The Healthy Start: Puppy Nutrition
The Healthy Start: Puppy Nutrition
Life doesn’t always go as planned. October 13, 2025, is a day I’ll never forget. The plan was in motion. Our oldest, first Small Munsterlander, Chloe, was due with her last litter of puppies. She didn’t begin the labor process until around 4pm. I knew she was in full-on delivery mode, but she didn’t have a puppy until 5:30pm. By 9pm, Chloe had delivered only one pup, and we knew she was carrying at least two more. At this point, we decided it was time to do an emergency cesarean. Chloe didn’t appear to be under life-threatening stress, but the delivery process wasn’t moving, so our concern for her and the puppies was increasing.
Because we had to do the cesarean, my vet and I decided it would be simpler and better to spay Chloe now, rather than have her undergo another surgery later. With the help of my veterinarian, Chloe delivered two more healthy pups. We had one boy and two girls and all three were doing great. Chloe’s surgery went as well as it could have gone. She was awake and responding, but tired and sore. Once we felt like it was safe and she was ready, I took her and her pups home. She was grateful to get to lie down and begin to rest and recover from a long day that ended with surgery.
I could tell the moment I walked through the door that something wasn’t right. Chloe wasn’t breathing. I’d lost dogs before, and it hurt. It hurt every time, but I’d never felt the kind of hurt for a dog that I was feeling at that moment.
Newborn Puppy Care
In my grief, my focus had to shift one hundred percent to Chloe’s pups. I owed it to her to give them a fighting chance. In the “now what” haze, we weighed her pups to figure out the appropriate feeding rations. Without their mother’s milk, our best choice for their nutrition was puppy milk replacer. The pups needed to eat a set amount every four hours. As they aged and grew, we could increase their intake and stretch out their feeding time.
Against all odds, all three of Chloe’s pups thrived. Once they turned three and a half weeks old, we transitioned their diet to three daily feedings of Purina Pro Plan’s Puppy Chicken and Rice Canned Food (wet food) mixed with the milk replacer. We essentially fed them puppy shakes in a bowl. When the pups turned four and a half weeks old, we transitioned their diet to two daily feedings of Purina Pro Plan’s Puppy Under One Year Chicken and Rice Formula (dry food). During their morning feedings, we added a probiotic to their food (Purina Pro Plan FortiFlora). FortiFlora helps the pups develop a healthy gut and digestive system.
It Starts Before They’re Born
Although the pups grew outside the womb without Chloe’s help, their nutritional well-being began in the womb. We feed all of our adult dogs Purina Pro Plan Performance All Life Stages High Protein 30/20 Chicken and Rice. Once our females begin their heat cycles, we start giving them prenatal vitamins. We continue to add these vitamins to their daily feedings up until we wean the puppies. In addition to their diet, we make sure our dogs consistently have access to water. There is no doubt in my mind that these practices gave Chloe’s pups a great beginning to their uncommon start to life.
I wasn’t originally planning to keep one of Chloe’s pups, but as you can imagine, there was no way I was going to part with all three. All three of the pups (Ice, Ivy & Izzy) will always have a special place in my heart, but Izzy now has a special place in our home.
Helpful Tips
Strong puppy nutrition begins with strong bitch nutrition. I recommend using prenatal vitamins. If you have to supplement your bitch’s milk, I recommend puppy milk replacer. When weaning your pups, I recommend making a mush with wet food and the milk replacer. As your puppy transitions to hard food, I recommend a dog food that supports a healthy gut and Forti flora. Keep your pup on puppy food for their first year. It provides the best diet they need to grow and develop properly. However, if your pup needs assistance gaining weight, you can supplement with a high calorie dog food. I don’t recommend feeding your pup table scraps or human food. Not only can it have negative impacts on their digestive system, but it can also help them develop bad habits. Finally, I recommend using your pup’s feeding times as training times. During meals, they can learn patience, steadiness, obedience, and focus.
March 2026
By Kyle Dana
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