What should we feed the puppies and when?

My girlfriends dogs litter are cross Pomeranian - Labrador. Just as a note this wasn't planned but she got out night and we think this is the most probable father as it keeps milling around outside.

After research on the net general advice is to start off feeding at about 3 weeks with puppy food and puppy milk mixed into puree. Does anyone have any suggestions as I would really appreciate your advice and would like to get everything sorted as soon as possible.

Thank you,

Tom

Would you not be better buying a good Puppy and Bitch book - or seeking advice from your vet? I know there`s a lot of expertise on here but it`s not going to cover everything you need to know.
Maybe someone can recommend a good book?

I didn't start to wean my Krystals pups until they were just over four weeks. They were happy feeding from their Mum and she was eating like a horse and looking great, so I let it continue for a little while longer than most breeders advise.

I just put some dry JW kibble in a bowl and wetted it down with some warm pre-boiled water. I just gradually increased the amount over the next few weeks. I started off giving tiny amounts in a hamster bowl, as I wanted their gut to get used to the food very slowly.

Good luck with the pups. I am sure they are gorgeous. You must post some pics. I'd love to see them. I take it Mum is the Lab and Dad is the Pom. The other way round would be a bit tricky

Thanks Cheeky

Claire - I am using a few books and the wonders of the internet, just trying to get lots of opinions from people who have had puppies before. I have had dogs before but never pups this young.

Thanks,

Tom

Cheeky - Mum is Pom, dad is Lab. Yeah I havent seen them yet, going to see them this weekend and designated my one lol. I get a bitch, who I am suitably naming Shadow

OMG, your girlfriend is so lucky that the Pom girl didn't need a C-Section. The pups obviously took size from the Mum, or she would have had serious problems having the pups! Hard to imagine how a Pom girl (unless she is unusually large) and a Lab boy can "get it on" - mind you, they are determined little critters, aren't they

Try to get some pics won't you, I'd love to see them

Hi Tom unless the litter is very large and the bitch having trouble feeding them all , weaning usually begins when the puppies start to teeth at around four weeks of age.
Here is some information on weaning.
Weaning puppies

Age 4-12weeks = 7am / noon / 5pm/ 10pm
Age 3-6 months = 7am/ noon / 5pm
Age 6-12months = 7am/5pm
1 year onwards = 2 meals a day.
You can of course alter the timing slightly to suit your particular circumstances.

The type of food you feed your puppy is very important. It needs to be varied and of good quality to insure you puppy gets the right nutrients to build strong bones and a healthy body. I am not a great advocate of supplements and feel if you feed good quality food in the correct amounts they should not be necessary. If you have recently bought a puppy no doubt the breeder will have supplied you with a feeding chart. If not, or if for any reason you wish to change the puppy’s food give it at least a week to settle in before you do so and change over gradually by substituting a little of the new food with some of the old at each meal.

Although modern complete puppy foods no doubt contain all that is required for a fit and healthy puppy, I still prefer to feed fresh food to puppies from weaning up to at least 9 months.

It is ok to start weaning as soon as the teeth can be felt in the puppies mouth around the 17 day after birth. To begin weaning I give each puppy a small amount of food individually. I start very small puppies on scraped beef, unlike mince it contains no gristle for little ones to choke on. I give about two teaspoons in all at different times on the first day. This amount can gradually be increased .To make it; buy slices of stewing steak and scrape the raw slice of meat with a knife to produce a sort of fine paste. This is very easy for the puppies to lick and they love it. Then I slowly introduce other things off the following list and to begin with of the four daily meals I feed two milky and two other:

Milky Meals Fine oatmeal cooked (microwave is good for this) puppy milk/honey.
Beaten raw egg with puppy milk/honey.
Cooked rice/puppy milk.
Other A small amount of soaked puppy meal or cooked rice with one of the these:
Carrots/peas/ steamed and mashed,
Cooked chicken/Minced raw beef/ Minced cooked lamb/minced cooked rabbit/minced cooked chicken,
Boned cooked fish (coley is reasonably priced) or canned fish (in olive oil not brine),
Oxtail and shin beef when cooked slowly give off lovely juices, after cooking mince or chop the meat and added to the cooking juices, this will set to a lovely gel.
If you happen to have a pressure cooker try cooking a whole chicken or sheep’s head until the bones are soft then mince the lot. This produces a nutritious paste similar to brawn.
I try whenever possible to feed organic food to puppies, although it is more expensive I feel it gives a good healthy start. I have particular concerns with regard to chicken as some non organic birds can contain antibiotic residues. The reason I cook most of the meat is to prevent any worms/bacteria being passed to small puppies, but as they get older and stronger I feed most of the meat raw (except the special stew/paste).

Quantities

It is difficult to specify quantities of food for a puppy as this is not an exact science and is dependant on a number of factors, the individual/the age of the puppy/ the type of food/ and to some extent the breed. When feeding the above diet I never had any problems and gauged the amounts fed according to what a puppy could eat in a certain time and as a rule of thumb gave twice the amount of nutrients required per day by an adult dog but spread over the number of meals the puppy is being given at that time. However, if you are feeding a concentrated complete food I feel this changes things somewhat in that a puppy fed on this type of food may tend to put on more weight more quickly. I think you need to judge for yourself if the puppy is too fat/thin and vary the amounts accordingly. There will probably be a weight chart for your breed on your the breeds web site. If you are feeding a complete food obviously you will be following the manufacturer’s instructions on the amount to feed and when to start feeding it. Whatever you choose to feed always have plenty of fresh water available to your puppy.

this must be a joke.if the mum is the pom how on earth did she give birth unless it was a csection.
do hope all the pups get neutered and spayed so they dont have accidental pups and problems.
beautiful dogs.

Definitely a wind up!

Errr...is this an early April fools day joke?

I don't see how this would be physically possible. I own a Lab and, without sounding too disgusting and graphic, I don't get how the actual act of copulation between a large (if you get what I am saying...*ahem*) dog and a very small dog could happen. Surely the large dog would seriously damage the small dog trying to do it?

Not to mention that I don't get how a Pom bitch could physically give birth to pups that are half Lab. Lab pups are very chunky...it would be impossible naturally.

You know I was wondering where his other thread went.. he asked if he could get vaccs cheap as it was £27..and a litter of 5 and he didn't have £270 spare to pay for it..

Before I went to bed I asked..wasn't 5 x £27 only £135..got up this morning and the whole thread has gone???