Poops, Piddles and Pee Pads

[Marc]

Hey all. My boys are three weeks old. Try as I might to keep them in that bin....they climb over folded items and venture into the pen area. I have blankets and pee pads there. I need ideas though.....

1. Their little nails are getting hooked on the pee pad....clip or no?

2. How do you set the area in the pen up in terms of placing pads and blankets? I have a pee pad down right up to the bin where they get out....then blankets around that pad. How do you set yours up? All pee pads for awhile? No blankets? How fast do they learn to pee on a pad and not a blanket?

3. Twice one of the boys ventured out of the bin and pooped on the pad...mom ate it. How long will she do this? Should I stop her from doing it?

Any ideas and info or pics of your set-up would be great.

[bjh]

Originally Posted by Marc

Hey all. My boys are three weeks old. Try as I might to keep them in that bin....they climb over folded items and venture into the pen area. I have blankets and pee pads there. I need ideas though.....

1. Their little nails are getting hooked on the pee pad....clip or no?

2. How do you set the area in the pen up in terms of placing pads and blankets? I have a pee pad down right up to the bin where they get out....then blankets around that pad. How do you set yours up? All pee pads for awhile? No blankets? How fast do they learn to pee on a pad and not a blanket?

3. Twice one of the boys ventured out of the bin and pooped on the pad...mom ate it. How long will she do this? Should I stop her from doing it?

Any ideas and info or pics of your set-up would be great.

Here is the type of setup I use in our spare bedroom once the pups are out of the whelping box. I line the bottom of the x-pen with folded sheets. One end I will have their comforter. The food and water will be in the middle. You can see in the picture the board I use so mom can easily jump in and out but most pups won't go over the board until they are 7 or 8 weeks old or older, depending on their size. As the pups get older I take away more and more of the bedding so usually by the time the pups are 8 weeks old I will have just the pee pads at the far end of the x-pen and the pups are pretty much pee pad trained. I also make their x-pen bigger as they get older.

I go to lots of garage sales and that is where I pick up nice sheets and comforters for next to nothing.

I start putting down a bowl up ground puppy food and a bowl of water when the pups are about 3 1/2 to 4 weeks old.

You definitely need to clip their toenails. I just use little fingernail clippers to clip off the sharp points. The momma will greatly appreciate it. I usually start clipping the nails when the pups are about 1 to 2 weeks old.

[WinstonMom]

Hi Marc,
When my pups start climbing out of the whelping box into the ex-pen, I place the pee pad so it is the first thing they step on to. They nearly always use it. Then sheets or blankets around it. As they get older, I move the pee pad farther away so they actually have to go to it. That I do when they are walking, not just crawling. Later, I put boards around it to sort of simulate a doorway that they have to go through, so they learn that they shouldn't potty in the area where they are living and to go through a door to get to potty area. Helps a little for outdoor training later.
I too, start clipping their toenails as soon as they get a sharp little point on them so they don't scratch their mama and yes they do get hung up on the pee pads if nails get too long. I just use human nail clippers and cut the point off.
My mom's usually eat the poop until they start eating some food other than just milk. If I get to it first, I pick it up, but I don't worry if mom eats it.
Hope this helps.

[carmen in nj]

Hey Marc, first thing is to cut the nails, I use a baby nail clipper they scratch mama if you dont and she does not like it..LOL, I use a little pen that I got at petsmart for the first few weeks after they start climbing out of the box, is easy for mama to get out but it keeps them in. i also put the pee pad right at the door and as they get older I start moving it along. enclosed are a few pictures of my litter of yorkie jacks with my setup..and when the little pen does not hold them anymore they graduate to the big pen until they go home or join the rest of the pack at home..
hope this helps you a bit..
Carmen in nj

[Marc]

Thanks all. My set-up now is pretty close to some of those pics. The pups now come out to pee on the pad...which amazes me. A few questions:

1. Mom is eating like a horse! Just started yesterday....like, 3 or 4 times what she normally eats in a day! What's up with that?

2. One of the pups was out peeing and then playing....mom was eating from her dish and pup came along and was frantic to nibble on moms food! Can it really be time for that already? I was planning on waiting till they were 4 weeks old which is this weekend....and then ground some up for them and see what they do. Thoughts?

3. At what point do you guys take the whelping box out of area and place dog beds in there....or do you not do that?

4. At what point do I expect the boys to lap up water?

Thanks so much! Will post pics again soon!

[bjh]

1. Mom is eating like a horse! Just started yesterday....like, 3 or 4 times what she normally eats in a day! What's up with that?

She needs lots of food to feed those hungry babies. I have a litter about the same age as yours and my mom is really putting the food away too. They need plenty of food to make milk, especially if they are feeding a large litter.

2. One of the pups was out peeing and then playing....mom was eating from her dish and pup came along and was frantic to nibble on moms food! Can it really be time for that already? I was planning on waiting till they were 4 weeks old which is this weekend....and then ground some up for them and see what they do. Thoughts?

My litter of 5 will be 4 weeks old on Friday. They are up and walking around so yesterday I put out the ground up dry food and water and they have been nibbling on it. If you pups are walking then they are ready for some food. If you use the ground up food make sure it is ground very fine like corn meal. I grind the food then sift it through a colander. I don't want to take any chances on a pup choking on a kibble.

3. At what point do you guys take the whelping box out of area and place dog beds in there....or do you not do that?

Usually around 3 weeks you can remove the whelping box. I removed the whelping box about a week ago. I have the heating pad under the bedding where the pups sleep. They have a nice size area right now. As they get older I slowly expand their area so eventually they will have the whole bedroom to romp and play in.

