My mother dog is crushing her newborn puppies. Should I separate?

You may have to keep the puppies in a warm box next to her that she can't fit into and give them to her a few at a time every few hours to nurse. Once they get a little bigger, they should have no trouble staying out of her way. I'd be more worried that these puppies are sick or not nursing enough or not thriving in some way, and not actually getting squashed by mom. (This is common in pigs, not dogs). Make sure the pups are gaining a few ounces every day in weight and they should be ok.

Yes. You will need to remove the mother from the puppy. I also recommend to have the mother spayed or to not breed her in the future. Not all dogs make good parents. Attacking the puppies is not a good quality for a mother dog to have. I hope this is helpful and please feel free to post any additional questions.

I think that the puppy would likely be best left with mom - unless she is actively rejecting him away from her, or showing any agression when he tries to nurse. Give him the best chance by helping him get attached to the nipple to nurse. You can supplement with a bottle, but he will grow best from his moms milk. Also make sure she has a calm quiet place to nurse and care for her pups - if she feels threatened or you are interferring too much she is more likely to reject the puppies. Using pheromones like ADAPTIL can help calm her and the pups and make nursing more successful. Very rarely and for reasons we dont always understand, some bitches will attack their pups. This can be hard to predict or prevent. Be guided by her interactions with the puppy and intervene if she seems cold or aggressive when the pup tries to nurse from her. Best of luck with your litter.

It is best to keep the puppies away at this point so she does not keep doing that. You can start to bottle feed or lay her down and let them nurse under your direct supervision then take them away when they are done so she can’t hurt them

If the pup wasn’t the runt or injured then I would separate her from the rest. She may be tired of taking care of them, puppies can be very demanding. The pups are old enough to start solid food. I usually mix puppy milk replacer with canned puppy food or moistened puppy dry food. Make it sloppy and use your finger to teach them to lick the food and then eat off of a flat plate. They should grow fine and you don’t want to risk another injury or death. Thanks for using Petco Pet Education Center, formerly Petcoach to help you care for your puppies.

It would be best to keep momma dog and puppies separated from your other dogs, at least for a time, as new puppies around other dogs can be a cause of high tension and stress for the mother dog. With all the hormones from birth, plus protection of puppies, a normally friendly dog may accidentally harm another dog in the household in an attempt to protect her puppies. Once the puppies are old enough, you can then gradually introduce your other dogs to them, under direct supervision.

Hello. Yes, this is fine. Unfortunately, not all dogs make good mothers, so if splitting up the litter makes it easier on the people that have to care for the puppies, then I think this is a good plan. When the puppies are a little older & getting close to weaning age around 3-4 weeks old, you can put them together, if you want. Otherwise, there will be no problems keeping them separated. Thanks for using Petco Pet Education Center, formerly Petcoach.