VMD 513: Pet animal Breeding, Management, Nutrition and Health Care (1+1)

NUTRITIONAL CARE OF ORPHAN PUPPIES

• An orphan is any young animal that does not have access to the milk or care of its mother.
• Circumstances that may render young puppies orphans include the death of the dam, the production of an inadequate quantity or quality of milk or rejection of the young by the dam.
• Whatever the underlying circumstance, once puppies or kittens are orphaned they depend on humans for the provision of maternal care, proper nutrition, and a suitable environment.
• Although it is difficult, if not impossible, to fully compensate for the absence of the mother, the use of proper diet, management techniques and feeding techniques can result in the development of normal, healthy puppies .

Maintaining the Proper Environment

• Orphaned animals must be kept in a warm, draft-free and clean environment.
• Maintaining the appropriate temperature is of the utmost importance because chilling can decrease the survivability of newborns.When a bitch is present, her body heat provides an excellent heat source and protection against drafts. In her absence, the ambient temperature must be increased.
• For the first week of life, the ambient temperature should be kept between 85° F and 90° F. This temperature can be decreased slightly to between 80° F and 85° F during the second to fourth weeks and to between 70° F and 75° F during the fifth week.
• After the litter reaches 5 to 6 weeks of age, a room temperature can be maintained.
• Generally, newborn kittens and small puppies require slightly higher ambient temperatures than do large puppies. A heating pad or heat lamp may be used to provide heat, although a pad is often preferred because it allows for the maintenance of a normal day/night light cycle.

Feeding of orphan puppies

• One of the greatest challenges involved in raising orphaned puppies and kittens is providing them with adequate nutrition.
• The alternative is to provide nutrition through a well-formulated milk replacer.
• A milk replacer will nourish the puppies and kittens for the first few weeks of life until their digestive and metabolic functions develop to the point at which semisolid food can be introduced.
• It is important that the chosen formula closely approximates the composition of the natural milk of the bitch.
• A comparison of the compositions of the milk of different species shows that bitch’s and queen’s milk have larger proportions of their calories from fat and protein and lower proportions from lactose than the milk of ruminant species such as the cow and goat. Although the percentages (by weight) of these nutrients only differ slightly, the more dilute composition of ruminant milk exaggerates the relative differences between these values.
• This is reflected by the lower DM content of goat’s and cow’s milk as compared to the milk of dogs. For example, when converted to a calorie basis, the lactose content of cow’s milk is nearly three times that found in bitch’s milk. For this reason, puppies that are fed straight cow’s milk will develop severe diarrhea.
• Evaporated cow’s milk is occasionally recommended for raising orphans because it has levels of protein, fat, calcium, and phosphorus that are similar to bitch’s milk. However, the lactose content of evaporated milk is still much too high for young puppies and kittens.
• In addition, the casein-to-whey protein ratio in cow’s milk is not ideal for puppies, and cow’s milk contains an excessive proportion of casein for neonatal kittens.
• There are numerous recipes available for the formulation of homemade milk replacers. Most of these use a combination of cow’s or goat’s milk and eggs. Eggs are added to increase the protein content and dilute the lactose concentration of the ruminant milk.

Practical feeding tips for orphan puppies

• Provide a warm, draft-free and clean environment.
• Feed a milk replacer that closely approximates the nutrient composition of bitch’s or queen’s milk.
• Estimate the correct amount of formula based on the orphan’s age and weight.
• Divide the formula into four to five equal feedings per day.
• Bottle-feed or use a feeding tube.
• Weigh orphans regularly: one time per day for the first week and one to two times per week thereafter.
• Introduce semisolid food at 3 to 4 weeks.
• Wean to dry pet food by 6 to 8 weeks.