4 years ago I had a female that whelped 10 puppies but did not produce enough milk for the puppies. I had a recipe that included goat's milk and yogurt. The same female is pregnant again and I want to be prepared. Can someone give me that recipe again? Also, is there anything I can do to help the female to drop more milk and sooner? She is 5 weeks along.
Milk Replacer for Puppies?
1 - 7 of 7 Posts
Joined
·
56 Posts
I typically give the dam a tablespoon of cottage cheese the last week before whelping and continue for the first week after they are born or until the container is used up. This can help them begin producing milk prior to the puppies being born. I have read that giving too much calcium is not good for the dogs and to stay away from calcium supplements.
Here is an excellent product to consider.
Animal Naturals Puppy Gold
http://www.k9power.com/k9-puppy-gold.html
Animal Naturals Puppy Gold
http://www.k9power.com/k9-puppy-gold.html
Joined
·
689 Posts
Fenugreek.
You can start giving your bitch fenugreek the day she whelps. I've never given it before whelping but maybe someone else has and can chime in with this.
Fenugreek can be bought in capsule form at any health food store. Open capsule and sprinkle contents on your girls food. I mix it with a little yogurt to make sure she is getting the whole amount. I usually start with 3 capsules three times per day and increase from there. The room and dog should smell distinctly like maple syrup. If it doesn't.... increase the dose. You can not give to much. Once her milk supply is well established you don't have to give it any more. I do for about a week.
Fenugreek has been used since biblical times to increase milk production by the way, so it is nothing new.
The only additional way to increase milk production in your girl is to ensure that she drinks a lot, eats enough and that the puppies nurse a lot.
It's not usually the eating enough that is the issue, it's drinking enough. You have to get her to drink A LOT. Chicken stock flavored water is what I tend to use and I make her food soupy as well. My girls have to be dragged from the whelping box for the first few days so I'm sticking water and food under their noses constantly during this time.
Supplementing puppies can back fire on you. On the one hand you want the pups to get enough food but on the other hand the more times you supplement them the less they will nurse and the less milk mom will produce.
Good luck.
You can start giving your bitch fenugreek the day she whelps. I've never given it before whelping but maybe someone else has and can chime in with this.
Fenugreek can be bought in capsule form at any health food store. Open capsule and sprinkle contents on your girls food. I mix it with a little yogurt to make sure she is getting the whole amount. I usually start with 3 capsules three times per day and increase from there. The room and dog should smell distinctly like maple syrup. If it doesn't.... increase the dose. You can not give to much. Once her milk supply is well established you don't have to give it any more. I do for about a week.
Fenugreek has been used since biblical times to increase milk production by the way, so it is nothing new.
The only additional way to increase milk production in your girl is to ensure that she drinks a lot, eats enough and that the puppies nurse a lot.
It's not usually the eating enough that is the issue, it's drinking enough. You have to get her to drink A LOT. Chicken stock flavored water is what I tend to use and I make her food soupy as well. My girls have to be dragged from the whelping box for the first few days so I'm sticking water and food under their noses constantly during this time.
Supplementing puppies can back fire on you. On the one hand you want the pups to get enough food but on the other hand the more times you supplement them the less they will nurse and the less milk mom will produce.
Good luck.
Joined
·
153 Posts
Here's the link to the recipe. I used it for all three of my 15-pup litters and it was a lifesaver.
http://leerburg.com/bottlefeeding.htm
http://leerburg.com/bottlefeeding.htm
Give mama some slightly warmed goat's milk at least 5 times each day. I always took it to the whelping box for the female. Fresh is best and is now in many stores' dairy cases. Canned is nasty smelling stuff but my dogs always seemed to like it. Some brewers yeast sometimes helps but not in the milk.
Warming any wet food or milk will make it taste better to mama. If you want extra calcium ( check with your own vet on this ) oyster shell tablets disolved in a tiny bit of warm water and then added to the goat's milk worked well for us.
For puppies a friend uses 1 can goat's milk, one egg yolk ( I have never used the egg yolk because raw eggs to puppies just seems too chancy to me ), 1 tablespoon live culture yogurt and about 1 teaspoon of white Karo corn syrup. I'm from the school that says give the mother enough food if she is well and does not have a huge litter ( and that's the best way to do it ). All this should be cleared with your vet before needed. My vet had some hard and fast rules where clacium was concerned.
Warming any wet food or milk will make it taste better to mama. If you want extra calcium ( check with your own vet on this ) oyster shell tablets disolved in a tiny bit of warm water and then added to the goat's milk worked well for us.
For puppies a friend uses 1 can goat's milk, one egg yolk ( I have never used the egg yolk because raw eggs to puppies just seems too chancy to me ), 1 tablespoon live culture yogurt and about 1 teaspoon of white Karo corn syrup. I'm from the school that says give the mother enough food if she is well and does not have a huge litter ( and that's the best way to do it ). All this should be cleared with your vet before needed. My vet had some hard and fast rules where clacium was concerned.
1 - 7 of 7 Posts
