Puppy Feeding and Rearing
Puppy Feeding and Rearing
In two previous newsletters l wrote about the feeding of our dogs and what l thought was the best for them. It is only a guide to what l think and l know of many other people who feel the same. One point l would like to make is that over feeding is harmful for your dog.
Once again the decision to feed natural foods to processed foods is to be considered & also raw against cooked. So what l suggest is if you have not read the first 2 newsletters go & read them & see what you feel is right for your puppy & come back & then read this next section.
Many people are saying that now dogs are living longer than they used too & that in the wild they would have died earlier. There is a lot of debate right here, survival of the fittest, no crippling diseases & a shorter life expectancy, we could go on, but everything now is at our finger tips to use & along with that comes added costs. Vet bills & the cost of different foods, grooming, bedding etc.
What we expect from our dogs & what we use them for is all different & relative to our own life styles. So for our rearing of a puppy to be a healthy & happy one this is a guide that you may wish to consider.
The puppy we have bought home is 8 weeks old. The feeding program to start on is to try & give the pup 3 small meals a day until it is 16 weeks old if possible. Have plenty of fresh water available at all times. All puppies of different breeds have a different appetite capacity & the food should be warm (tepid) not hot or cold!
1st meal; This is mainly a milk feed. Use a puppy milk & strengthen it with pure honey (not refined) or goats milk is the best but hard to come by & add some puppy museli (our has milk powders & super greens). l have used a small amount of raw mince as well. Sprinkle with bran.
2nd meal; This is a Raw meat meal of shredded meat not minced as we want the puppy to utilise its stomach muscles in the meat digestion. At the end of this month we need the meat to be chunky to help in the chewing of the food. Meat such as chicken, beef, lamb, roo (small amount) turkey, rabbit are all good meats to use & sprinkle with a little bran & add the puppy museli pus some cottage cheese & yoghurt.
3rd meal; This Raw meat meal we add some bone & that can come in chicken frames, necks, wings & even lamb flaps or other bones that are of a good SIZE for a puppy (supervision is needed in early stages). Still give some shredded meat mixed with 1 teaspoon of wheat germ, 1 tsp. olive oil & a sprinkle of seaweed powder (rich in iodine) it promotes hair growth & strengthens nerves. Introduce some finely chopped green vegetables (include leaves) & once a week add a whole egg with the shell grounded. In this meal l add a small amount of crushed garlic. With the added seaweed (kelp) & green vegetables reduce the puppy museli by half.
After 16 weeks the portions of the meals are increased to satisfy the pup. 6 t0 8 months of age feed twice a day. A morning meal & evening meal. With the above suggestions you can now make 2 meals to satisfy your puppy.
Never force or coax your puppy to eat as you may end up with a fussy eater or the pup may need a break, so take that food away & wait for the next meal time. Whenever feeding your pup or dog never leave any food out for it. Once it’s had enough remove anything that’s left over. This can be the animal giving itself a natural fasting which we shall talk about at a later time. It is good for them to eat grass & forage in the garden as they may be cleansing themselves out.
At 12 months of age refer to the first 2 newsletters again & from them establish your dogs diet & add your own variations.