I've got a couple more questions if anyone can help.
Is it normal for a singleton pup to cry a lot more? My pup seems to cry a hell of a lot, If she's awake she seems to be crying. It's obviously not that constant for there to be something wrong with her healthwise.
I'm quite certain she's not in pain or unwell.  Will it just be boredom due to her being the only one. She is 4 weeks on Wednesday, so I suppose she has reached the age where she is awake a bit more and needs to play. Ruby just seems to sit looking at her, as if to say what's the matter now. The pup does try to paw, growl and bark at mum, but apart from a little bit of mouthing, Ruby doesn't really respond. Ruby really played (quite roughly) with her last litter, but it might of been when they were a bit older. I do try to give her attention, picking her up for cuddles etc, but she soon starts to whine again.
The other thing is the weaning. She doesn't seem to want it, especially out of the bowl. I tried her on scrambled egg, she spat it out. Tried her on rice pudding, wasn't interested, Today I managed to get her to have a little Nature Diet with a bit of warm water, but I'd deliberatly kept mum away for a couple of hours beforehand. Then later on she ate some raw minced beef, but only out of my hand, she wouldn't attempt to eat out of the bowl. Any suggestions.
Should I keep her away from mum for a couple of hours before every feed.

Michelle.

Hi mitch, I guess the pup isn't  very hungry with all that milk to itself :-) We had one singleton cocker puppy once and he was huge (called him Bumble cos he looked like a bumblebee), Have you tried putting a cuddle toy in for the pup to play with, make sure it is 'baby safe' with no loose eyes and rub it on the dams back so it has her smell. I know it is no substitute for siblings but it is furry and comforting when the pup is alone And for food puppy milk mixed with raw egg and a little honey always goes down well, also scraped beef is easier to eat than mince. :-)

I doubt if your pup has the concept of boredom as it doesn't know what it's like to have littermates. I would be sure and handle it a lot and try to mimick what littermates would do with it as it grows. He must be awfully cute.

Carrie

I think the pup is bored. Can she follow you round the house and garden like she was an 8 week pup you had just bought, and get the same amount of attention and playtimes. She needs to play.  She is probably getting plenty of nourishment from mum still. As long as she is growing well and has been wormed I wouldn't worry about her lack of appetite just yet. If mum doesn't mind I would keep pup with you during the day while she is awake and just pop her back to mum when she gets sleepy or is obviously hungry.

You can take her out in the car with you on short trips to get her used to travelling and meeting people as long as she doen't come into contact with other dogs. Singleton puppies can come on very quickly with their socialisation. She needs lots of company, stimulation and toys she can play with on her own, like a kong/buster cube as she doen't have any litter mates.

I would offer her two meals a day. Take her away from mum first thing and offer her some soaked complete puppy food. If you hand feed her mince you will make her a fussy eater. Do the same in the evening at bed time and when she is enthusiastic for both meals, then its time to offer lunch as well. Dont let mum get uncomfortablly full of milk, while she is happy to feed her full time and the pup is growing well, there is no rush to wean.

Hi Michelle

No, I have never found any of my singletons crying more than pups with littermates.  Is she crying or whinging - if crying I would get her checked out.

I would not offer lots of different foods at this stage as her stomach needs to make the transfer from milk to solids - wait until she is taking one before offering more.  Don't worry about her not taking solids - my recent litter did not really take to them until they were between 5 and 6 weeks as their mum supplied most of their needs.  They would eat the chicken wings/frames/backs but give them mince/fruit/veg and they went to the mobile milk bar instead.

Give her lots of stimulation - if you can't be there to play and knock her around with a large soft toy (try to imitate puppy play) then leave coke or beer cans lying around (they make lots of noise when played with), squeeky toys to vaguely mimic littermates squeeks when bitten too hard.  I also have cardboard boxes, coke bottles with and without water and hanging from ceiling (I am lucky to have a beam to hang things from), bits of rag or vetbed also tied to string and hanging from ceiling, keys, small logs, anything that may stimulate them.  Different floor surfaces - carpet, wood, matting. 

The crying could very well be for attention - I had one hand reared pup (not a singleton, but a tiny one in a litter of 6)  who would sit in the middle of the play pen and simply howl until he was picked up.  He became spoiled rotten, ashe wa so small and cute you just couldnt resists giving him waht her wanted, so he spent a lot of time being carried around wile I hoovered, washed floors, did paperworks etc etc.    Of course, it gave him completely the wrong message - the pup is in control, not the person!  My singleton babies have all had lots of toys (chosen for approprite size and weight for the pups breed) including soft cuddly ones to snuggle up to.  Neither showed any sign of missing siblings, as they had not had any.   If Mum wont play, you  have to step in, and a 4 week pup needs lots of palying :)  The weaning question is very much dependendt on breed/size.  I agree with the poster who said dont keep chopping and changing.  My lot get weaned onto puppy porridge made up with soaked, mashed Puppy Eukanba with warmed goats milk added.  I offer it for 1 meal only per day, until they are eating happily, and then increase over a week to 4.  With small breeds, they often insist on being finger fed for quite a while before they are willing to eat on their own, and singletons are often slower to catch on - no competititive eating ;)
bye
Gwen

Hi thanks for the response.
It is a proper cry, and can be quite loud, but like I say I'm sure there is nothing wrong, cos she does tend to shut up when she's getting attention.
I have a couple of stuffed toys in the bed, which she does snuggle up to, but has only just startd to actually play with them, well bite them.
I'll introduce a few more things to stimulate her. I'm quite surprised Ruby doesn't play with her though.
I do get pup out of the box when I know I am going to be in the room for a long period, but I can't let her follow me around the house and garden, she's still a bit young and not very steady on her feet. All my downstairs is laminate flooring so it's a lot harder for her to walk on. We have a big rug in the room and she is ok walking on that, but she soon starts crying if she wanders off it on to the slippy floor.
I do try to play with her with the toys and she'll growl and pounce fow a few seconds, but loses interest straight away.
Toesy and Rio my other Staffords like to have a good old sniff, and I can actually put her on the rug when Toesy (15 month male) is in the room, he just tends to follow her around, she seems quite happy with that, and does growl at him in play, but I have to watch him incase he gets to rough, especially pawing her.
Rio, on the other hand (8 month female) I have to keep a very close eye on, as she went to bite her the other day when pup was on my knee. I'm sure it was only play, but I can't take any chances.
Now with the feeding I always thought it was best to give a milky feed and a meaty feed, but if it's best to stick to one thing till she's eating better I will. Is it ok to just give her the raw mince twice a day as that is the one she eats the best.

Michelle.