Feeding the Lactating Bitch

Feeding pups is the hardest job a mum can do. That is why a lactating bitch, at peak lactation, with a large litter of pups...can eat as much as she wants! It is imperative that top quality food should be continually available. By top quality food, we are referring to a diet designed for the special requirements of a lactating bitch.

The food for the lactating bitch must have all the nutrients necessary for the repair and functioning of her body, plus all the necessary ingredients for producing high quality milk - in vast quantities. The food must also be very concentrated. Being a 'growth-type' of diet it must have high levels of energy, first class protein, first class fat, first class minerals, an abundant supply of vitamins, and be low in carbohydrates and unnecessary components. This is the lactation version of the BARF Diet®.

The whole aim is to provide as much milk forming food as possible so that she can easily care for her litter and not loose any condition herself. This means not a lot of change to the basic BARF Diet®, but will take into account...

an adequate intake of liquids to make milk
high levels of good quality protein
a calcium rich balanced source of minerals
a source of concentrated energy
the B vitamins to help her use that energy
essential fatty acids plus vitamin E to stabilize those essential fatty acids
vitamin C to boost the immune system and help cope with the stress
vitamin A for the health of her immune system and the internal lining of her mammary glands

The foods your lactating bitch will need the most will be...

A complete and balanced raw diet like BARF World®'s BARF Diet®’s
Fortified milk mix

Raw meaty bones or BARF World®'s BARF Diet® must form the basis of the lactation diet...

because they supply the minerals needed, including calcium and phosphorus. This is for her greatest health, best milk production and therefore for the pup's greatest health. High levels of protein are also essential for the production of milk. This means that other protein supplements are an excellent idea. Tripe, offal, eggs and cottage cheese are great sources of protein and can become part of the diet.

Feed the raw meaty bones either whole or minced along with Dr. Billinghurst's BARF Diet®™ as alternate meals. Give the fortified milk mix as the main source of fluid - if she will take her fluid this way.

The fortified milk mix

This formula consists of one cup or 250 ml of milk [preferably raw], one teaspoon of honey, one or two teaspoons of flax seed oil, one raw egg [or two egg yolks] - about 60 gm, and one or two junket [rennet] tablets plus multi-B and C vitamins - so long as this did not put her off drinking it. This is blended, brought to body temperature, and kept at body temperature for ten minutes to allow the junket tablet to work. Preferably, you will have tried this mix on her prior to whelping so you will know that she will drink it and that it does not cause digestive upset.

How much food and how often?

These two questions are really the same question. This is the one time in the life of your bitch that she must be permitted to eat as much of this high quality food as she likes. There will be no harm done by letting her eat ad lib - as much as she likes, particularly if she has a big litter to support. A goal you have for your bitch after the pups are born, is that she should have the same weight or perhaps a bit more than she had about the time she was mated. Your next aim for her is that she should maintain this weight by the time the pups are weaned. What this means is that she should not deplete her own body reserves during the period of lactation.

Newly made mothers can be difficult. There are no guarantees on what they will or will not want to eat and/or drink. You will need to be patient and be prepared to offer alternatives if one type of food is refused. After the first few days, it is usual for her appetite to return. Her demand for milk will peak at about week three and continue for one or two more weeks, by which time you will have begun to wean the puppies.

For more information on feeding the lactating bitch read Grow Your Pups with Bones by Dr. Ian Billinghurst B.V.Sc.(Hons), B.Sc.Agr., Dip.Ed..

Breeding Your Dog? Read This!

One of the most important duties an expectant mother has is to prepare for a successful pregnancy. The same holds true for our dogs.

The success of any breeding exercise will depend on what your bitch has been fed throughout her life. The pregnancy will be a draining experience and will draw on nutrients deposited in her body long before she became pregnant. Her past nutritional history has a dramatic impact on her ability to become pregnant, her ability to hold on to the pregnancy, the ability to produce a large, healthy litter with no birthing problems, and to be able to supply plenty of milk to support the growing litter.

