Hi,

Things are going quite well. Pups are now 5 weeks and 5 days old. They are a small breed and have been gaining around 20g a day (mum weighed 5lbs before being pregnant). Mum isn't feeding them as much ( or rather I don't see her feeding them very often, or for very long) but she loves playing with them and is very patient with them.

When I first started giving them solids they were very eager, but now they don't seem so interested. Their teeth are through so they want to chew a lot. I'm putting food or milk down 3-5 times a day but they rarely finish it, or don't  touch it at all (mum will eat it after 30 mins or so, as I don't want to leave it out too long). They sleep a fair bit, interspersed with short bursts of play (about 10 mins each time). They are vocal when playing, and one of them whines when she want a cuddle (stops when you pick her up), but don't seem to cry for hunger. At each feed I'm giving them about a heaped teaspoon of food each. I give them either RC starter mousse, soaked JW puppy kibble, scrambled egg, goat's milk or  sardines in oil (drained). They really like the sardines, but don't seem fussed by the other stuff anymore unless I hand feed them from my fingers (one by one).

How do I know if they're getting enough to eat? When should they be able to eat dry kibble? Why do you think they're not eating so much anymore? Am I giving them too much? Could mum still be giving them enough milk,even though I rarely see her feeding them? (maybe 3-4times daily max, but only short feeds of a few mins).

I'm only weighing them about once a week now (since last week) and in the last 8 days they've only gained between 72g and 98g each, so that's only between 9g and 13g a day that they're gaining (as opposed to the 15g-25g a day that they were gaining a few weeks ago). Mum is definitely less keen to feed them and tends to stand or sit, rather than lay down. I'm still clipping their nails once or twice weekly, but I think that their teeth hurt her as they're needle sharp.

Am I right to assume that they'd be crying a lot if they were hungry? And that they wouldn't be interested in playing and exploring? Could they just not like the bowls/dishes I'm using, as they seem much more interested in the food if they're licking it off of my fingers? I do vary the dishes I'm using as mum was very fussy about that when we got her and won't eat from most types of dog bowl, and I don't want the puppies to be the same. They now have water (with a little sugar in it) available all the time, although they aren't that interested in it.

At the end of last week, the pups were constantly asking to come out of whelping area ( bed and toilet/play area) so we built them a larger pen (2.4m by 1.8m), which is in the middle of the lounge. They love it and are doing pretty well with using the toilet area. I'm still using the heatpad (in the bed) and electric blanket under the play area. The ambient temperature in the room is 23°C 24/7 and the floor temp in bed/play area is around 24/25°C. When do they no longer need the heat pad, etc? I would normally have room temp at 19/20°C, so when is it okay to start lowering room temp back to this level? I would obviously do this gradually over a few weeks.

Any advice/comments would be greatly appreciated.

I'm still sleeping downstairs with them, and don't leave them alone (except for the school run), but at least I'm able to get about 3-4 hrs sleep most nights. For the fisrt time today, I left mum with them whilst I was on the school run. She was sleeping on sofa when I left and was snuggled in with them when I got back. She can come and go as she pleases and I do trust her with them now as they're bigger. Also, observing her play with them...she's very patient and gentle and tends to block them with her body or head when they get too rough, as opposed to growling, etc.

Thanks again for any help.

Regards,

Nik

This morning at 7am, puppies had some raw mince for breakfast. After a few mouthfuls (at most, a 1/4 of a teaspoon per pup, more likely less than this though), I realised that I'd opened the wrong pack and had given them the fresh mince for our dinner tonight (not previously frozen) instead of the defrosted mince that I'd got out for them... I'm aware that they should only be given previously frozen meat due to bacteria, my question is:

Should I be worried that they might get ill? What should I look out for, if anything? Should I take them to vets for antibiotics to be on the safe side, or just wait and see?

I love the pups so much that I can't help but worry! I'm hoping that someone can put my mind at rest. I've been reading my way through all 400+ pages in the breeding section and haven't found the answers to my questions yet, so hoping someone can help.

Thanks.

Nik

Freezing meat doesn't kill bacteria only parasites,  so puppies have no greater chance of bacterial infection from fresh mince or frozen mince. (Assuming the fresh meat was suitable for human consumption as suggested)

Personally I would never feed any of my dogs dry kibble, and no kibble at all to my toydogs. It's harsh on the stomach if it isn't soaked, especially for little ones. I feed minces, canned food, and complete frozen raw food to my toy pups. I wouldn't say they'd necessarily would cry if hungry, but you should be able to feel if they are of good weight. Pups should feel heavy in comparison to their size and brick solid.

I tend to feed a mixture. My Chi sometimes prefers dry food, but is fed mainly on wet food. I'm soaking the kibble in goat's milk for the puppies, but when they're out of the pen exploring they go straight for mum's dry puppy food that I'm leaving out for her. She has a huge appetite atm, so although I'm feeding her 5-6 wet meals a day, I'm also leaving the dry puppy kibble out for her so she has a choice.

I've always been able to get to them before they swallow any, but they seem to enjoy licking it, and although I haven't let them, they seem to want to try chewing it (probably due to teething).

Thanks for the replies.

Regards, Nik

ETA: I wouldn't say they feel solid, but when they aren't sleeping, they're pretty active for between 10-25 mins at a time.