What's the best food for my 4-week-old puppy and how do I feed it?

Related Answers from Veterinarians

• Answered By Dr. Melanie, BVSc MS

  Veterinarian

  Milo is very cute! At this age, he is too young to be separated from his mother. Puppies should not be separated from their mother until they are at least six to eight weeks old, and I would return him to his mother if possible until he reaches that age. If you absolutely cannot return him to his mother, he likely won't be fully weaned and you will have to get him used to dry puppy food. I will give you a method on how to do this. I would soak a high quality puppy formulated dry food in warm water until soft. Then mix that with puppy formula such as KMR to make a mush the consistency of oatmeal. Over the next two weeks, gradually increase the amount of dry puppy food and decrease the amount of water and KMR you use until he is eating the dry puppy food only. High quality brands of food I recommend include Royal Canin, Hill's Science diet, Purina ProPlan, and Iams.

  

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• Answered By Dr. Melanie, BVSc MS

  Veterinarian

  Published on January 9th, 2017

  Great question! At Milo's age, he should be receiving a puppy formulated food only. This is because puppies require higher amounts of calories, protein, and calcium than adult dogs, and a puppy food would give this to him. I recommend feeding him a high quality food, such as Royal Canin or Hills Science diet. At three months of age, he can get fed three times a day (morning, afternoon, and evening), and when he turns six months old, he should be fed twice a day (morning and evening) for the rest of his life.

  

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