Puppy feeding

FOOD BRANDS

This is what we are currently feeding the pups

- Milligan Multi-Milk Replacer (they are all fully weaned off Ruby)

- Royal Canin Mini Wet Puppy Food (stage 3)

- Royal Canin Mini Starter Puppy Food (Mother and Baby dog). Moving on to Royal Canin Puppy 2-10 months (stage 3) when they are 2 months old.

The Royal Canin dry food is meant to be for when they are under 2 months, so you will need to decide what dry food to transition onto reasonably smartly and ideally buy some in advance. There is a Royal Canin dry puppy food 2-10 months which is very similar and we will give you some vouchers for a discount on Black Hawk Puppy food.

SCHEDULE

We feed them four times a day at 7.30am, 10.30am, 2.30pm and 7.30pm. We suggest sticking with this or something similar for a while if you can. From 4-5 months they could go to three times a day and then twice a day from 6 months, if that suits you and your pup.

WHAT YOU WILL GET

You will receive about 5 days supply of all this plus some treats. We'd recommend sticking with the original food until the puppy is settled in (at least a couple of days). If you do decide to transition to different brands, a staggered approach will help avoid sore or upset tummies or putting them off eating. Likewise, we'd recommend avoiding treats for a while. Little tummies can be sensitive.

If you do want to move to another food, I'd suggest changing the new dry food OR wet food OR milk, rather than changing everything at once.

Also, I recommend transitioning like this:

Day 1-3 25:75 new:old

Day 4-6 50:50 new:old

Day 7-9 75:25 new:old

Day 10 onwards 100% new

With dry food, you can pre-mix the kibble in labelled containers to make life easier.

TIPS AND TRICKS

I'd recommend having several bowls available, unless you don't mind washing them all the time. For the first few days at least, you will have a water bowl, a milk bowl, dry food and wet food. You can put the wet food in with the dry food, but as the wet food goes yuck quicker, you might end up throwing a lot of dry food away that you would otherwise keep.

Some puppies love their milk, while some scarcely touch it, so it is fine to stop the milk, if your pup isn't a fan. They are old enough to stop drinking milk but it is nice to have it available to make the transition smoother.

Some pups focus on their food and wolf it down, but most start out distracted and slow eaters. They only have tiny tummies. Leave the food down for a couple of hours, and remind your puppies it is there. Because they are used to following each others lead, sometimes sitting with the puppy will encourage them to eat their food, or feeding them alongside other pets (perhaps through a barrier to begin with).

If the puppy is reluctant to get started, you can try feeding them a bit from your hand, or scattering it on the floor. Some puppies do well with lick pads or puzzles.

You will receive a booklet with lots of info about puppy schedules and food.

But please call us if you have any questions or concerns.