When buying a little puppy, the first thing you should learn is the rules for feeding it. If from the very beginning to find out how and how to feed a pet, then in the future it will be possible to ensure the harmonious development of the animal.
The rules of the first feeding
The first lure is carried out in the third or fourth week of the puppy's life when he is with his mother and has the opportunity to regularly receive her milk. In the case when there are more than 8 individuals in the litter or if the puppy is artificially fed from bottles, then the lure will be introduced from the 7th to 10th day of the puppy's life, when he will see his light. As the first food, it is customary to give sheep or goat milk, into which a fresh egg is added. The liquid first warms up a bit, and the egg is well mixed. It is important that no harmful bacteria are present in this product.
At first it is better to offer milk to the pet in a container with a pacifier, and when he gets acquainted with a new feed, pour it in a saucer.
So puppies will begin to gradually master the skill of lacquering. Naturally, this will not happen all too carefully, therefore, having completed feeding, the animal's face should be wiped. Once the dog has mastered lactating egg milk, you can move on to the liquid gruel, also boiled in milk. Experts recommend starting with oatmeal or grinding oatmeal. One or two eggs are added to the pan of porridge cooked for the entire litter.
At the same stage, it is recommended to add cottage cheese to the diet of dogs, because the calcined product is intended for the prevention of rickets.For puppies, it is prepared as follows: a liter of milk is brought to a boil, after which approximately 4 tablespoons of calcium chloride are added to it.
After mixing the substance, it is necessary to discard the cottage cheese, knead it and mix with serum to form a liquid gruel. The remaining serum can be offered to a nursing female.
From the 14th day on, puppy meat is ground into minced meat. The product must be fresh, frozen and then thawed. For small dogs, veal, turkey or rabbit, that is, a tender and low-fat product, is suitable. Minced meat is offered only after the puppies drink their mother’s milk or from the bottle.
What can I give?
Monthly puppies should be fed only with fresh products, since even a small deviation from the expiration date threatens to poison the pet. The main component of the diet, of course, is meat. This product should make up almost 40% of all puppy food. As a rule, the required amount is determined by a simple rule: 30 grams of meat products per kilogram of animal weight. A puppy who has grown up to the age of one month is allowed to offer a raw, boiled or just scalded product.
If the dog belongs to a large breed and she will later become a guard, then it is better to give her raw meat immediately. Skinless chicken is great for pets. In addition, the diet should include veal, turkey and beef, as well as offal, for example, hearts or liver.
For greater convenience, all meat products are cut into small pieces. Fish should be added to the puppy's diet, but in moderation - only a couple of times a month.
It is better to choose white meat containing a small amount of seeds. River fish is not recommended for babies due to the high bone content. Cooking is not mandatory, but is recommended to prevent helminth infections. In those meals, when the puppy is given fish, it is no longer necessary to cook meat.
Dogs need milk during the first 4-6 months of life. Both cow and goat milk are suitable, but the second is considered more suitable, since it does not cause allergies. Cow's milk should be diluted with drinking water to prevent diarrhea. Milk is removed from the diet when the puppy reaches the age of 6 months, but this is done gradually so as not to cause stress in the animal. In addition to milk, you can not do without fermented milk products, which are the main source of calcium and contribute to proper digestion.
Products such as cottage cheese, kefir and sour cream with low fat content are suitable. During training, it is not forbidden to give a dog a piece of cheese as a treat.
Cereals are no less important than other products in the dog’s diet, but still they are in third place after meat and dairy products. For feeding pets, rice, oat, buckwheat and semolina cereals prepared in milk are selected. However, when offering such a dish to the baby, it is important to see if it causes an upset stomach. If trouble happened, then this cereal should be removed from the diet for 10 days.
Vegetables provide the dog with the necessary vitamins. As a rule, carrots, beets, zucchini and pumpkin are used. They are added to the diet in small quantities and must be stewed. In rare cases, the animal is offered eggs - either raw or boiled. You can also enrich the dishes with a small amount of greens. Fruits, dried fruits and berries are used as animal treats. In principle, dry food is not prohibited for puppies of one month of age, but not all experts approve of it.
