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A little help with caring for orphaned puppies........
You can make this formula easily at home. It has 11 calories per CC.
The problem with commercial formula that you buy at your vet is that most only have about 1 or 2 calories per CC. Your puppies would probably do fine, but we don't think the commercial puppy formulas provide as much easily digested nutrition as the goat's milk formula does. We have used this formula quite successfully, and it works better than any we've tried.
**Please note... We are not a substitute for your Veterinarian.... If you are hand raising puppies and they should develop any sort of medical problem what so ever, you need to contact your vet immediately!
Here are some general rules for bottle feeding puppies:
Always boil tap or water before using - allow appropriate time to cool. Bottle water for infants is what we use. Burp your puppies after feeding. A pup may have little bubbles around its mouth, but there should not be milk running out of his mouth or nose. When the bottle is held upside down the milk should drip out - NOT FLOW OUT in a stream - puppies that get milk in their lungs will easily get foreign body pneumonia. It is almost always fatal.
Calorie intake needs to be adjusted according to the growth of your puppies. A general rule of thumb is 1 CC per ounce of body weight every 3 hours, but we generally give smaller amounts with the Chihuahuas, and simply monitor how full their little tummies look. Common sense will serve you better than "run of the mill" charts you find on internet sites. An accurate scale is a must to weigh pups if you're to be successful in providing the appropriate amount of formula for your puppies. Use a digital kitchen food scale, or a digital designed specifically for weighing small pets. It is easy to see any weight gain or loss, and record the puppies' weight on a weight chart that you can easily refer to.
Bottle Feeding Recipe
( 11 Calories per CC )
1. 10 oz. of canned evaporated milk or goat's milk (not pasteurized cow's milk - this will cause scowers - dogs do not digest normal cow's milk well at all) Goats milk is by far the best to use. Your local grocery should have it, and Wal Mart normally carries it.
2. 3 oz. bottled baby water or boiled water (this is not needed if using goat's milk)
3. 1 raw egg yolk
4. 1 cup of whole yogurt (avoid skim or fat free if at all possible)
5. 1/2 Tsp Kayro Syrup or Corn Syrup (NOT HONEY!!!)
Place ingredients in a blender to blend or use a wire whisk. Be careful to not over blend and create a milk shake full of bubbles. Bubbles are not good for your puppy's tummy.... Keep refrigerated, and discard leftovers after 7 days. Warm your formula to body temperature (dogs are around 101 degrees). Discard any un-used formula. This is a thick mixture - use a stomach tube to tube feed or enlarge the hole in the nipple for easier access for you puppy.
Weight Conversion Chart for Tubing or Bottle Feeding Puppies
1/2 ounce formula = 15cc
1 ounce formula = 30cc
1 ounce = 28.3 grams
* NOTE: USE 1/6 OF DAILY FORMULA AMOUNT PER TUBING/FEEDING. PUP SHOULD BE TUBED/BOTTLE FED EVERY 2 HOURS FOR THE FIRST 48 HOURS THEN EVERY 3 - 4 HOURS SHOULD BE SUFFICENT.
Raising Orphaned Puppies
Preventing "Chilled" Puppies…
Newborn puppies cannot regulate their body temperature very well. They quickly become chilled, or hypothermic, if their mother, their siblings, or their environment does not keep them warm. It will be necessary to provide a heat source for your puppy for the first few weeks of life. Suitable heat sources include hot water bottles, incubators, and heat lamps. Whichever heat source you use, make sure the puppy doesn't become overheated or burned. In addition, avoid drafts by placing the puppy's box away from windows, doorways, and air-conditioning vents.
During the first 4 days of life, aim to keep the air temperature in the box at puppy-level between 85°F and 90°F. Gradually decrease the temperature to about 80°F degrees by days 7-10. If you are raising a litter of puppies, the temperature can be a little lower, as the puppies will huddle together and keep one another warm.
The normal rectal temperature for a newborn puppy is 95-99°F. If its rectal temperature is below 94°F degrees you are dealing with a potentially life-threatening case of hypothermia. The puppy needs to be warmed immediately. Take care not to overheat the puppy or warm it too quickly; this can be fatal in a weak puppy.
Dehydration in puppies
Newborn puppies quickly become dehydrated very quickly if they are not nursing. They can also become dehydrated if their environment is too hot and dry.
Two indicators of dehydration are loss of elasticity in the skin (the skin stays tented when gently pinched up) and decreased saliva production (the gums and tongue feel tacky or dry).
In addition to providing adequate nutrition, you may need to humidify the puppy box or whelping room if the puppy is small or weak. Be careful not to make the box too hot and humid; this can also cause respiratory distress.
A home humidifier should be adequate.
Hypoglycemia in Puppies
Hypoglycemia quickly develops in a newborn that is not nursing frequently.
As hypoglycemia worsens, the puppy becomes progressively more depressed and weak.
Without treatment it may develop muscle twitches or seizures and then it will become unresponsive and comatose.
If it is showing any of these signs place a few drops of corn syrup on its tongue. This simple procedure is often sufficient to revive a hypoglycemic puppy. Also watch for signs of hypoglycemia over the next several days, as you adjust your puppy's feeding schedule.
Feeding puppies
We're not fans the generic type "pet" bottles made for puppies. Rather we prefer human baby bottles. Be sure to check the hole in the nipple before using the bottle the first time. The hole is the right size if, when you turn the bottle upside down, milk replacer drips from the nipple with only a gentle squeeze of the bottle.
If, when you upend the bottle, you must squeeze it firmly to get milk to drip from the nipple, the hole needs to be enlarged. Otherwise, the puppy will become discouraged or exhausted when nursing and may even refuse to nurse.
To enlarge the hole, heat a needle and then pierce the tip of the nipple a few times. Remember, upended, the milk should drip, not stream, from the nipple with only a gentle squeeze. If the puppy is weak and has a poor suck reflex, to save these puppies it's necessary to feed the puppy through a tube inserted into its stomach. Ask your veterinarian to instruct you on how to safely place the tube and maintain it for feeding.
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