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How can I help my nursing dog produce enough milk for puppies?

Updated On September 23rd, 2025

Pet's info: Dog | Mixed Breed Medium (23 - 60lb) | Female | unspayed | 40 lbs

How can I help my nurseing dog produce more milk?

2 Answers

Most Helpful Answer

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Answered By Angel Alvarado, LVT

Licensed Veterinary Technician

Published on February 28th, 2018

If you haven't yet, transition her to a quality puppy food. Feed her this diet until she weans the litter then transition slowly back to an adult maintenance diet. Provide plenty of fresh water as well. If necessary, you can supplement the pups with a puppy milk replacer such as Esbilac or Pet Lac. Either may be purchased from your veterinarian or the local Petco.

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    Answered By Claudia Fioravanti

    Veterinarian

    Published on May 14th, 2018

    It might be that she just does not have enough milk and there is not much you can do about it apart from starting to bottle feed the puppies ! Puppies that don’t feed properly can go downhill quite rapidly so I would urge you to visit your nearest vet surgery or pet shop to purchase some powdered puppy milk. Staff at the vets or in the shop will be able to advise you on how much and how often to feed them, and on how to get the milk ready. Thank you for using Petco Pet Education Center, formerly Petcoach !

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