There Is An Art To Bottle-Feeding A Weimaraner Puppy By Hand

Weimaraner puppies can get colicky like babies. Make certain never to allow a puppy to ingest air when either tube or bottle feeding. It is easy to avoid ingestion of air when bottle feeding by always turning the bottle, nipple end down, before offering it the puppy. All the air in the bottle rises to the solid end. You are able to tell if the puppy is nursing freely by watching the rise of bubbles in the bottle. The bubble flow should be rather rapid, small and uniform in size, rising in even response to the puppy’s nursing. If the bubbles are large the puppy may also be ingesting air, in which case check the nipple cap.

Many hungry Weimaraner puppies suck so hard and steadily that they do not allow passage of air back into the bottle, thereby creating a vacuum. The vacuum collapses the nipple, making it harder and frustrating for a puppy to nurse. Occasionally remove the bottle from the puppy’s mouth to allow a return passage of air back into the bottle, either through the nipple release when turning the bottle upright, or by momentarily loosening the cap. Never abruptly pull the bottle from a puppy’s mouth. Placing a finger in the comer of the puppy’s lip breaks the nursing vacuum, making removal easy. Remember to replace the cap securely before giving the bottle back to the puppy.

Always check the nipple’s flow, making sure a puppy’s suckling is rewarded by enough, yet not too much milk, before initiating feeding. Pinch the lower portion of the nipple, expressing a small amount of milk to check the flow. A puppy should be able to actively suckle without choking. If the rising bubbles are not uniform and are large, the cap is not secured tightly enough. The nipple’s holes may also be too large, in which case the puppy draws milk too quickly and chokes. If the cap is set correctly then changing to a nipple with fewer holes becomes necessary. Nursing should always be a rewarding experience for the puppy. When flow is restricted so the puppy is incapable of obtaining milk quickly enough, the nursing experience becomes frustrating. The puppy is then ready to graduate to a nipple of increased flowing capacity such as one with multiple holes or cross-top.

Weimaraner puppies do not take to a bottle as a duckling takes to water. No matter how hungry, some puppies instinctively resist anything unnatural such as a manufactured nipple. There is an art to starting the resistant puppy on bottle feeding. If the dam is available, rub the bottle and nipple and a towel over her mammaries. Drape this towel across your stomach and lap. Hold the puppy on your lap against your abdomen. Although the puppy’s ears are sealed, it can feel the rhythm of your breathing and respond to your touch.

Express a small amount of formula from the bottle and wipe it over the nipple. As you introduce the bottle’s nipple to the puppy’s mouth, move your legs slightly, jiggling your lap. With tiny motions also jiggle the bottle up and down in the puppy’s mouth. These movements re-create the dam’s breathing and puppy’s nursing position on the dam, causing the puppy to instinctively and reflexively latch onto the nipple. Acquiring dexterity with the bottle is always hardest with the first Weimaraner puppy. All you need is the patience over the next few weeks!