My pups are 4 weeks old and have taken to eating soaked food quite well. Mum does go into them but very occassionally now and so I have been putting down formula milk as worried about them being thirsty. What age do you introduce water.

I introduce it as soon as they start eating puppy food.    Of course they will have seen their mother drinking from the water bowl by then too and maybe even tried some of hers :-)

Ditto Dill, I have found the Road refresher bowls excellent for puppies, keeps them from swimming in it and keeps the water cleaner.

Thanks for that. I've got one of those but thought it might be too high. I'll put in a small bowl to start with. They have just had a drink from Mum but she is definitely not so keen.

My pups at 4 to 5 weeks had no troubel with the large road refresher, and i suspect yoru breed are larger (mine are 20/23kg adults at 19 1/2/20 1/2 at shoulder).

Mine are going outdoors at this age, and you can see pics of the bowl with the last two litters on my website.

OK I will try that then. Mine have not been outside yet as it is so cold. I normally acclimatise them in the conservatory and then to the outside. Yes mine are a tad bigger than yours as adults.

> Mine have not been outside yet as it is so cold.

You should see the pics of my 'O' littter then, we had snow at that age, LOL

I have just seen your website and then looked at my pups in the run in the living room by the radiater. Oh dear.
They are in the kitchen during the day. Thing is my older dogs hate it outside in the rotten weather as well. If we leave them outside and close the door, they are just waiting at the door to be let in. LOL Woosies really.

Let you into a secret, my adults (over 2 or 3) are the same, unless a walk is on offer, but I have a job to keep pups in whatever the weather.

Adults in my breed seem to believe in conserving their energy most of the day, and only the younger element spend much time outside playing, the real adults believe the garden is just a comfort station, though they do like to soak up winter sun in the mornings.  They will stay out as long as the back door stays open.

Indoors I don't have room for a puppy pen larger than 6 x 3 feet, so they really are gagging for mroe play room outdoors by 4 1/2 weeks, also they hate being dirty in their play area.

I can manage to keep them fairly happy to be contained for the night, and for short periods in the day.

I'm lucky if I can keep them happy to play in the dog run outside past 5 1/2 - 6 weeks, usually by then they want the full range of the dogs area.

So do yours not do all the shivering that I get when I first put them out. They are still quite small at 4 weeks. The biggest has just hit 2 kilos.
They have been asleep but one has just had a look at the bowl wondering what it is and has slid back to sleep again.

Not really they are 4 - 5 1/2 poundish at 4 weeks, and apart from creepign about for the first few minutes on the unaccustomed cold surface they soon are bombing about. 

This time I got them a dog house for a cosy resting/dozing day shelter, so it was undercover, rather than using the kennel (the previous litter I used my varikennel with the door left off).

From 6 weeks though I often found them having found places to den, under hubby's cement mixer, unde the garden seats, at the root of the hazel clump last summers guys dug quite a scrape.

I give goats milk on weaning which is gradually watered down, by the time they leave for their new homes they can drink water out of a bowl and the water bottles that they have been curious about since 4 weeks old, watching the adults including Mum having a drink, Rhuari would take a drink and let the pups lick any drips from around his mouth as he was doing it.

