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Offline jussy

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Feeding a welping mum
« on: July 03, 2012, 12:19:47 PM »
My lovely little girl delivered a litter of 7 on Saturday, she did a fantastic job,I  on was on hand to assist but she did everything herself.
Mum and pupsters have been checked by the vet and all seems to be going well.
Vet said to soak mums puppy mix food in puppy milk but mum doesn't seem to like that too much.
So I have been giving her 120mls of the milk twice a day as a separate drink.
She has become a bit of a diva at the moment tho, she will leave pups for toilet time and to drink her milk and she still comes for cuddles and fussess :luv:, but as for food and water, she sits in the box with her babies and insists on being hand fed her puppy food piece by piece, I even after lift her water bowl.
Is this normal behavior and am i doing the right thing with the milk.
All the pups have put on weight except one who has stayed the same, I didn't think she was feeding two of them, but I have been watching her and she is looking after them all so far.
Any advice would be great.
Thanks :D
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Offline Jane S

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Re: Feeding a welping mum
« Reply #1 on: July 03, 2012, 12:26:19 PM »
Yes new mums often expect "waitress service" in their box for a while - it's quite normal to have to hand feed for at least a few days and to hold up the water bowl for her to drink from. It's only fair really - she is going to be working v hard for the next few weeks ;)

Can't comment about the milk as I never give our girls milk when they've whelped - they don't actually need it if they're on a good quality high protein kibble. I sometimes feed scrambled eggs if mum doesn't want her usual food - eggs are one of the best sources of high quality, easily digested protein.
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Offline jussy

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Re: Feeding a welping mum
« Reply #2 on: July 03, 2012, 12:32:17 PM »
The vet suggested the milk. She said I could supplement the little ones if mum was struggling a bit but to pour it on the food.
My girlie is on super dog sensitive, we tried several foods when we first had her and that's the one that suited her.
I have changed her on to superdog puppy whilst she is whelping, as I thought sticking to the same brand would be best  :dunno:
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Offline Jane S

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Re: Feeding a welping mum
« Reply #3 on: July 03, 2012, 12:37:24 PM »
Quote from: jussy on July 03, 2012, 12:32:17 PM
The vet suggested the milk. She said I could supplement the little ones if mum was struggling a bit but to pour it on the food.
My girlie is on super dog sensitive, we tried several foods when we first had her and that's the one that suited her.
I have changed her on to superdog puppy whilst she is whelping, as I thought sticking to the same brand would be best  :dunno:

Most vets have never reared a litter so they're not necessarily experts when it comes to advice on feeding/rearing. I'm a bit confused by what you've been told - if you have newborns not doing well, you'd normally think about supplementing them by bottle feeding with puppy formula. Giving milk to mum doesn't make her produce more milk herself - good quality protein does that :blink: I'd stick to the puppy food you're giving mum but stop pouring milk over it if she doesn't like it like that.
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Offline jussy

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Re: Feeding a welping mum
« Reply #4 on: July 03, 2012, 12:43:56 PM »
Thank you for your advice, she said that mum hadn't got milk in all her teats, I have checked and I think she was wrong as I have drawn milk from all of them.
Mum does behave strange at times tho, she seems to run around in a panic and tries to get behind the sofa or the tv cabinet, like she looking for somewhere to hide, if she gets on the sofa she starts trying to dig. Is that normal behavior for a new mum.
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Offline Patp

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Re: Feeding a welping mum
« Reply #5 on: July 03, 2012, 02:14:17 PM »
I think at the moment you should expect the unexpected!  A number of years ago we had a litter of bearded collies - when they were 6 weeks old, she dug a hole under the fence - just puppy size - we only noticed when we saw her nudging the last one out before turning round with a "thank god they have gone" look on her face - poor girl!

Luckily the bin men were on hand to help us gather them in.

Pat
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Offline jussy

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Re: Feeding a welping mum
« Reply #6 on: July 03, 2012, 02:18:00 PM »
Not sure I understood what you are saying. Did you mean she buried all the pups alive???
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Offline Nicky

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Re: Feeding a welping mum
« Reply #7 on: July 03, 2012, 02:24:06 PM »
Not sure about giving the mum milk as we have never done that. We boil chicken and feed that alongside puppy food. They also get cottage cheese and scrambled egg.
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Offline jussy

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Re: Feeding a welping mum
« Reply #8 on: July 03, 2012, 02:34:12 PM »
That sounds lovely  :005: Do you think I should stop giving her the puppy formula then??
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Offline Jane S

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Re: Feeding a welping mum
« Reply #9 on: July 03, 2012, 02:38:56 PM »
Quote from: jussy on July 03, 2012, 02:34:12 PM
That sounds lovely  :005: Do you think I should stop giving her the puppy formula then??

Yes unless she likes it - if you do continue giving her milk, watch out that her poos don't become too loose (new mums are often loose to begin with anyway due to eating the afterbirths)

Do watch her behaviour - panicking, hiding behind things and generally odd behaviour can be signs of eclampsia. Or she could be just a nervous new mum but just be on your guard. Digging though is perfectly normal - there will be pains after whelping and the digging helps to relieve that.

Do you have a copy of The Book of The Bitch? It's most breeders' "bible" and covers all the things you need to know and watch out for.
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Offline jussy

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Re: Feeding a welping mum
« Reply #10 on: July 03, 2012, 02:45:25 PM »
Yes, I have book of the bitch. I have found it extremely useful, but you can't beat advice from people who are or have been in the same situation. Maisy loves to get on the sofa but she is continually listening out for the little ones, that's when she's not trying to put them all on the sofa too  :005:
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Offline Jane S

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Re: Feeding a welping mum
« Reply #11 on: July 03, 2012, 02:52:25 PM »
Is her box in a nice quiet place away from everything else? If not (sounds like it's in the lounge?), it might account for some of her restlessness - new mums generally need to be away in a quiet spot so she can concentrate on looking after her family and not get distracted by the usual household stuff.

Quote from: jussy on July 03, 2012, 02:45:25 PM
Yes, I have book of the bitch. I have found it extremely useful,

Indeed it is. If you don't have a breeding mentor, you also might find the stud dog owner can help you - stud dog owners are often experienced breeders and should be only too happy to help a new breeder who has used their dog.
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Offline jussy

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Re: Feeding a welping mum
« Reply #12 on: July 03, 2012, 02:54:59 PM »
Quote from: Jane S on July 03, 2012, 02:52:25 PM
Is her box in a nice quiet place away from everything else? If not (sounds like it's in the lounge?), it might account for some of her restlessness - new mums generally need to be away in a quiet spot so she can concentrate on looking after her family and not get distracted by the usual household stuff.
She is in the conservatory, which is off the lounge. She is getting lots of quiet time tho.
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Offline Nicky

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Re: Feeding a welping mum
« Reply #13 on: July 03, 2012, 03:25:52 PM »
We had the same problem with Lottie at first, she kept trying to move her puppies. In our case it was because the room was too hot but it's also a sign of eclampsia. Are you supplementing her with calcium?
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Offline jussy

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Re: Feeding a welping mum
« Reply #14 on: July 03, 2012, 03:39:30 PM »
Quote from: Nicky on July 03, 2012, 03:25:52 PM
We had the same problem with Lottie at first, she kept trying to move her puppies. In our case it was because the room was too hot but it's also a sign of eclampsia. Are you supplementing her with calcium?
I haven't been giving her any supplements, the vet told me not to.
She said a lot of people make the mistake of calcium supplements, when they aren't needed.
I'm confused now. Should I or shouldn't I??
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