Although the ideal is for puppies to stay with their mother for a minimum of 8 weeks, sometimes we can find abandoned younger puppies, female dogs that cannot take care of them (less often) or even mothers who they may have died. For these cases, in this article on our site we are going to focus on explaining how to stimulate a puppy to defecate, since it is an activity that the little ones do not they can do by themselves and it is essential to guarantee their well-being.
Care that the mother provides to the puppies
When the little puppies are born, they are very dependent on their mother. They are able to crawl to the nipple and begin to feed, first on the all-important colostrum and then on the mother's milk. They do not see, since their eyes are closed until approximately 10 days of life. We can also verify that they keep a piece of the umbilical cord, which their mother has cut with her teeth, for about 7-10 days. The puppies cannot walk either and it takes about 2-3 weeks to be able to do so. During this time, the mother is in charge of providing them with all the food, hygiene and, very importantly, warmth care, since the puppies are not able to regulate their temperatureand, therefore, acquire that of the surface they are on.
While the little ones suckle, the dog licks them, focusing on the genital and anal areas. This stimulates the elimination reflex and makes puppies pass both urine and faeces. When the mother is absent, we must be responsible for maintaining the welfare of the puppies, as well as ensuring their correct development, for which it will be essential to know how to stimulate a puppy to defecate, as we will see below.
How to stimulate a puppy to poop? - Step by Step
In the absence of the mother, first of all, we must keep the puppies together so that, at least during the 8 weeks that are recommended, they can socialize with each other. In their first days of life they need a warm environment, for which a cardboard box with a comfortable blanket or cushion that we can line with a pad can help us, since, if we have more than one puppy, contact between them can help. so that they stimulate each other and urinate or defecate on each other. With the underpad we will ensure that they are always kept dry and, in addition, it is very easy to change so that they always remain in the best hygiene conditions. Being very small animals, they are also very fragile, so you have to watch all the details, because any condition can cause death in a matter of hours.
Feeding should be done every 2-3 hours during the day and night and with special milk for puppies that we can find in the veterinary clinics or specialized stores. As they grow they will eat more spaced out and around 3 weeks of life they will begin to try solid food, first in the form of paste that we will make with special feed for puppies up to one year of age and warm water, while they are still taking some bottle and, later, already eating the feed directly. It is important to use the bottle with little ones, since its mechanism allows the puppy to suck the milk at its own pace, making it more difficult for it to choke. Other methods, such as the syringe, can cause too much milk to enter the puppy uncontrollably, which can lead to choking or aspiration pneumonia. Once we have fed them, for which it is important to place them on our hand, as if they were standing, since they are not babies and should not eat on their backs, we can proceed with the stimulation. Thus, the first piece of advice is that stimulation should be done after each feeding Below we explain how to stimulate a puppy to defecate. Remember that this technique is only necessary during the first weeks of life Once they begin to walk and feed themselves, they are also able to evacuate without help. Steps to follow:
- Put the puppy face up, resting on our hand.
- Put a pad under it.
- We have prepared a container with warm water and some cotton or gauze.
- We wet the cotton well, although it doesn't need to be soaked, and We pass it through the genital and anal area, in that order, of the little one.
- We can make several passes, always smoothly.
- It is normal that this stimulation, which simulates its mother's tongue, causes urination and defecation, so it will also allow us to stimulate the puppy to pee.
- If we can't get the puppy to eliminate we can gently massage, with the cotton, the belly.
- If we see that a day goes by without the puppy urinating or defecating, we should contact our veterinarian, since, as we have said, any discomfort can be fatal for these little ones.
- After elimination we must leave it clean and, above all, very drythe puppy, as colds can have fatal consequences.
- Puppies should pee and poop several times a day.
These steps are also suitable for constipation in nursing puppies if the mother is unable to stimulate them properly. And if you wonder how often a puppy defecates, in general it usually does after each meal.
Things to consider when caring for motherless puppies
Once we know how to stimulate a puppy to defecate, we are going to give some important recommendations that must also be taken into account when caring for these little orphans:
- First of all, if we pick up an abandoned litter we must go to our veterinarian for an examination that can alert us to the existence of a problem. It can also help us determine the age of the little ones and deworm them as appropriate.
- It is also very important to keep them in a quiet environment and, as we have already said, at a warm temperature.
- Puppies spend a good part of the day sleeping. As they grow they will also be able to stay awake longer. During sleep they may shake and whimper, which is completely normal.
- While their eyes are closed we must make sure that no inflammation is observed in them, as this can sometimes be due to an eye infection. Therefore, if any of the puppies have a swollen eye or any discharge, they should receive veterinary attention, otherwise the infection can progress and damage the eye.
- Another important aspect that we have to observe is the state of the navel If it presents any crust or stains considerably during stimulation so that they eliminate, we can clean it with a gauze or cotton soaked in physiological serum or some disinfectant. We must always keep it dry and clean because, if an infection occurs in it, the consequences can be fatal. At first, the puppies will have a more or less large piece of umbilical cord in the navel that will dry up until it falls off completely around 8-10 days. If the navel appears inflamed, red, hot, oozing or painful, we must seek urgent veterinary assistance.
- Any change should be discussed with the veterinarian, especially during the first days of life: drop in temperature, lack of appetite, whining, lack of elimination and/or movement, infections, diarrhoea, secretions, etc.
- We must check that the puppies remain warm to the touch, suck vigorously and get fatter and grow day by day.
- Finally, the presence of scabs and/or small areas without hair can indicate that the temperature of the puppies is too low or that the environment is not hygienic enough.
Don't miss the article on "Care for newborn puppies" and offer your little ones everything they need.
