Feeding a Newborn Puppy

There are two common methods that are being used to feed nursing puppies: Bottle feeding and tube feeding.

Bottle feeding: Bottles and nipples have been used for feeding newborn puppies for many years. The form most often used today is the toy doll's bottle. Most of these are made from plastic and some have real rubber nipples that are made in the same shape and form as the larger baby nipples. Bottle feeding a newborn puppy is not much different from bottle feeding an infant. Keep in mind that all equipment should be very clean. The bottles and nipples should be sterilized, the formula boiled, and the hands and utensils washed in hot soapy water.

Tube feeding: Another way of feeding a newborn puppy is through feeding tubes. With the proper equipment and experience, a pup's entire feeding can be placed into its stomach without getting the milk anywhere close to the trachea or the lungs. Once the dog owner is used to the technique of feeding the newborn puppy with a stomach tube it is unlikely that he will ever again feed a puppy with a bottle and nipple. The feeding tube eliminates bottles and nipples that have to be cleaned after each feeding and sterilized before the next. Also, the danger of inhaled milk, which sometimes happens during bottle feeding, is greatly reduced and the feeding time is reduced by 75 %.

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