How much and how often should I feed my 8-week-old Shih Tzu puppy?

As a young Shih Tzu puppy, I'm assuming that Luna is under 3 pounds. Based upon that estimated body weight and her age, the chart recommends feeding 1/4-3/4 cups per day, divided into smaller meals. Small breed puppies really need to eat 3-4 times per day, if possible, because they can easily develop hypoglycemia (low blood sugar) if they do not eat frequently, which can lead to extreme weakness and seizures in severe cases. Try to feed Luna in the morning, when you get home from work, and again at bedtime, giving her about 1/8 cup per meal. If possible, try to look for a dog walker, pet sitter, or neighbor to feed her and let her outside midday. I hope that all goes well!

Hello. That should be a good schedule. If you cannot take her to work with you, you might want to leave a little kibble for her to snack on during the day. I would definitely make sure she eats something around 6 pm, as I assume you probably get home around 3:30. The last meal is fine at 10, for now. Thanks for using Petco Pet Education Center, formerly Petcoach.

Barbi is too young to be separated from her mother at three weeks of age, and if she is and orphan or was rejected by her mother, she should still be feed with puppy formula. I recommend feeding her KMR via a bottle four times a days. Each day, she will need at least 25-35 milliliters of formula for every 100 grams (about 3.5 ounces) of body weight. Divide this number by four to get the amount she should be eating at each feeding. When she is four weeks old, she can start to be weaned onto a puppy mush. I would soak a high quality puppy formulated dry food in water 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 she is eating the dry puppy food only.

What a cutie! How much to feed is going to depend on the food you are feeding. Every food is going to have a different calorie amount per cup. All foods should have a chart on the package (or you can look it up on the product website) with guidelines for how much to feed based on your puppy's size. A high quality puppy food is recommended. Purina pro plan for puppies is my favorite. Start with the guideline and then watch your puppy- if they start to look a little thin or fat you may need to slightly increase or decrease amount, and you will need to increase as they get larger. As far as the cough, if it is rare, like once a day or less, I wouldn't be concerned. If it is happening multiple times a day or lasts longer than a few small coughs a vet exam is recommended.

A toy-breed puppy this age should be eating every 3-4 hours, since they are prone to hypoglycemia (low blood sugar) if they go much longer than that between meals. As Flynn gets older, you can gradually work towards feeding him less often until you are only feeding twice a day as an adult. As far as the amount goes, this will vary with every brand depending on its calorie content. If you look at the back of the food bag, it should have guidelines for how much to feed per day based on your puppy's age and weight :)

Thanks for using Petco Pet Education Center, formerly Petcoach! While changing the routine is not likely going to upset her belly, it is really not necessary. Feeding a puppy twice daily is perfectly appropriate as long as the total amount of food per day is right. Good luck and have a great day!

Congratulations on your new pet! It is not recommended to bathe a pup less than 3 monmths of age. You can use plain, unscented baby wipes or pet wipes to spot clean her as needed. Feed a good quality puppy food. Stay away from store or discount brands as these typically contain low quality ingredients and more fillers. The breeder may give you a bag of food to go home with. If Blush eats it, does well on it and it is easy for you to get then stick with it. If you need to change diets, do it gradually, over the course of 7-10 days, to prevent gastrointestinal upset. Try to avoid switching diets frequently to avoid creating a picky eater. She should not need vitamin supplementation if she is eating a quality puppy food. Dogs have similar tolerances for temperature that we do. If it is too cold fo ryou inside, it is too cold for her. Air conditioning should be tolerable for her. You can start crate training her or wee wee pad trainign her as soon as you get home. If you use a crate, it should be just big enough for her to stand, turn around and lay down. Start a schedule for bathroom breaks. She should go out first thing in the morning, after naps, about 20-30 minutes after eating or playing and just before bedtime. She will likely need to go out one or two times during the night as well. Choose one spot in your yard and allow her to use it. She can go outside in your yard. She should not be exposed to dogs of unknown vaccine statuse until about 2 weeks after she receives her last vaccine.