Your Dog and Your Cat 



Feeding 



Puppy. — ^The best food for the newborn puppy 

 is, of course, the mother's milk. Not infrequently 

 the bitch sacrifices her life in giving birth to her 

 brood. In such instance it is advisable to procure a 

 foster mother if possible, because rearing the pup- 

 pies by hand is a hard and tedious task. If a nurs- 

 ing bitch cannot be found a cat will often take her 

 place admirably well. 



Breast Feeding — Care of the Bitch. — The bitch 

 does not, as a rule, have an abundant supply of milk 

 until the second or third day after the puppies are 

 born. The first milk is of a dififerent character than 

 the regular flow, but is suited to the first needs of the 

 pups. The bitch should be kept with her brood most 

 of the time for the first few days. After they have 

 become strong and active she may be taken away 

 two or three times a day in order to obtain exercise. 

 A good mother will, if allowed, spend her entire 

 time with the puppies, and as a result, her own con- 

 dition becomes run down. Constipation may result 

 from the intensive feeding and lack of exercise. 

 This may be avoided by regularly getting her out 

 of doors. 



The bitch must be fed plenty of good, nourishing 

 food and allowed an abundance of water. Milk is 

 not necessary, but if her digestion is good she may 

 be given small quantities mixed with a raw egg. 

 Oatmeal gruel is supposed to produce milk. Good 



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