The most important part of caring for an orphaned puppy is simulating the environment in which nature intended it to mature. Puppies need the warmth, bathing and nourishment of a mother, as well as the motor stimulation and social education from interaction with littermates. At three weeks old, most puppies should be able to see, hear, internally regulate their body temperature and have some beginning motor skills.
Things You'll Need
- Heat source
- Thermometer
- Cotton balls
- Bottle
- Puppy milk
- Food mash
- Veterinary vaccinations
- Breed-specific guide book
Instructions
Provide your puppy with warmth by placing a heat source in or near one side of the puppy's bed. Regulate the temperature of the nest with a thermometer to avoid overheating. Puppies need a room temperature around 80 to 85 degrees during week three and 75 degrees during week four.
Stimulate the puppy's digestive system daily until four weeks old by gently stroking the puppy's genitals and stomach with a cotton ball or soft washcloth soaked in warm water. Very young puppies require genital stimulation for their digestive tract to begin functioning properly. Puppies are unable to regulate their bowels (become potty-trained) until two or three months of age, and also require frequent bathing for sanitation.
Offer an orphaned puppy a bottle of puppy formula, bowl of formula and water, as well as moist puppy food. The formula needs to be specifically formulated for puppies (not cow's milk) and should be heated to a temperature of 98 to 100 degrees Fahrenheit. According to Pet Education, three-week-old puppies require a daily intake of 80 to 90 calories, and puppies four weeks or older require 90 to 100 calories. Three-week-olds should receive moist puppy food or mash (dried puppy food soaked in water or milk) three times daily along with a bottle of formula three to four times daily. The mash feedings should increase to four or five times daily during the fourth week when bottle feedings begin to decrease.
Induce burping after each meal by holding the puppy and lightly rock, pat or massage its back and belly. Continue nurturing the puppy with your touch and presence after each feeding.
Playing with a puppy is important for its motor development as well as social etiquette. You need to be the sibling puppy that would signal when play becomes too rough and what items are good to gnaw. Alternately, however, be careful not to start using playtime as obedience training; during the first two months it is important that a puppy develops muscle properly.
Be careful not to overly stimulate the puppy with excitement; puppies require many hours of sleep during the third and fourth week to promote growth. It also is important to place the nest somewhere that the puppy will feel safe. Consider placing a small, washable stuffed animal in the bed for snuggling.
Take the puppy to your veterinarian for a general exam and vaccinations. Orphaned puppies often receive some vaccinations as early as two weeks, according to Pet Education. Pay close attention to your puppy's habits and appearance for developmental markers and potential problems such as diarrhea or dehydration.
Identify the potential breed(s) of the puppy if possible as it gets older in order to learn about the specific development of each breed. For example, Maltese puppies develop teeth around eight weeks, later than most small breeds according to Pet Maltese.