My pups (Now 8 weeks) have been outside since 4 weeks. They have access from the conservatory out to the dog run and have a ramp as it is quite a step down. They sleep under the ramp during the daytime naps and can come indoors if they are cold or it is raining...but I usually have to force them indoors as they do not care how wet/cold it is...I just make sure they have a blanket under the ramp to keep them up of the slabs but they invariably shun it and drag it up to sleep on the cold floor ! Once they hit 4 weeks they are much tougher than we think ! I would just keep an eye on them for the next week while they are out and then let them get on with it. as long as they have somewhere warm to go if they want to. My hubby has this time made up a wooden frame 4 ft x 4ft and I trap newspaper under it this litter has used it exclusivly and kept the run so much cleaner and tidy. It has been a huge bonus. It is easy to simply wrap any wee/poos up and thow away and pop new paaper down. Once the last pups have gone we will move the frame gradually to the area of the garden I want my baby to use and eventually dispence with it entirely.
Of course it all depends on breed, mine are a heavy coated large working breed. I would be a good bit more carefull with a tiny short coated breed of course.
I too have water down as soon as they start on solids but mine are raw fed and they get a lot of moisture from the meat, however they still drink from an early age. I never use milk as a drink at 4/5 weeks they still grab a suckle from Mum, but they do get a milky meal before bed. Mine are quite happy with full fat cows milk but feeding 6 large breed pups goats milk unless you have a goat is very expensive..they get over 2 pints a day with thier bedtime meal... Once pups are weened they loose the ability to utilize lactose so really they do not need it. Also with a large breed like mine I much preferr they grow on slowly and do not bulk them up with fatty foods. By 10 weeks I have dropped the bedtime meal in favour of a bedtime biscuit and they are happy with that.
Aileen

Once they hit 4 weeks they are much tougher than we think !

As long as they are big! :) I have had 3 week old Malinois pups out in the snow for a play in the past, but my 6 week 5 days old toy pups have not been outside even once yet, and have only this week started to eat solids 4 times a day -before now I could not get them to take more than 2 or 3 meals at most, the rest was still suckling from mum. It's just not been warm enough to venture outside yet but we have lots of time still as they will stay for another 6-7 weeks.

Of course it all depends on breed, mine are a heavy coated large working breed. I would be a good bit more carefull with a tiny short coated breed of course

No offence but I did mention breeds are different....
Aileen

Ok - we allbraved it yesterday ( sunshine ). I have now got 2 large pens, one in the kitchen one in the conservatory with a run out in the garden. I can't have them running everywhere because one of my previous Mum's is really jealous. At late evening, nighttime I  move them into the kitchen until I am sure the weather is milder or they can cope with it. The are not a breed with a particularly heavy coat at this stage. The smallest, the girl weighs just over 1400 gms, the largest about 2.2 kilos. Now they are weaning the others are catching the biggest born and still biggest puppy. They seem to be having a larger weight gain each day. I am still giving a formula drink which they seem to enjoy and soaked Arden Grange weanning food which they enjoy and I am just warming that slightly to take the chill off. Every now and again one takes a sip out of the  water bowl but not sure if they are all drinking water. For my pups, 4weeks  2 days they are still baby babies but  will see a big difference towards the end of the week.
Mum still goes in here and there but after a minute or so starts grumbling at them then scattering them and out she goes.

Sounds about right. 

> I can't have them running everywhere,

I never let mine do this, one I could too easily stand or trip over them, it's far to unhygienic with a whole litter, and the other dogs deserve not having to have pups with them unless they want to, so penning (inside and iniitailly outside) and rationed access to garden is appropriate, as well as cuddle time on sofa and in Living room with us individually.

Most puppies in their new homes will need to be confined to a room with a washable floor when they can't be watched, so being used to not having free reign is helpful, and more freedom in their the home/new home comes with maturity and house training.

I'm glad you said that because it is what I always do but I got the impression that some have free rein.

As I say the pups are eating a combination of soaked food and formula milk. The ar 4 weeks 2 days. Also occassional drink from Mum and some take a sip .of water but not very often ( only when they seem to chance on the bowl).
Their poos are a bit runny and sometimes they seem to be trying to go and it is not much and then a bit watery. It is not diarrhea as I have seen that ( not squits ) sort of formed but very soft. They were wormed at 2 weeks and I have wormed at 4 weeks but was going to wait until the recommended 5 weeks. Anyone had this and should I be concerned. I don't think they are going particularly any more than I would expect mind you.

Cut out milk except for mothers milk.  Once the bitch weans the pups they can no longer digest milk so well.

That is interesting because I have followed this before but this lot will not firm up = well there have been a few signs of it doing here and there. Reason for formula is only a worry they are not getting enough liquid. They have just eaten soaked kibble and she has been in to see them so I will leave it at that for now and see what happens.All off to sleep now. Got to go and clean the night pen now - my back is not in a good place !!