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Topic Dog Boards / Breeding / Weaning & leaving?
- By diggydog [gb] Date 12.02.14 01:47 UTC
My girls first litter 6 1/2 weeks.
They are eating & drinking water great on their own and are big health chubby pups.
They r due to go in 10 days but I have a couple of questions.

My girl is still going in to feed them as much as 5 or 6 times a day sometimes more and other days less.
I have had mixed opinions on this with some people saying it's fine and others saying I should stop her feeding them so much.

I am unsure if I should limit how many times she feeds them or just let her be till they go???

Also when it's time for the pups to leave some people say to let them all go on the same day but others like to space it out over a few days each pup?
I don't want to upset my girl by doing this the wrong way and I also don't want to make the decision based on how I feel about when they leave?
- By JeanSW Date 12.02.14 02:32 UTC Edited 12.02.14 02:38 UTC
I never decide when pups need to be weaned.  I let them tell me (usually by licking the bitches food.)  I never stop or reduce access.  I do make sure that mum can come and go as she pleases, but I also make sure that the pups can't follow mum if she wants a rest away from them.

My bitches often comfort suckle a pup on the day that a pup leaves home.  Bear in mind that it isn't for what milk is left by then.  I think it is the proper way to let a bitch dry up naturally.  But I would never let all a bitches whelps leave on the same day.  Mine would be distraught. And I often keep a pup longer if a family have a holiday already booked.  So it's often over a space of 10 days or more.  We each have different ideas on this.  I've heard folk say that the bitch is fed up of the pups.  This has never, ever happened with my own dogs.  Let the bitch decide.
- By Jeangenie [gb] Date 12.02.14 07:10 UTC
It's kinder for the bitch and pups to allow her the access she wants to wean them at a natural pace, and also to stagger the departure of her babies over a few days.
- By Dill [gb] Date 12.02.14 12:36 UTC
I've just allowed the bitch to wean naturally too.    When I kept a pup for someone who was holidaying,  the bitch fed both pups up until the last one left at 12 weeks :-)        I did make sure that older pups had the chance to eat their food beforeum fed them though, as they take less from the bitch then and it helps dry her up.

I think my bitches would have carried on feeding for longer if the pups had stayed longer.

With the pup I keep, the bitch would feed until about 12 weeks easily.

I've never had a bitch get fed up with her pups, in fact I think they've been too tolerant for too long ;-)   
Topic Dog Boards / Breeding / Weaning & leaving?

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