How to Make Puppy Milk Homemade and How to Feed Newborn Puppies
Sometimes, mother dogs are not able to produce enough milk or they have a health issue that prevents them from being able to feed their puppies. Other times, the mother dog may be unwilling to feed her babies. In the event that you need to bottle feed a puppy, knowing how to make puppy milk homemade will come in handy.
Feeding Newborn Puppies
Ideally, puppies should be nursed by their mother for as long as necessary. Mother’s milk contains certain nutrients that cannot be found in any puppy replacement milk product. These nutrients aid in proper growth and help to strengthen a puppy’s immune system.
Milk replacer for puppies is the equivalent to baby formulas for humans. It gives them enough nutrition, but does not include the important nutrients that can only come from the mother’s milk.
If you do have to bottle feed a puppy, you must consult your veterinarian before doing so. A vet will help you choose the best milk replacer for puppies to fit the needs of your litter and also guide you in the proper amount and times to feed puppies. Sometimes, you may need to feed a newborn puppy with a syringe. If you’re interested in learning how to make homemade puppy milk, your vet will assist you in choosing the best recipe as well.
The amount and feeding times for puppies will need to be adjusted as the puppy grows, and your vet can also help guide you through the transition from puppy replacement milk to puppy food as needed. These variables will be dependent on the puppy’s breed, size, health condition and a number of other factors.
How to Make Puppy Milk Homemade
The first thing you need to know when attempting to make puppy milk at home is that you should NEVER use cow’s milk as a milk substitute for your puppies. The milk that you buy at the grocery store is watered down and doesn’t contain enough calcium, phosphorus and other essential nutrients needed for a puppy’s healthy growth.
Cow’s milk can also cause digestive upset in puppies. You shouldn’t use it as a milk replacer, and you also should not use it in any of your homemade puppy milk recipes. Instead of store-bought cow’s milk, you should use evaporated milk or goat’s milk. Here are two homemade puppy milk recipes you can try.
Puppy Milk Recipe #1
- 10 ounces evaporated milk
- 3 ounces water
- 1/2 tsp. light corn syrup
- 1 cup full fat yogurt
Puppy Milk Recipe #2
- 12 ounces fresh goat’s milk
- 1 raw egg yolk
- 1 tbsp. mayonaise
- 1 tsp. light corn syrup
- 1 cup full fat yogurt
Directions for both recipes: Mix the ingredients in a blender, and feed them to your puppy with a bottle. Remember that before you use a milk replacer (store bought or homemade), you need to consult your veterinarian to ensure your puppies are getting adequate nutrition.
Best Milk Replacers for Puppies
Making homemade puppy milk replacer isn’t necessary and you can certainly buy already pre-made products which will contain all the essential nutrients a growing newborn puppy needs. Some of these will even be fortified with additional vitamins, minerals and probiotics. Below are some of the best puppy milk replacers available to purchase online.
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