Newborn Puppy Care Is Made Easy In A Healthy Environment

Ah the joy and excitement of a litter of newborn puppies. They are so soft and cuddly, makes you want to pick them up and hold each one of them. In these early days it is even more than ever important that extra care be taken around them.

Most of the newborn puppy care needs are met by their mother until the puppies become about six weeks old. During this time your job of new born puppy care is to make sure mom and the puppies have a healthy environment. It is necessary to provide:
* Clean, soft bedding for the family, changed out daily
* Easy access to food and water for the mother
* Keep the puppies away from cold drafts and protected from the elements

Helping Mother Dog With Newborn Puppy Care

Female dogs know by instinct how to care for their young. It comes naturally to them. In early weeks of a newborn puppy's life after the puppy feeds, the mother will lick them to help them with excretion. As part of newborn puppy care you can help the mama dog by gently massaging a puppy after it has eaten. This helps the puppy learn how to go. Eventually, as their system develops they will no longer need manual stimulation. This is good information to know especially when the mother is not around.

The mother dog licking her puppies has another benefit, bathing the puppy. Licking also stimulates blood flow in the puppy. A newborn puppy care task is to give the mother dog a hand in washing her puppies. Take a warm, damp wash cloth and gently rub the puppy. Take care to dry off the puppy afterwards, other wise there is the risk of the puppy getting too cold via the evaporation of the moisture.

A Growing Puppy Needs Newborn Puppy Care

As newborn puppies grow they rely less and less on their mother. The puppies will open their eyes and begin to move around. It will become even more important that the space the puppies are in is secure and large enough for them to play in.

Once their teeth come it, the mama dog will begin to wean the puppies. An important newborn puppy care task is to provide the puppies with additional nourishment and water. Give them a good puppy dog food. Don’t give the puppies adult dog food. Adult dog food is too hard for the puppies to chew and does not contain the right amounts of nutriments that the puppies need.

As the puppies increase the amount of puppy dog food they are eating they will also increase the amount of excretions. Dogs do not like to eliminate in the same place where they eat and sleep. By providing the puppies with a large enough place where they can go that is away from their eating and sleeping area will provide a healthy environment for them. This is also a good time to begin to house break the puppies.

In the early days newborn puppy care will take up a significant amount of your time and will disrupt your usual routine. Bear in mind that this is a short phase that will only last for a few weeks. Soon the puppies will have matured enough that they will not need as much of your care. Once they are fully grown dogs, you can take satisfaction in the work you have done in raising strong, noble dogs.