I seem to be hogging the question section this week, but there's so much to learn.

My lovely Zara's 5 week old pups were immaculately clean today on fresh bedding & newspaper, and their tummies were full of puppy porridge. I let mum in to top them up and have a cuddle. I turned my back for a few moments and she had upended her whole lunch onto the clean mat for them to eat! Horrors! Maybe I wouldn't have minded so much if they were on a soiled mat but this was a bit much! The pups thought it was great!

I know this is how they feed their pups in the wild and that it is part of the natural weaning process. Is this something you all have to deal with or is it a rare occurrence now that there's a lot of instinct bred out of our dogs? I guess I will have to watch her during every feed so it doesn't happen again. She was topping up on dry food before and I suspect she is probably planning to do it again.

Every day presents a new issue.....

Perfectly natural, keep her away from them a bit longer after her own meals.  Fortunately none of mine have done it, though it is not uncommon in my breed who are close to their roots. 

Mine are probably too greedy.

Was there any food left for her to clear up before you let her in?  I always give pups enough so that they leave some for Mum, maybe this convinces her that they don't need any more from her, who knows.

I have made that mistake in the past, allowed the bitch to go in to the pups not long after she has eaten especially when the pups are on 4 meals a day and mum only goes in once or twice a day by then..the bitches milk  obvisously reduces over time as the pups get older and the bitch seems to sense she doesnt have enough milk so will throw up their dinner for them ...learnt that lesson when it happened a couple of times in previous litter..best to let her go into the pups long before or after a meal.  

No, it had been a couple of hours since her dinner, and she does clean up their bowls if there's any left. At five weeks she's still topping them up quite often and I am trying to keep her out of the pen for a few hours at a time. I know she gets up to them in the night because I hear her toenails tapping down the stairs. Should the pups be sleeping most of the night with no feed at that age, and should I keep her out of the pen?

Thanks so much for your input.

No never keep Mum away from pups, it's up to her to decide the speed of weaning.

She's just thrown up again, all over them and they ate it all and she's cleaned them up. This is going to be very messy from now on.....

So many conflicting opinions about weaning.

As long as her condition stays good, then let her get on with it, obviously feed her again if she regurgitates for them or let her have what they haven't eaten LOL..

She is small for her breed and now has 8 huge puppies on her, which are so large they're having trouble fitting in at the milk bar. I have kept her condition on her so far, but from now on it's going to be difficult.

Ellie did that with her last litter, I kept her away from them for an hour or two after she'd eaten. That way she didn't regurgitate for them, and they were hungry enough to try the puppy food I'd made them! I know it's a natural thing, but there's no need for her to run herself down losing her dinner for the puppies when I am prepared to give them food! If your girl is already small and has 8 huge puppies, I would personally try to avoid letting her do that. Sign of a good mum though!

I'm watching her each feed and she hasn't done it since. Here's hoping!

could you feed them together? If she and the pups are on ad lib then just put a big bowl down and let them pile in. If they've been eating with her she might not be so inclined to think they're starving! Or if she'd eat too much then how about a puppy creep?
My bitch did this a couple of times, it was when she had nearly weaned them  and they piled in scrabbling for milk when she came to visit. bit manky but harmless!

She hasn't done it for a couple of days as I watch her feed now. That's a good suggestion, feeding them together, but I think they would all be crowding her for a milk feed and I would have everyone falling into the food. Bit manky alright! I really enjoy them having their dinner. We have a 'puppy party' where they all crash over the paper I put down and tear it up. Getting the bowls down is a real challenge. I love the little devils heaps and they drive me quite mad with all the stuff coming out of their rear ends!

My bitch is a shocker for regurgitating for her puppies and it can be a bit of a pain in the neck Copespeak.

Once they are about 4 weeks, she decides it's time they got some serious food.  I have to lock her away from them for several hours after she has eaten which makes her very upset.  Don't get me wrong, she loves time out from them with me on the lounge, but not when she thinks they need something.

The litter were moved to my daughter's place at 8 weeks and one of the pups came back at 12 weeks and was clambouring after her dam with joy and sure enough, she regurgitated for her.

She won't wean the puppies herself either by 8 weeks which makes it hard - as I have to be the meanie.  She even licks the newspaper to clean up after them when they are running around and eating solid food.

I swear she would be much happier raising them herself in a field on her own (LOL).

It's lovely seeing the natural instinct taking over but the mess is a bit much, plus she needs the food to stick inside her for the milk for them. I have noticed they lick busily around her mouth and that stimulates her. They are so big now (6+ weeks), I have to supervise them all getting a teat so I can watch out for the signs and stop her.

> I have noticed they lick busily around her mouth and that stimulates her.

That is what it is designed to do, and not just the mother.  In wild canids this greeting is used so that the adults will 'cough up' what they have gorged on, as it is how they bring back food to pups who are too Young to hunt (So much older than 6 weeks).

It's also why our dogs  want to get to our mouths, or nuzzle our hands, it is the instinct to elicit food from us.

Fascinating how some still retain their primitive instincts despite such long domestication.

I've got so much puppy spit on my face right now, but they're not getting my toast and jam!

personally i would seperate them from mum altogether now as they will be old enough to leave you soon. we had a bitch that used to regurgate her food for them even after it had been about 6 hours after she had ate. but then another bitch we had never did it once your bitch in my opinion will alway do this for them now she has started to. once our puppies get weened we leave mum out the room all day and only let her spend the night with them then gradually every other then eventualling stopping at around 6 wks this let the milk  dry up naturally. if the pups are eating for meals a day there is no need for their mum to top them up as they will become overweight. every breed is differant of course but i hope this helps x

It is at this age that puppies need their mothers for teaching them manners,  Mothering is not purely about food,a and I would never separate a mother an pups, other than allowing the bitch easy escape from them when she wishes.

My bitches have all been dry by the time of spaying at 11 or 12 weeks after pups are born(assuming this is their last litter), and would be bodily fit to show by then too if ti wasn't for lack of coat, but are usually showable about 5 months after pups born.

Agree with Brainless, an acquaintance of mine separates them at 5/6 weeks, but though I did (and will) keep Ellie away for an hour after eating to help wean them and stop regurgitation, it is so vital that the mum teaches them manners etc. And as I have a singleton this time, both me and Ellie are doing our bit to play with her. Bless her, she seems to realise she needs to this time - she didn't play with the 2 in the last litter until they were 8/9 weeks old, whereas she has been lying in the whelping box being bitten and playbiting back with little Miss nearly-4-weeks-old! Mind you, I heard an attempt to regurgitate after dinner tonight, might be time to start thinking about weaning....

I am keeping her away from them for a time after she's eaten and it's only happened 4 times now. We're starting the weaning process now, so she's not in there so often. They are still waking in the middle of the night no matter how late I feed them. She doesn't sleep with them (her choice) so I am getting up to let her in and clean up the pen. They're nearly 7 weeks old now. At what age do they pass this milestone?

Are they having enough interaction and entertainment through the day? My 10 were noisy until about 3am a few nights ago because they hadn't enough attention through the afternoon for various reasons....

Yes, they go out onto a pen on the veranda on good days, and everyone gets a play in the garden as well.