New breeder with questions!! (plus puppy pics)

[renee90]

Hey everyone! My family's American Bully, Puff, had her first litter (10 puppies!!!) five days ago. This is our first time breeding, so we have lots to learn. I've already started setting up for the weaning process (though it's not for a few weeks) and for when they're up and moving. I had a few questions for some of the more experienced bully breeders. So far, we've been feeding Puff dry puppy food instead of her normal food, as I read that it's good for milk production and helping her reach her daily nutritional needs. Is this okay? What is the best diet to ensure that she and the puppies are in optimal health? Second, I was wondering what brand of puppy food other breeders recommend for their gruel- which is the most nutritional, and what should I look out for? Third, I wanted to know the best feeding setup to prevent food aggression and build good behavior from a young age. Should I feed the puppies in one pan or in separate, divided bowls? I included a picture of the pups below. Please let me know! Any and all advice is welcome!

NOTE** I noticed that it might seem like I'm going into this blind, but I promise that we have been doing extensive research and staying in contact with our vet. I came onto this platform to further my knowledge and get other opinions/perspectives from more experienced breeders. I truly appreciate the people offering genuine advice. I want everyone to know that we are acting responsibly and truly care about the well-being of both Puff and the puppies; if I hadn't, I wouldn't have come here asking for advice!

https://preview.redd.it/eyoqdok4g16...ed&s=f34d0f128b7d6bbf3f7f45ac389623944718d97a

 

[sustainableblueberry]

@renee90 Mom may need supplemental calcium with 10 pups. But that is something more for a vet to check to see first. You can look for something called Doc Roy’s healthy bones for extra calcium. I would also recommend getting bloodwork on momma dog to see if she’s running low on calcium or other nutrients. Remember, lots of fresh water and free feeding good, high quality AAFCO puppy food—like Iams, Science Diet, Eukanuba, Purina Pro-plan, Royal Canin—are all good choices. Both for momma and puppies as they get older. Lean heavily on your vet and their recommendations for how you should deworm, and vaccination schedule for your area.

I agree with @mark0086 that you need to keep a very close eye on their weight and weigh them at least 2x a day in grams. If you catch them loosing, step in. Break it into smaller groups to let feed first and you supplement the milk supply. Don’t let one or two get rooted out by stronger suckers. And stepping in to help momma is every 2-3 hours when they are little around the clock, so you might not get hardly any sleep those first 3-4 weeks.

Get a couple of stainless steel puppy weaning bowls—they look like a very shallow tube pan. Separate puppies into two or 3 smaller groups at feeding time to keep down feeding issues. Feed 4x a day at 4 weeks and up—Crush kibble and warm goat milk should be sufficient and gradually make it thicker, or you can start them on puppy starter mousse (royal canin) and gradually shift them over to the high quality kibble.

 

[mark0086]

@sustainableblueberry I start my pregnant bitches on calcium supplements about 3 weeks before whelping. This is what my repro vet has me do and keep her on them till weaning. So yes working with your vet is always key. I have a feeling that this breeder isn't working closely with a vet or they would already have the answers to all these questions.

 

[renee90]

@mark0086 We have been working closely with our vet (and the vet we call at 3 A.M. when we freak out about minuscule things). So far, they all have been helpful, but I also wanted a breeder's perspective on these matters. I find multiple opinions to be very important when it comes to things like this

 

[linastewards]

@renee90 You’re a backyard Breeder. This was a horrible idea. Don’t do it again. Most of those dogs will probably end up in the shelter, live a terrible life, or get killed. Your actions caused that. Let it sink in. And please get your dog fixed now

 

[mark0086]

@renee90 The bitch should be on calcium supplements along with supplementing her with say cottage cheese, scrambled eggs and maybe some plain yogurt. Producing milk is hard work. I also include raw hamburger for my lactating bitches.

Get a shared bowl for the puppies to feed from. They are round with a shallow pan and have a hole in the center. I start introducing them to gruel (puppy kibble) mixed with goats milk and raw hamburger. Yes they are going to be wearing all of it. Have 2 to 3 bowls so you can control how much each puppy gets.

Are you currently weighing them to track their growth? If not please start doing so. You can catch a multitude of issues ahead of time by watching this closely.

Are you bottle feeding to supplement the puppies? 10 is a large litter and not everyone can get the milk they require to thrive. That's where weighing them comes into play as a critical means of making sure everyone is thriving.

I supplement once a day with a mixture of warm goats milk and puppy milk replacer mixed with water. Learn how to properly feed and burp a puppy. Youtube is your friend.

You weigh after each supplemental feeding, keep a log.

 

[renee90]

@mark0086 Thank you so much for the response! It's extremely helpful! Yes, we have been weighing them daily and keeping an extensive log, along with making sure everyone is growing 10% per day and noting every weight increase. So far everyone has been doing great and there haven't been any signs of malnutrition or failure to thrive. But I will keep all of this in mind!! What benefits have you seen from group feeding? Have you seen any signs of food aggression or anything like that?

 

[mark0086]

@renee90 No issues with group feeding other than having to hose the little terrors off after lol!

I always do group feeding with the puppies. I just supervise to make sure no one is getting bullied out of their fair share. So with a larger litter like yours I suggested 3 bowls for feeding. You can put the more outgoing puppies together at one bowl and break up the more timid pups to the other bowls. By the time you are ready to do this type of feeding you will know who is timid and who isn't.