Maximizing Newborn PUPPY GROWTH: The Critical Role of Healthy Weight Gain

If you have not bred a litter of puppies before it can be an anxious time. Knowing what is normal for a newborn puppy will help reduce some of that anxiety for you and also enable you to detect a problem early, which is vital if a sick puppy is to have any chance of survival. Watching a puppy grow from being a tiny fluff ball into an active, curious and sprightly creature can be a satisfying and exciting thing. Newborn puppies develop and grow so quickly that, if you blink, you really may miss something

- Dr. Ibne Ali

After birth, puppies should gain 1 to 1.5 grams a day for each pound of anticipated adult weight, and should double their birth weights in 10 to 12 days. The anticipated adult weight is the weight of the dam (mother). So if the dam weighs 30 pounds (13.6 kg), the puppies should gain 30 to 45 grams per day.

(One ounce equals 28.35 grams.) A steady gain in weight is the best indicator that a puppy is doing well.

It is important to weigh each puppy at birth and 12 hours later on a scale that measures grams or ounces. You will need a scale that measures fine increments, because, initially, the gains are such small amounts. Then weigh each pup daily for the first two weeks and every three days thereafter until the puppies are 1 month old. Failure to gain weight is a cause for immediate concern.

Notify your veterinarian.

When several puppies in the litter are not gaining at the expected rate, consider a maternal factor such as failure to produce enough milk (Agalactia). A nursing dam needs two to three times more nutrition than a typical adult dog. If the mother is not getting enough calories, her milk supply will be inadequate to support a large litter. How much to feed during lactation should be done? (we will see in next article)

Failure of Milk to Let Down