Feeding puppies

My new little Shorkie.. Murphy... isn't a great eater. I think part of the problem is he is tiny and cannot chew kibble very well.. He also has the attention span of a gnat. The vet said to give him canned food rather than dry.. He picks and pecks at it but still doesn't eat very much.. First of all I'm not sure how much a 3 pound puppy eats.. But this morning I made him a scrambled egg. He seemed to like that and ate about half of it. I also boiled up some skinless boneless chicken thighs and minced them up in the food processor.. He ate about 3 or 4 ounces of that. My concern is that I'm asking for trouble spoiling him on this... but I am desperate to get some protein into him.. Advise? Also, how many times a day should he be fed. Or should I just leave the food out for him to graze on?

Re: Feeding puppies

I think we all worry and fret about our puppies not eating, same as we did with our children, but most animals will eat as much as they need even though you may think they aren't getting enough, so just relax a little and try to stop worrying so much..

I do think that it's important to feed him a recognised puppy meal of some type so that he is getting everything that he needs diet wise, and for the time being just leave it down all of the time and worry later on about feeding times. Remember he has not been weaned long, and before that he just took what he needed when he needed. He will still do that for a while and so let him, he won't come to any harm I promise, and in a month or two when he is stronger you can think about proper meal times if you have to, but in truth we just leave food down all of the time and the dogs eat when it suits them..

Re: Feeding puppies

I never gave Betty dry food until she got her adult teeth, until then her dry was soaked. She is about 2lb in weight and has 3/4 of an ounce of dry 3 times a day or a level table spoon of home cooked mince/mixed veg and pasta to replace one of those meals.

I won't be reducing her meals to less than 3 a day as her tummy is too tiny to take more than that.

She also has one small carrot and a tiny bit of home cooked liver cake a day for treats too.

Re: Feeding puppies

Hi, I have a puppy who is now almost 6 mths old. The recommended diet is to feed 4 times a day. 50 % dry puppy Kibbles & 50 % wet puppy food. Also boiled chicken (no skin) with boiled rice (no salt). Boiled veg. She has just recently started on adult dog food with the chicken/rice/veg. She also has had scrambled eggs with dried puppy kibbles almost every day. Dog biscuits. She now is on 3/4 meals a day & gets human cereal with milk when I have mine about 8-9 A.M. Small meals are better & I have found with all my dogs it's better to feed at regular periods instead of leaving food down all day. It's really what suits the pup & what suits you too. They have us wrapped round there little paws!

Re: Feeding puppies

I agree with Chris, Audrey. At his age he needs to be on 4 small feeds per day, and I would never leave it down either. If it's not eaten within about 10 mins I would take it away. Not only because he'll be hungrier by the next feed that way, but it will stop your other dogs swiping it too! If we had our dinner left on the table all day long, we would probably be sick of the sight of it too. Like Chris said, I would give him a really good complete puppy feed, not these cheap rubbishy ones which have some very undesirable ingredients. As for quantities, any decent breeder should have given you written, detailed information on a diet sheet if she cared about her puppies, not leave the new owners to work it out for themselves. If he has a couple of ounces per day, just divide that amount equally over the four feeds, so he would probably only have tiny amounts each feed, and if you use a proper kibble made for small puppies, he should be able to manage it easily. I would perhaps soak it for a little while longer if he is that tiny. You could ask the breeder if she fed it soaked in water, gravy, or puppy milk too. Many puppies mess about with their food at first because its the first time in their life they have dined alone, and without the competition of their siblings diving in, its not much fun. If I was seriously worried, I would sit on the floor with him, pretend to be his sibling friend to make it fun again, and even hand feed him if necessary to get him going. My pups used to love just about a teaspoonful of tinned tuna, or scrambled egg, or grated cheese or minced beef or chicken mixed with their complete for a variety of flavours to keep them interested, and I've never had any problems.
If you trust the breeder, ask her for advice because her responsibility shouldn't just finish when she hands a puppy over.

Lastly, if you're still worried, its easy enough to weigh him on the kitchen scales (if he's tiny enough) once a week to check if he is gaining steadily, he might be gaining more than you think. If he's pooing alright, he must be eating!

Re: Feeding puppies

Yes, forgot about the Tuna also boiled fish minus the skin. The breeder should have given you info on feeding. Not good to change the puppy onto too many new foods till they're a little older otherwise they will have diarrohoea & that you do not want! Introduce new foods a little at a time. The only upset that we had with our new pup was when Frontline Combo was put on. It was only used as I have a little dog with diabetes & was worried that my new pup might have fleas. All 3 of my dogs were treated. The diabetic one had no reaction. The pup had diarrohea. My 6yr old Bichon developed a serious eye issue. A cyst that she had on her neck grew like an egg. It was near the spot where the Frontline was applied. It took 8 wks to clear with antibiotics, steroids & a wonderful locum vet. Good luck with your pup, sounds like you will be a fabulous mummy.