My bitch is 5 weeks now so next weeK iIshould increase her food. How much extra should I give her . She is a GSP. She is on pedigree and I beleive I should switch her to puppy food. What are your thoughts.thanks

I'm no expert but learnt a lot when I bred my first litter last year. I changed my bitch at 5-6 weeks to a higher protein version of her usual food so she was not getting too much bulk. I also introduced some scrambled egg in the mornings as she was still on one feed a day. Over the remaining weeks I split her meal into two portions and increased the amount only slightly. As I understood, the bitch needs much greater in quantity once she is lactating. Indeed, mine was on four times her normal amount when the pups were 3-4 weeks old. Have you read 'Book of the Bitch'. It gives lots of advice on feeding and breeding in general. Also there are lots of very knowledgable people on this board who I am sure will be able to advise you. Good luck with your litter.
Lorna

I have found that it is not wise to increase the food of my weimaraners until around 7 weeks in whelp otherwise they tend to not only grow but they do put on weight (fat).
Depending on what you are feeding her move to a food of either the same brand or type in an Energy form designed for pregnant or lactating bitches.
increase her quantity by adding an extra meal rather than upping the portions of her normal meals.
Whilst I understand the thoughts of some to add extra's such as eggs to the diet you must be careful as there is a risk of passing e-coli or other bugs through the bitch to the puppies make sure they are thoroughly cooked (eggs not pups).
As she progresses add extra small meals to satisfy her appetite but try not to let her gain excess weight as this can do more harm than good.
If you need any help you can e mail me direct if I can help at all.

Good luck
Gary

I dont increase the food for my bitches until later on in pregnancy because I found that the puppies were enormous! The average for my breed (Parson Russell Terriers) is around 4 - 6 oz. My avereage is 8 oz! One of my girls had a litter 8 of 8 ouncers!

Have you had your girl scanned to see how many puppies there may be? This is be a good indication of how much extra to feed. If my girls are visibly pregnant at 5 weeks-tummy size wise - then I know it is not a small litter and do not increase the quantity much until a week or 10 days later, but increase the quality. I usually have mine scanned a few days after 42 days ( which is the optimum time for re-absorbtion) so I know what to expect. At 5 - 6 weeks I change the complete feed from 24% to about 30% protein and a little chicken , and divide into 2 meals giving 10% more overall. I keep it at this level til about 7 weeks when I start giving more chicken or beef. Unless your bitch is normally a greedy sort (which mine arn't) I am also guided by their appetite, if they fall on their food ravenously then I increase it a little more. By 7 weeks I divide their food into 3 meals if they are very large but even with a very big litter expected I dont increase the actual quantitiy more then about 30%. With my last litter ( previously the bitch had big puppies, though whelped fine) I purposely fed her a little less than before, but all that happened was that she was slightly underweight at whelping and the puppies were still huge for my breed - the smallest being 8oz and the others 10 or 11oz ( the average for my breed is 5-7 oz) and needed a C section, probably because the first puppy presented backwards, though normally this isn't a problem, but he was just too big. Trust your instincts, and as a general guide I would increase the quantity by 10% each week from 6 weeks. Her appetite may wane in the last week, when I give more chicken, eggs and milky drinks. Dont give extra Calcium now, but get some Calcium either tablets crushed in food or a liquid Calcium from your vet (or internet pharmacy) and give it to her as directed from the moment she whelps until she about 2 weeks after she has weaned them, unless you have trouble drying her off when I would stop at weaning. Very best of luck, hope all goes well.

Thanks, she has been scanned for 7 pups. I feed her pedigree and their advice was to increase by 15%each week after 6 weeks and to use puppy food for the higher protein

Hi!!

I usually increase the amount of feed at around six weeks and also switch to a puppy grade too, I also divide her meals up to two meals until the end of the seventh week, then three until she whelps, this is because they cannot hold so much in their stomachs as the pups get bigger! Good Luck with your new babies. :o) ;- ;-)

Cathryn