My 2-month-old puppy won't eat dog food. Can I give her milk?

I can certainly understand being concerned about your puppy not eating enough. It's really not the best for for your puppy, as it's not formulated to meet her nutritional needs. It's not something that is recommended to give to a puppy on a regular basis, usually only when the animal is sick. In addition, there may be ingredients in the baby food that is not safe for her to ingest. It could be that she isn't used to dry dog food, and you can try making a puppy mush for her to see if that helps. 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 she is eating the dry puppy food only. If she still doesn't want to eat much, then I would have her seen before the 15th.

Please do not give Benji regular milk, it causes GI upset in dogs and should never be given to them. He may not be hungry, but if he's around four weeks of age, he can start being weaned onto puppy food. To help him wean and to get used to dry food, I would soak a high quality puppy formulated dry food in warm water until soft. Then mix that with his puppy formula 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 puppy formula you use until he is eating the dry puppy food only. Best of luck!

This is true. Puppies this old cannot ingest milk so it is likely to just go straight through them and cause diarrhea. The best thing to give 2 month old puppies is a beginner puppy food such as Royal Canin --> https://www.royalcanin.com/us/dogs/products/retail-products/small-starter-mother-and-babydog-dry-dog-food This food is meant for puppies up to 2 months of age. Once they are going on 9 weeks old, then you can slowly transition them to a regular puppy formula food (dry or wet). I hope that this helps and if you have any more specific questions or concerns you are having with the pups, feel free to post another question on the forum. Best wishes and take care.

It is best to give Fido a formula specific for dogs as giving regular cow's milk can cause diarrhea and dehydration. Most pet stores will carry formulas such as KMR for puppies along with feeding instructions on them.

Thank you for submitting your question regarding Mystic. Being such a tiny puppy, she may have difficulty regulating her blood sugar. If very young small puppies go too long between meals, their blood sugar can drop too low. This results in a weak lethargic puppy that will be less interested in eating and drinking. You can try using a supplement known as NutriCal to keep her blood sugar up. If she seems unresponsive, place karo syrup on her gums and seek immediate veterinary care. Otherwise, leave puppy food available at all times so that she does not need to go extended periods between meals. Continue this until she is around 4 months of age. As far as another puppy food option, I would use a small or tiny breed formula from Purina or Hills. These are trustworthy companies with products backed by extensive research. You can add warm water to the dry kibble, mix canned and dry food or just offer canned. You may have to try different combinations to see what she likes. I hope this information helps!

Jackey is very cute. Do not give him cow's milk, it's not appropriate for dogs. It's also not nutritionally balanced for him, and it won't fill him up, leading him to cry for more food. He needs to be weaned onto a puppy food. To help him wean and to get used to dry food, 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. I would feed him at least four times a day. I hope this helps.

Thanks for using Petco Pet Education Center, formerly Petcoach! Sure, you can use baby food mixed into kibbles if you like. But the real question is why won’t Luna eat the dry food? Possibilities include: 1) A bad tooth or other mouth problem 2) An organ dysfunction, disease, or infection that affects appetite 3) She has you well trained. I recommend seeing your vet to help rule out medical causes. If nothing is found, it could simply be that she has you well trained and knows that if she waits long enough, you’ll put something good in her bowl. My advice for that is to wait her out. Don’t give in and within 3 days, every healthy dog I know has eaten plain kibbles. Of course if Luna is a healthy weight and you don’t mind pampering her, that’s fine too, so long as she does get some dog food (it has all the minerals and vitamins we need her to get). Best wishes to you and Luna!