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Can I give my runt puppy extra milk? Will mom reject bottle feeding?

Updated On September 23rd, 2025

Pet's info: Dog | Mixed Breed | Female | unspayed | 21 years old | 3 lbs

My Dog just had a litter of 9.they are almost 2 weeks old and the runt seems to be skinnier and not getting enough milk than the rest of the puppies. is it ok to bottle feed to give the runt some extra milk once a day while at the same time nursing off the mother's milk. Im worried that the mother dog will reject the pup or it will begin reject milk from the mother.

3 Answers

Most Helpful Answer

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Answered By Karly Macon, DVM, MS, CVA Certified Veterinary Acupuncturist

Veterinarian

Published on April 5th, 2017

Yes! You absolutely must booster the runt a bit as it is likely getting much less nutrition than the others in the litter. Mom will neither reject the pup nor will the pup reject mom if you add additional nutritional support. This is very commonly done by breeders with smaller pups.

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    Answered By Lindsey Edwards MVB, BSc, IVCA

    Veterinarian

    Published on

    You can start feeding semi-solid puppy food from 14days and this should help improve his calorie intake as long as there are no medical causes for his reduced size and weight gain. Birth defects can and do occur in puppies and sometimes there is a reason why some puppies do not thrive as well as their litter mates

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    Answered By Dr. Melanie, BVSc MS

    Veterinarian

    Published on

    Yes, it is fine to give this puppy extra milk, and I would give it to him a couple of times a day. I recommend using a puppy formula such as KMR. I would also have him seen by a vet for a health check. Whenever a puppy is looking skinnier, having a check done by the vet is important.

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