Hi , my small breed girl had a beautiful litter of 5 healthy pups on thursday daytime , and I am struggling now to get her to eat much . If I feed her upstairs with the pups she just tries to bury the food , but if I bring her downstairs she stresses and just wants to go back to her babies . The pups seem quite content so I assume they are getting enough milk at the moment but I am worried that if this carries on they won't be much longer . I am making sure she has a fresh supply of water at all times , and have been offering her some Lactol too which she will drink occasionally . Any advice would be great , many thanks  :-)

Hi ,my girl delivered 12 days ago and I usually find that mum does,nt want to leave the nest to bother feeding herself for a few days so I hand feed my girls in their box,I offer things like sausages,pasta,scrambled eggs and put a little evaporated milk in the water.,I,m sure once she,s bonded and into a bit of routine she,ll start eating properly.

I personally would not do as dogsbody advised but everyone does things differently. That type of feeding doesn't personally work for me.  Sausages etc I find only make for an upset tummy at a time when they can be loose anyway but that is my take on it.

Can I ask what you are feeding her?

I tend to use a good complete food that the bitch had been on approaching whelping such as Royal Canin reproduction and I add some hot water to it to soften and warm it and add a handful of freshly cooked chicken off the bone.  I find they prefer food and drink warm for the first wee while.     For a drink fresh water with a splash of fully skimmed milk. I find this is better rather that milk or anything creamy agan to avoid upsetting their tummy and then in turn upsetting the puppies tummies.

I also prefer 5 or 6 smaller meals spaced out regularly.

I find some of mine can be a bit fussy so I just hold the bowl under their nose and let them feed from the bowl. ( I never leave food lying around in the whelping box though)

She has been on Royal Canin Mini Puppy for the last few weeks and eaten it fine , but I've tried softening it and she still isn't interested ... all I've managed to get her to eat this morning was a quarter of a piece of toast . Would you opt for the skimmed milk in water rather than the lactol ? She was having a little bit of scrambled egg during pregnancy and ate it so I may try her on that again , see if it tempts her , but so far nothing else has . Does it make a difference if she ate the placenta's ? ( she ate 2 out of the 5 )
Thanks again :-)

For me the trick is well soaked food (to a pulp as mouths get sore from cleaning) offered 4 or more times a day.  I always like blue feed in the box, but do not leave it there.

Sorry I was only trying to help explaining what I do which has worked out fine for me everytime.I only feed that way for a couple of days just to get mum interested in food again and I always give a good quality puppy food as well for mum.I just give the other things to get mum started eating and don,t get upset tums because of it.I also hold the food under their nose and offer by hand if I have to.

For the first few days after giving birth, I make my new mums an egg custard, eggs, puppy milk, glucose.....they eat this no problem, as it's soft in their mouth which could be sore after all the cleaning etc. then gradually add the puppy food to it.

2 Placenta's is a reasonable feed for most bitches.    A bit of fresh cooked chicken blended right through the food sometimes motivates them. I sometimes scoop it out and let them take it right out the palm of my hand.    I think the Lactol is fine BUT I only put a teaspoon into a large dish because I find it can also give them the runs.  If she is drinking plenty and not unwell she will be fine , she had only just had them so don't worry too much yet :-)

That's OK dogsbody,  I wasnt saying you were wrong just that it was not my method.. We all do things differently doesn't mean mine is righ over you :-D what works is what works :-)

I made a chicken broth the day my girl whelped and she absolutely loved it. Just the liquid at first and then with bits of chicken, then with potatos and carrots. Lots of small meals spaced out. Eggs done in the microwave were a favourite,  and hand feeding, or holding the bowl under her nose until she was happy to leave pups and feed just near them. Good luck and congratulations on your new babies.

Thankyou all for your advice . I have managed to get her to eat some very finely minced cooked chicken in with extremely mushy RC mini junior , so it was a very sloppy mix . She has only eaten a couple of mouthfuls , but it is a start . How will I know if she is getting enough to produce enough milk for her babies ? They are not crying at all but if I try to check her for milk , none comes out , just worried that it is starting to dry up ...
Thanks again .

Most bitches don't have big "udder" , you best sign that they are feeding well is they are quiet, plumping up well and putting on weight.   I woudl weigh them at the same time of day ( I do evening) every day for the first 2 weeks and they as suits. It is a good indicator they are all doing well and feeding equally. 

Sounds like she is going well.. The chicken adn mushy complete food generally always does the trick.. She is just a very new mum so give her time :-)

I have also got her to eat a small amount of egg a few moments ago , but she literally wants me in her whelping box with her before she will eat , which is fine by me . 4 of the pups are putting on weight well ( each were between 7.2 and 8.2 oz at birth ) but the littlest girl ( 7 oz at birth ) has not put much on at all , although she's not lost any either , so I'm hoping she will catch up as they are only just over 48 hours old . Don't want to worry unduly but know I need to be aware . Mum is doing an excellent job though and looking after her little family superbly :-)

> I have also got her to eat a small amount of egg a few moments ago , but she literally wants me in her whelping box with her before she will eat

I had to get in and sit with mine and hand feed her for the first couple of days otherwise she just turned her nose up.  She would happily drink milk, but she was really put off by food unless I hand fed her.  I never minded - I figured she deserved to be treated like a queen after all she'd gone through :)

I gave mine a little glucose with the water, but luckily she is a pig and always eats well. I agree with the suggestion to weigh pups daily for the first 2 weeks, if they are quiet and content and putting on weight, mum has enough milk. Good luck tempting her to eat more!

> the littlest girl ( 7 oz at birth ) has not put much on at all , although she's not lost any either , so I'm hoping she will catch up

I wouldnt worry too much about the little one. She will only put weight on in proportion to her birth weight and may not catch up until she is weaned. As long as she is gaining a bit and not losing, all should be well.

Mom has eaten much better today , been out for cuddles and seems quite content ( except for a strange little bit of digging under my bed , which was where she originally wanted to give birth ! ) Pups seem well , and the littlest has now gained 0.5 oz since birth , which , although compared to the only boy who has gone up from 8.2 to 11 oz , seems not much , at least she is going the right way ( she was 7 oz born Thursday afternoon )
Thankyou so much for all your advice , I love this site , and have found it invaluable thoughout :-)

> except for a strange little bit of digging under my bed

I believe the latest thinking for this is that the digging after giving birth is an expression of pain!! My girl did it in the whelping box and sent the pups flying. Was constantly keeping them from being dug!!!lol

> I believe the latest thinking for this is that the digging after giving birth is an expression of pain!!

Would you think that is pain like we get afterpains after having babies , or something she needs to see the vet about ? I have phoned and spoken to them and they said just to keep an eye on her and if she seems in any distress then to take her in to be checked over ....

It is quite normal, it is the after pains as you have guessed.

A bitch in severe pain will not act like this.

Thankyou ... she is such a super mom , and her babies are gorgeous !!! Worth all the waiting we had to get us to this point :-)