By Dr. Gary Ailes, DVM

So you’re going to make money off having puppies?

At the beginning this seems like a pretty good idea. After all, don’t folks make a living that have puppy farms? I think the answer to that is usually and there is a lot of work involved plus added expense that everyone should know about.

I will be addressing this from the female side only for right now. Before breeding, the bitch needs to have all her vaccinations. That helps to protect the puppies during the first few weeks of life.

Once the bitch is bred, there will be some increased nutritional needs to keep the mother and the puppies healthy. Poor nutrition can lead to underweight puppies and or unhealthy puppies. It can also lead to a difficult birth process and possible need for a caesarean section. A caesarean section puts the mother and the puppies at risk. Therefore, a high quality dog food is important to help the puppies develop well.

Once the puppies are born, the mother will usually be able to feed them for the first three to four weeks. A good quality puppy food will be needed by three weeks and the puppies will be ready to be weaned somewhere around four weeks. If you have a puppy that is not doing well, it may require bitches milk replacement and nursing every 2 hours around the clock to survive.

The puppies need to be kept in some sort of enclosure to keep them from wandering off or getting into trouble. Injured and or sick puppies can be quite expensive to treat.

When the puppies reach 6 weeks, they should have their first vaccinations before being adopted or sold. With the number of puppies available, there are many times that buyers cannot be found and the puppies will be given away or given to the pound if they cannot be supported.

By Dr. Gary Ailes, DVM

Carson City, NV

Board Member

Pets of the Homeless