The product must be high quality and containing all the necessary vitamins and minerals.
One month old puppy eats 6 times a day. Alternatively, as a first meal, he can be offered cottage cheese mixed with kefir, and then feed him twice with rice porridge with meat and grated vegetables. Then cottage cheese follows again, and then the same porridge with meat and vegetables, but already buckwheat. As a final dish, rice or buckwheat porridge with meat, but without vegetables, or just meat, is suitable.
Another variant of the daily diet begins with milk porridge or cottage cheese with sour cream, offered at 7:30. Then at 10:30 the puppy gets a mixture of porridge, cut into small pieces of meat and boiled carrots. At 13:30 it is enough for him to drink milk, but at 16:30 to repeat meat porridge with vegetables. At 19:30 the dog can be offered milk porridge with slices of fruit or another dairy product, and end the day with slices of raw meat at 22:30.
Speaking about the diet of babies, one cannot but mention its enrichment with vitamins. The easiest way to use fish oil, the amount of which increases from 3 drops to a teaspoon per day.
Seaweed, finely chopped and offered in the amount of a quarter of a teaspoon, is also suitable as a vitamin supplement. Hosts also use brewer's yeast, bone meal, calcium glucanate or calcium glycerophosphate. In addition, raw vegetables, crushed to a state of porridge, or seedless fish can become a vitamin supplement.
What can not be fed?
The list of products prohibited for puppies is similar to the list compiled for adults. Dogs should not be given sweet and flour, smoked meats, lamb and pork, as well as legumes. Dishes must be prepared without the use of spices, and the tubular bones of birds should also be avoided.
In addition, puppies should not be fed from their table, as their gastrointestinal tract will simply not be able to digest human food.
Problems can range from ordinary indigestion to death. Of particular danger are the remains of sausages or sausages, as well as bony river fish.
Feeding rates
Puppies at the age of 1 month must be sure to receive food at the same time in moderation in order to avoid stretching the stomach. Excess food and starvation will be disastrous. Nutrition should be varied and rich in vitamins and other useful elements. It is necessary to organize constant access to drinking water for the dog, especially if the basis of his diet is dry food.
The food itself should be neither cold nor hot, but rather, at room temperature. If the animal refuses to eat, then the bowl should simply be removed before the next meal. The plate must be located at the level of the animal's face. If you buy dry food, you need to take only one that corresponds to the age of the animal.
Mixtures are available in economy, premium and super-premium classes, but only the last two are recommended for small animals.
Quite often, dog owners make a gross mistake by combining natural and dry food. Doing this is not allowed, you need to choose only one type of food. Dry food will never replace natural, and even when selected as the main one, it must be supplemented with mineral complexes. The amount of dry food is determined depending on the size of the animal and its age. How to determine the norm for your animal is indicated on the package.
For a dog it is necessary to get two bowls - for water and for food. Toddlers will initially have to be taught their location, which should remain unchanged. The water will have to be replaced once a day, and the food container should be washed and wiped after each meal. To understand if a puppy has enough food, you need to look at his behavior. In the case when the animal stays at the bowl for a long time, licks the container and collects the crumbs, it is clearly malnourished, then the portion size should be slightly increased.
If food is regularly left in the bowl, this indicates excess portion sizes.
In addition, the appearance of the pet speaks about satisfying the needs of the dog in food. When the food is chosen correctly, the dog delights the owners with a look of shiny hair and healthy teeth, as well as vigor. The absence of these conditions indicates violations of the feeding process.
It is also worth mentioning that the breed of the animal slightly affects what products and in what quantities it should receive. Large breed puppies require foods that are high in protein. In addition, it is important to ensure that they do not overeat, which threatens the appearance of skeletal pathologies. For small breeds, regular use of vitamin supplements is needed to prevent the development of heart disease. Dachshunds need fluoride and calcium enriched foods to strengthen their spine.
How to feed the puppy, see below.