4. At what point do I expect the boys to lap up water?

As soon as they can walk they can start lapping the water. Just leave it down along with their food and they will slowly starting drinking it.

[Marc]

Originally Posted by bjh

1. Mom is eating like a horse! Just started yesterday....like, 3 or 4 times what she normally eats in a day! What's up with that?

She needs lots of food to feed those hungry babies. I have a litter about the same age as yours and my mom is really putting the food away too. They need plenty of food to make milk, especially if they are feeding a large litter.

2. One of the pups was out peeing and then playing....mom was eating from her dish and pup came along and was frantic to nibble on moms food! Can it really be time for that already? I was planning on waiting till they were 4 weeks old which is this weekend....and then ground some up for them and see what they do. Thoughts?

My litter of 5 will be 4 weeks old on Friday. They are up and walking around so yesterday I put out the ground up dry food and water and they have been nibbling on it. If you pups are walking then they are ready for some food. If you use the ground up food make sure it is ground very fine like corn meal. I grind the food then sift it through a colander. I don't want to take any chances on a pup choking on a kibble.

3. At what point do you guys take the whelping box out of area and place dog beds in there....or do you not do that?

Usually around 3 weeks you can remove the whelping box. I removed the whelping box about a week ago. I have the heating pad under the bedding where the pups sleep. They have a nice size area right now. As they get older I slowly expand their area so eventually they will have the whole bedroom to romp and play in.

4. At what point do I expect the boys to lap up water?

As soon as they can walk they can start lapping the water. Just leave it down along with their food and they will slowly starting drinking it.

Gasp! I am behind, lol. Ok, thanks so much for the info. I am going to take that huge box out of the pen and make them a new sleeping area I will also be putting down some ground food and water! I was scared to do the water thing for fear of drowing lol. It even kept me up at night.

Not only are the boys walking....they are all out play fighting! They even try and fight with momma! It's so adorable

[Mardelin]

Originally Posted by Marc

Gasp! I am behind, lol. Ok, thanks so much for the info. I am going to take that huge box out of the pen and make them a new sleeping area I will also be putting down some ground food and water! I was scared to do the water thing for fear of drowing lol. It even kept me up at night.

Not only are the boys walking....they are all out play fighting! They even try and fight with momma! It's so adorable

You might resort to water bottles. It's what I've always used, less bacteria and fear of them drowning, it has happened.

If you use a weaning food such as Royal Canin Puppy Weaning, it is entirely unnecessary to grind up. Think about it if pups are heading mother's dish to eat....perfectly all right.

Your pups are right on time.

Three weeks is a bit too young to remove whelping box, they are barely beginning to retain body heat. The time to remove it is when they can get out of it on their own.

The set up I have for my pups is off the ground, since cold settles to the floor and heat rises....

[Marc]

Originally Posted by Mardelin

You might resort to water bottles. It's what I've always used, less bacteria and fear of them drowning, it has happened.

If you use a weaning food such as Royal Canin Puppy Weaning, it is entirely unnecessary to grind up. Think about it if pups are heading mother's dish to eat....perfectly all right.

Your pups are right on time.

Three weeks is a bit too young to remove whelping box, they are barely beginning to retain body heat. The time to remove it is when they can get out of it on their own.

The set up I have for my pups is off the ground, since cold settles to the floor and heat rises....

Water bottles? How does that work? I don't get it, lol.

I am using the puppy food that mom has been eating since she got pregnant....Merricks Puppy.

[Mardelin]

Originally Posted by Marc

Water bottles? How does that work? I don't get it, lol.

I am using the puppy food that mom has been eating since she got pregnant....Merricks Puppy.

Merrick's Puppy you'll have to grind for the puppies. To begin with I soak it in warm goats milk.


These are Lixit Bottles that can be attached to the side of an x-pen or crate......

[bjh]

Marc......the bowls I use, as seen the earlier posting, are only an inch deep and I don't fill them up all the way. No worries about drowning. They might accidentally step in it as they will their ground up food but it won't hurt them. I never put the bowls down until the pups are walking.

[Marc]

Does goats milk cause diareaha? Just wondering....also, I have puppy formula...could I use that in ground food?

This Royal Canine food someone mentioned...is that a good one? Is it recommended to use that and then switch them later to moms puppy food?

My boys are interested in the ground stuff but not dry.

[Marc]

Just bumping this up.....

Read the post above this one and.....

I make gerbers rice cereal with warm water, a couple drops of syrup and then some ground puppy kibble. They really went for that. Is that good and if so, for how long do I do that? They are 4 weeks old tomorrow.

I also have a question about the ears. So far I haven't shaved the hair off....they are floppy ears still. When I got my girl she had floppy ears and they eventually stood up. Do I HAVE to shave them and if so do you do the inside and outside of the ear? Or will they stand up on their own as they get older?

[bjh]

I just wean mine on the ground up dry puppy food. Sometimes when they are around 5 or 6 weeks old I will add a tiny bit of canned food to the ground up dry food, just enough to make it a little moist. As long as the mom is still nursing them I don't feel the need to add any formula to their food. Everyone does it different.

I start shaving the hair on the ears when the pups are 3 to 4 weeks old. I shave the outside and the inside. I will keep shaving them about once a week. Also make sure you keep cutting the toenails weekly. I also start trimming the hair around their rectum when they are around 4 weeks old.

I need to add, I do not recommend Royal Canin puppy food