keep up with her milk production. I feed mom dogs pretty much around the clock; they get bowls of eggy oatmeal with cream, raw meat and bones, chicken cooked down in the crockpot, etc. My goal is to not have the mom lose any weight; with a big litter it's a chore but it's possible.

Hope they continue to do well!

Joanna Kimball
blacksheepcardigans.com