I am tube feeding a little boy that only gained .1 oz during the first 6 days when he was nursing off his mother. He is now 16 days old and is up to 11.3 oz from his birth weight of 4.1.
The vet said that tube feeding will prevent the puppy from aspirating the formula and is safer than a nurser or syringe. Vet told me to feed according to the directions on the can which say 30mL/day for each 4 oz that the puppy weighs and to divide that into 6 feedings so that you are feeding every 4 hours. Start out only feeding 2/3 of the amount called for for a couple of feedings, because the stomach may be shrunken from not getting enough food; then increase it to the full amount.
So a 4 oz puppy should be getting 5 mL of formula every 4 hours. Then every time the puppy goes up a full ounce I increased the amount I'm feeding by 1 1/4 mL. At this time he is getting 13 3/4 mL every 4 hours. |