Welcoming a New Puppy: How to Care for Your Dog’s Newborns

by Micheal M. I'm a professional Writer

Nurturing a newborn pup can be incredibly rewarding, especially since you'll get to witness it growing up right in front of your eyes. There's a special bond that develops between a pet parent and their dog, which is why many pet parents on pet care blogs suggest making the most of it.

But the fact that the process can be daunting can escape you when you bring a newborn puppy home since you're essentially taking care of brand-new lives. Here's all you should expect regarding newborn pups and how you should care for them.

Sanitary Environment

Since newborn pups spend their initial few months in the pen with their mother, it's essential to prepare for their arrival well beforehand. Select a space that provides sufficient room for the mother to lie down and stretch easily without hurting her babies.

The pen should also allow her to come and go while keeping her pups safe inside and be easily accessible for you to amend the bedding when needed. The puppies' waste is initially cleaned away by their mother, but you might need to help if it's a sizable litter.

Puppies start opening their eyes and becoming more active around the second week's end or the third week. You can shift them to a larger pen with more space to move about once they start waddling about and give more attention to their bathroom cleanup.

Temperature

Newborn pups need all the help when it comes to sheltering them from drafts, as they can't regulate their body temperature. They usually nestle close to their mother and each other, but you should place a heat lamp nearby during the first few months.

Make sure it's positioned high enough above the pen so that it doesn't burn the dog and her babies. Ideally, there should be a cooler corner nearby where the puppies can crawl to if they feel too warm.

The pen's temperature in the first five days should be around 85 to 90-degree Fahrenheit. During the next five days, you can dial the heat back to 80-degrees, reducing it slowly and steadily down to 75-degrees by the end of the fourth week.

Nurturing

In the first couple of weeks, puppies are entirely dependent on their mother for nutrition. Usually, the latter is less active during this stage, considering nursing consumes most of the mother's energy.

Many pet care blogs recommend that you provide the mother with multiple servings of quality pet food during the day so that all your pets receive sufficient nutrition during this time. A reliable veterinarian can recommend the amount and type of food you should feed to the nursing dog.

Keep an eye on all your puppies' weight to see if they are undernourished and observe them see they're getting proper feeding. Some pups who whimper or cry often might be hungry and require more attention while feeding.

Sometimes, smaller pups don't show visible signs of healthy weight gain or growth, so make sure you consult your vet for this problem. You might also need to step up, and bottle feed them if the need arises.

You should also observe the mother for mastitis signs that can hamper milk production. It could be your dog's reluctance to feed her babies or snapping at them for their attempts to eat. So, reach out to your vet immediately when you detect these signs.

Puppies start developing their teeth by the fourth or fifth week, and the weaning process will commence as your dog's milk production slackens. When you observe the puppies trying to taste their mother's food, you should provide them with a separate dish of puppy food.

Health

New puppies are inherently vulnerable to infection and disease, so closely monitoring them can go a long way. Inspect them regularly for any signs of poor health and inform your vet about anything unusual, including diarrhea, vomiting, or a pup's inability to eat or stand.

Puppies are also highly susceptible to parasites and fleas, so contact your vet about proper parasite control. While nursing supplies antibodies that protect them from illnesses in the first few weeks, their effect wears off after six to eight weeks. This is when they need their first round of vaccinations.

If you, or your family, are interacting with these pups, you should wash your hands thoroughly to avoid passing any bacteria to them, which may be stuck to your hands.

Socialization

You might be wondering when your puppies will be ready to mingle with other dogs and humans. By the fourth week, pups are set to socialize but week four to twelve are crucial. This is when puppies should start exploring and learning about the world that they'll live in.

As a pet parent, you need to support them more during this learning stage, as it can affect their growth and whether they'll become happy well-adjusted dogs. Pups who aren't appropriately socialized become anxious dogs who may develop behavioral issues.

Even if you plan to send them to caring and loving homes, you should play and cuddle with them as much as you can. Allow them to explore their surroundings and expose them to new experiences to become stable and sound.

To conclude, newborn puppies are a lot of work, and as much as you look forward to raising them, you won't even realize how soon the first couple of weeks went. If you're planning to put your pups up for adoption, you'll be waving at their retreating backs sooner than you think.

Enjoy the time you spend together and send them to good homes when they are right. You'll always remember how rewarding it was to provide your puppies with a great beginning.

About the Author

The author is an experienced writer who loves writing just as much as she loves her pets. Follow The Pets People, a go-to website for cat and dog owners looking for practical information, real-life suggestions, and advice on all aspects of pet care.