6 week border collie

truebloodfan

Just got a border collie pup. 6 weeks old. Was told it was eating puppy nuts. Should I also get it canned puppy food. Don't want to upset its stomach with too much change. How much should I feed him at a time and how often. I never got one this young before but the mother had turned against him

andreac

Why wasnt it left with its littermates? It should have been left with them regardless of the mother until at least 8 weeks. Mothers do wean the pups off from 5-6 weeks anyway, but they shouldnt be taken way until at least 8-10 weeks.

You need to get a good quality puppy food from the pet shop, one designed for pups that young.
What was the breeder feeding it? If its a good food you should stick to that?

Has it been wormed etc? This is very very important. I would bring it for a vet check up too. Make sure its not out in public until its had all its vaccinations too.

Regarding food, stay away from tinned food, its awful stuff. At 6 weeks it needs to be fed at least 4 times a day. The food will have a guideline on how much to feed on the bag.

truebloodfan

Yes it's had it's primary vaccinations. The breeder said puppy nuts but that seems like very little on its own surely he would need some sort of meat as well. I'm reading that he should be fed little and often but how much is little? .

truebloodfan

Yes it's had it's primary vaccinations. The breeder said puppy nuts but that seems like very little on its own surely he would need some sort of meat as well. I'm reading that he should be fed little and often but how much is little? .

Spook_ie

at that age, puppies are usually fed between 3 and 4 small meals a day. A little tip for you, when the puppy has settled on the solids (we tend to use royal canin) which can take a few weeks, freeze some fresh carrots and give them to the pup (wouldnt recommend more than 2 a day) they are lovely and cool when its teething and you can also use frozen ice cubes

toadfly

truebloodfan wrote: »

Yes it's had it's primary vaccinations. The breeder said puppy nuts but that seems like very little on its own surely he would need some sort of meat as well. I'm reading that he should be fed little and often but how much is little? .

What type of puppy nuts? They should have given you a weeks supply at least so you dont have to change as that would upset his tummy.

What vaccinations has the pup had? You'll get the names from the cert.

andreac

At 6 weeks old, the most vaccs he would have would be Parvo, you need to go back and start the whole vaccination programme again, but that usually isnt until 8 weeks onwars, so talk to your vet.

A good puppy food (nuts) will have all the meat he needs, as they are made from meat, but make sure its a good quality one, not Bakers, Pedigree etc as they are poor quality.

Go to your local pet shop and get a good quality one like Burns, James wellbeloved, Arden Grange, Whites, Eukanuba, Royal Cani, Redmills, to name a few.

The bag will tell you how much to feed everyday, so you divide that amount into 4 meals then.

Cherry Blossom

Hi OP, at 6 weeks old it's important that your pup is eating enough and some pups don't take great to kibble. You can try a high quality wet food like Natures Harvest, Natures Menu or Applaws - stick to one brand and one flavour and only use it for one meal a day. If the pup is not eating you can try an egg scrambled in water or a tin of fish in spring water (not oil or brine)

You will need to soak kibble in water for a few minutes to start with and gradually reduce the amount of water over a few weeks. Throw this out if not eaten straight away.

Don't mix wet and dry food together or you could have a problem later on getting the pup to eat kibble on its own.

IvySlayer

Did you not get some food off the breeder, the breeder should've insisted on taking some. That's usually very straightforward stuff.

I think keeping him on the same food he's used to is very important. If switching over to new brand, you need to gradually mix his old with his new food in.

The carrot thing is a good tip, putting a tea towel in the freezer works too!

stop animal cruelty

Spook_ie wrote: »

at that age, puppies are usually fed between 3 and 4 small meals a day. A little tip for you, when the puppy has settled on the solids (we tend to use royal canin) which can take a few weeks, freeze some fresh carrots and give them to the pup (wouldnt recommend more than 2 a day) they are lovely and cool when its teething and you can also use frozen ice cubes

sorry but would you not have to leave the carrots de-frost? no?

stop animal cruelty

adrenalinjunkie wrote: »

Hi OP, at 6 weeks old it's important that your pup is eating enough and some pups don't take great to kibble. You can try a high quality wet food like Natures Harvest, Natures Menu or Applaws - stick to one brand and one flavour and only use it for one meal a day. If the pup is not eating you can try an egg scrambled in water or a tin of fish in spring water (not oil or brine)

You will need to soak kibble in water for a few minutes to start with and gradually reduce the amount of water over a few weeks. Throw this out if not eaten straight away.

Don't mix wet and dry food together or you could have a problem later on getting the pup to eat kibble on its own.

Hey, what do you mean by kibble?

stop animal cruelty

IvySlayer wrote: »

Did you not get some food off the breeder, the breeder should've insisted on taking some. That's usually very straightforward stuff.

I think keeping him on the same food he's used to is very important. If switching over to new brand, you need to gradually mix his old with his new food in.

The carrot thing is a good tip, putting a tea towel in the freezer works too!

why would you put a tea towel in the freezer?! lol

andreac

stop animal cruelty wrote: »

Hey, what do you mean by kibble?

Kibble is dry dog food nuts. The cloth in the freezer is great for pups to chew on when they are teething.

IvySlayer

stop animal cruelty wrote: »

why would you put a tea towel in the freezer?! lol

For the pup to gnaw on when he's teething!

stop animal cruelty

andreac wrote: »

Kibble is dry dog food nuts. The cloth in the freezer is great for pups to chew on when they are teething.

l see, thanks!

stop animal cruelty

IvySlayer wrote: »

For the pup to gnaw on when he's teething!

good idea, thanks!

Spook_ie

stop animal cruelty wrote: »

sorry but would you not have to leave the carrots de-frost? no?

No, you dont defrost the carrots - your pup/dog will have a great time chewing on the carrot and its lovely and cooling on their irritated gums, its also fine for old dogs, but I would'nt give them more than 2 a day, but as I said you can also give them ice cubes.

DBB

Spook_ie wrote: »

stop animal cruelty wrote: »

sorry but would you not have to leave the carrots de-frost? no?

No, you dont defrost the carrots - your pup/dog will have a great time chewing on the carrot and its lovely and cooling on their irritated gums, its also fine for old dogs, but I would'nt give them more than 2 a day, but as I said you can also give them ice cubes.

A friend of mine buys tins of sardines or other fish in mineral water, then freezes them into nyummy fishy ice cubes for hot days. I'd imagine a teething dog would appreciate them too!