Even though you might think it is all fun and games, having a new puppy is a big responsibility! There are certain things that you should do and not do to ensure your puppy is happy and healthy in their new home, these newborn puppy care tips should help you when it comes to looking after your new addition properly.
Newborn Puppy Care Tips
Depending on if you have kept your puppy with its mother or taken it away, the care tips will differ mainly in terms of feeding. The newborn puppy care no mother tips involve bottle feeding the puppy for as long as possible. Avoid cows milk at all costs, goats milk is best or a bitches milk meal replacement powder which is sold by some vets and pet stores. Use a newborn baby bottle to feed your puppy, it is easier for them to suck and get milk out of this. As long as your puppy is feeding voluntarily, then give them as much milk as they will take – this is important because they need to gain a steady amount of weight.
Knowing your newborn puppy care timeline
It is so important that you weigh your puppy on a postal scale every day for at least the first three weeks. This is because they need to gain a slow but constant amount of weight and if they don’t it means they are not getting enough food. Tracking your newborn puppy care week by week is good because you can research how much weight your puppy should be gaining and how much they are actually putting on. As the puppy gets to around 3 weeks old, they don’t need feeding as often and you should start to introduce solids. Mixing baby cereal with their milk will give it a thicker consistency and they can eat it from a bowl at around a month old.
Newborn puppy care guide
Please be prepared that your puppy will sleep most of the time during those early days, it is completely normal and often they will only wake when they are hungry, just like newborn babies! Make sure that your puppy has a nice clean and padded box to sleep in to ensure their maximum comfort. They won’t want to get out of their “bed” for a while so make sure that it is cleaned regularly.
Newborn puppy care games
You should gently cuddle your newborn puppy from a young age to strike a bond with it, do not let young children do this at first because your puppy is still small and fragile. As your puppy gets older, you can introduce a few small toys into their bed but don’t force them on the puppy, they will play if they want to.
This newborn puppy care 101 has been put together so that you can do the best by your puppy so he or she is happy in your company. By following the newborn puppy care tips, you can guarantee that you are doing everything you need to be doing to welcome your lovable new puppy into the family.