i need some advise on hand rearing 2 abandoned puppies. They were dumped in a box and handed in to a vets that i work at. They arrived at around 5 days old, therefore i hope they had some time with mum. They are roughly 10-14 days old now, there eyes are still closed. I have been feeding them welpi and they are taking it well. i have been feeding them every 3 hours during the day, and every 4 hours over night. However there poos have become very runny, is this normal for hand reared pupps? Am i feeding them too much per feed?(about 25mls) When do i start leaving them through the night? When do i start feeding them solids? Can any one offer any advise!

Can't the vet you work for offered advise?   Sorry I can't help, but good luck to you :-)

The vets can give some advise, but hands on wise they arn't that experianced! Fortunatly they dont often have to do any hand rearing! just thought would be nice to have some advise from somone who has hand reared a few times!

There is a lady in Lincolnshire who does help out ..... do a search (top right) putting in fostering puppies and I'm sure her name will come up!

Hi, first off you're lucky that thier motions are loose. Constipation is a big problem with hand reared pups. Feed the pups until they decide they have had enough themselves and make sure that you burp them like babies after feeds. If they are very loose however you should get the vet to check a sample for infection and make sure that you are making up the Welpi in the exact proportions it says on the tin. When their motions solidify make sure to keep on stimulating them with damp cottonwool until you get both a pee and a poo. Make sure they are warm enough - if they lie huddled together they are probably on the cool side. You can begin weaing them at about 2 1/2 weeks but it will take them a day or two to eat properly and so you should continue milk feeds until they are eating well from the bowl. Some warm Welpi over the weaning food will help them get the idea. I'd keep on feeding during the night until they are fully weaned.

HTH - Good Luck