About the nutracal/karosyrup/whatever, my vet told me that if he eats or licks it on his own, great. If not, then you rub on the gums. I know it's a kind of tricky thing to figure out maybe, but I remember reading some posts about people worried their little one wasn't eating, only to find out they were giving too much of the nutracal/karo/whatever to the point where the pup simply didn't have an appetite anymore. I'm sure you'll figure it all out, I think you're a wonderful mom.
Lauren & Nikko