bottle feeding a baby Yorkie...need a bit of help
 

Hi everyone, please forgive me if this is in the wrong spot. I am new here. I am owned by a little female Yorkie named Sophie (1 1/2 and weighs 3lbs.) and now a little wee one named Elvis (named so because of his cleft) and he is 3 weeks old today.

Here is my problem...Elivs is terribly constipated. He only poops twice a day and the poor thing just strains and strains to go when i am rubbing his hind end. He does eventually go but it takes him a good long while and his poop is rock hard. He is peeing great tho. He weighs about 7 oz. and eats every 3-4 hours and I am feeding him the PetAg formula from Walmart. Is this what might be causing him to be so constipated? Is there something out there that might be better for him? I have bottle fed all kinds of critters before...this one just has me stumped.

Any help would greatly be appreciated. This little guy has stolen my heart but it's hard for me not to be a bit guarded:(

Be very cautious bottle feeding a baby with a cleft palate,,,,,,a little pumpkin may loosen him up a little....I personally like Just Born Puppy formula....us it as the base for my babies that need to be fed.....have never had issues with constipation in any puppy.....is momma still bonding with Elvis?,,,,licking and cleaning him up and snuggling with him after you feed him? Good luck with this task.....just be very cautious baby doesnt aspirate milk because of bottle feeding with the cleft issue.

Where is Elvis mom..he need his moms nutrients that's what's probably causing the constipation. Although that formular maybe great, moms milk is best.

This pup has a cleft palate....he is probably not able to nurse thus the need to bottle feed.....

Mom is at the breeders. Breeder is VERY old school and won't take the time to raise a baby. Her attitude is survival of the fittist. I told her I would take him and try to nurse him. He takes the bottle fine, althoughl, I have to hold it a bit crooked in his mouth. It's been trial and error. He does not have a cleft up in the roof of his mouth. It's just his nose, also called a hair lip.

I went to Petsmart and bought some of the canned Esbilac and the vet there told me to add a drop of cooking oil to his food as well. I also got some canned pumkin. We'll see if that helps at all. Do I just put the pumpkin in his mouth and let him to the rest or do I need to add milk to it and let him suck it out of the bottle? I've never had to do this before with any other litter I have raised.

My prayers are that he doesn't have any other defects. I just love this little guy!!!

So glad your trying to keep this baby alive. It really sounds like the breeder is not very nice.

I hope all will be ok with this little one. Wishing you great success and many shared years with the little guy.:love:

Bless your heart! That attitude is not uncommon in some breeders....I am very encouraged tht he just has a lip defect! I have a dear friend that got a puppy from a breeder that had an extensive cleft palate, all up across the roof of the mouth....and with a ton of patience and attention and work, Ozzy-Moo is now 12 years old!!! Use the formula I have posted on here many times....it supplies all the calories and vitamins that darling needs....and his tummy and bowels will remain fine with no constipation!

8oz Just Born (Esbilac will work...theyseem to like the taste of Just Born better)
4 oz Pedialyte
1 raw egg yolk
1 cup Kefir milk (You can use live cultured yogurt if you can not find Kefir milk....it is back in the cooler where the yogurt and cottage cheese are kept)
3 tbsp Karo Syrup
2 tbsp Vi-Daylin Pediatric Drops
Put this in a jar and mix it well....shake well and let the tiny bubbles settle a little before feeding the formula to baby....feed the formula warm, and be sure baby is warm....I like to wrap my enfants in a wash cloth that has warmed in the dryer....it keeps baby snug and comfortable. If this baby has no other life threatening defects, and if you keep this little soul warm and fed every 3 hours around the clock, I feel very confident you will successfully keep this baby alive and he will thrive. Email me with any questions you may have....ladyofrosehill@aol.com! You will be working your butt off doe the nezt 6-8 weeks, but you chances are good you will be rewarded!!! You also need to weigh this baby on a food scale or postal scale twice a day to be sure he is goining weight daily....this formula is calorie dense and he needs the calories to thrive!) (I will talk to you about tube feeding later....!!)

Welcome! Hope all goes well!!

whimzybeads, you are a hero for helping this little one; shame on that breeder

Who's the breeder so we know to stay far away?

Just wanted to wish you the very best with this baby. He's a cutie, and you're an angel for protecting and helping him.

Oh okay

Thanks for the encouraging words everyone...they are greatly appreciated. I'm certainly no hero...I am just absolutely and positively in LOVE with this breed and this little wee one!!! And, I am happy to report, that after putting a couple of drops of oil in his bottle and mixing in a bit of the Esbilac, he poo'd this morning a bit easier. Didn't take near the rubbing time that is has been. It felt a bit softer as well. I mixed up more of the formula this am so we'll see how today goes.

This morning, he was absoutely precious!!! After he drank and got his belly full, he crawled in the crook of my arm and actually started playing with my fingers! Then he flipped over on his back, still in the crook of my arm and continued to play with me, mouthing my fingers. My heart melted into a puddle. I REALLY wish there had been someone awake to take a video of it. He did that for about 5 mins. then promptly crawled up under my neck and went to sleep. I couldn't move and just listened to him dream! What a sweetie he is.

Thanks again everyone and Yorkiemom1, thank you so much for that post. If he doesn't start gaining at a rate that I am happy with, I will definitely try that recipe:)

Oh and I did want to say one more thing. The breeder is a really nice lady and I've known her for years. Her attitude is just very, very old school. If they don't survive with their mother tending to them, they won't survive in the world. She knows that I did Boston Terrier and Boxer rescue for years so she thought I might want to try and boy did I! After having my Sophie for 2 1/2 (I know I said she was 1 1/2 but that's a typo) years I KNEW I wanted another one...eventually:)