my 2 pups are now 3 and half weeks old.they are fat and content and have no interest in food just want their mum.im mushing kibble up with puppy milk and making it like a porridge and trying them using my finger but neither of them are interested,straight back to mum!!with lib being an old lady i would like to help her and get them going on food but the little blighters dont want to know,any advice please?

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I would take her away from them for an hour before trying to give them anything. 

It will take a few days, but they will soon get started. 

Is Lib nice and fat or starting to loose weight?

Use raw mince -much nicer than mashed up kibble. :) Pop it into their mouths, they will spit it out to start with but should start eating within minutes.

Raw mince should be frozen first then defrosted or cooked as it can contain neospora caninum  please look at the following link.

http://www.vizsladogs.com/ARTICLES/neosporum.htm

I have seen this in a litter of puppies, it was not good.

Is there such a thing as mince for pets NOT sold raw? Or are you talking about food for meat eating humans? Is that sold non frozen? (Wouldn't know as I don't eat meat.)

Meat sold in butchers' shops should be fresh, not frozen. It's dangerous to refreeze thawed raw meat, and any that's been previously frozen should be clearly labelled as such.

> Is there such a thing as mince for pets NOT sold raw? Or are you talking about food for meat eating humans? Is that sold non frozen? (Wouldn't know as I don't eat meat.)

Not sure quite what you are saying, you can buy pet mince already frozen, which would be fine once defrosted, otherwise if you buy pet mince raw or mince raw fit for human consumption it needs freezing first then defrosting, or else it has to be cooked.   Do you have a problem with that?

It is the freezing and/or the cooking that kills the parasite.

I'm saying I have never heard of PET mince sold not frozen. Don't see how it could be sold not frozen. It's not something you can pick up in a supermarket after all.

I used to get pet mince from the local butcher - they used to mince up their own offcuts and sell it and I'm sure others do the same.

Yes, the same as Jeangenie I can go in the local butcher and I say

"I want some mince for my dogs, do not want just rubbish (i.e. a lot of fat), what have you got" and they mince up offcuts of beef, which I take home then freeze, or cook.

I'm such a townie, I never even knew you could get pet mince! We don't have a butcher in our village (the only thing it lacks!) so I buy ordinary mince and lightly cook it. My litter 2 years back weren't interested in the puppy porridge at all, they didn't want minced chicken or finely minced beef, they wanted (appropriately sized) small chunks of meat! And they loved goats milk! Mind you so did Henry bless him, he kept jumping in and stealing it!

thank you for your replies.i shall pop to the shops this morn and get some mince.libby is holding her weight but is shattered and her coat looks dreadful.ive spent the last half hour giving her a groom which she really seemed to enjoy the rest from the pups!!