Dr. Ian Billinghurst, DVM, co-founder of BARF World® and author of “Grow Your Pups With Bones” states in his book:

“If your bitch has been fed a poor commercial dry diet or even a poorly constructed home-made diet such as an all meat diet, there will be major problems as a result. The ramifications of consuming a poorly formulated nutritional recipe are that she may never become pregnant in the first place. If she does, she may abort the puppies or produce deformed or a limited number of puppies. One must keep this in mind when beginning a breeding program. Here is another important consideration. When you know your bitch is close to coming on heat, temporarily increase both the amount and the quality of the food. Following this advice, her body will respond with brilliant hormone production and a maximum number of healthy eggs shed and a maximum number fertilized. This feeding bonus at mating time will produce the optimum number of puppies, with a very good chance that they will all be healthy. Elevating the levels of kelp, vitamin E, B, and C are important. Especially vitamin C because this vitamin aids in an easy delivery.”

Pregnancy is a very demanding event. It is a dynamic state that produces many changes and much growth inside the mother’s body in a very short period of time. It is because of this that a mother’s nutritional needs will change dramatically.

If the bitch has been fed a nutritious raw diet throughout her life, then for the first two-thirds of the pregnancy she will have the basis for a solid pregnancy.
The last third of the pregnancy is the most important phase because this is when the pups do most of their growing. The requirements at this point will demand extra supplementation with more protein, vitamins, essential fatty acids, and minerals (with the exception of calcium). If you see that your bitch has developed an increased demand for food, that is your signal that she is lacking those growth nutrients.

It is extremely important at this stage that you feed a diet that has been designed to allow growth to occur. Adjusting the amount to feed at the last third of the pregnancy will adequately allow for the growth spurt. Allowing the bitch to become fat from overfeeding will cause further complications with the birthing process. An underfed dog will have similar complications because of the reduced amount of milk production.

PLEASE NOTE: The science behind proper nutritional needs for the pregnant bitch is a complicated one. It is not the intention of this article to recommend all the requirements needed for a successful pregnancy. Instead, it is designed to outline the mere basics of the event and to outline a few of the more important choices to make to produce a healthy litter.

Nutrient Requirements For Breeding Dogs

This is the month that we celebrate Mother’s Day! Our mothers are the ones that bring us into this world, care for us, nurture us…so it seems only right to dedicate at least one day of the year just for them. One of the most important duties an expectant mother has is to prepare for a successful pregnancy. The same holds true for our dogs.

The success of any breeding exercise will depend on what your bitch has been fed throughout her life. The pregnancy will be a draining experience and will draw on nutrients deposited in her body long before she became pregnant. Her past nutritional history has a dramatic impact on her ability to become pregnant, her ability to hold on to the pregnancy, the ability to produce a large, healthy litter with no birthing problems, and to be able to supply plenty of milk to support the growing litter.

Dr. Ian Billinghurst, DVM, co-founder of BARF World® and author of “Grow Your Pups With Bones” states in his book:

If the bitch has been fed a nutritious raw diet throughout her life, then for the first two-thirds of the pregnancy she will have the basis for a solid pregnancy.

The last third of the pregnancy is the most important phase because this is when the pups do most of their growing. The requirements at this point will demand extra supplementation with more protein, vitamins, essential fatty acids, and minerals (with the exception of calcium). If you see that your bitch has developed an increased demand for food,that is your signal that she is lacking those growth nutrients.

It is extremely important at this stage that you allow her to eat a diet that has been designed to allow growth to occur. Adjusting the amount to feed at the last third of the pregnancy will adequately allow for the growth spurt. Allowing the bitch to become fat from overfeeding will cause further complications with the birthing process. An underfed dog will have similar complications because of the reduced amount of milk production.

The BARF Diet® will do exactly that. Following this advice, your bitch will not require larger volumes of food if fed properly.