Stray puppy(few questions)

13 years ago

After a day trip on 6-5 we come home to be greeted by a stray puppy.Visibly she seems ok other than being emanciated.I had seen her the week before going from home to home but you could not tell at a distance that she was emanciated.I have dewormed her,washed and defleaed her and of course I have been feeding her.Needless to say she has not left my house since she arrived down my lane.

First question is with her being so little(all her bones are showing)can we go ahead and give her the vacinnations for puppies?We will be doing this ourselves because of finacial reasons of course.She has no body fat it looks like,I'm not sure if she needs to gain some weight first.

Also I started feeding her small meals,its dry puppy food that I wet and let it get soft.If I leave it dry she swallows it whole.My small amounts that I thought I was giving her turns out to be not small enough I now think so I went to feeding her 2 tablespoons 4 or 5 times a day.This question is 2 tablespoons dry is not the same as 2 tablespoons wet right?Wet swells up,I guess I want to know if I'm giving her enough?I figure I will adjust the amount accordingly.I gave her to much in the beginning and she vomitted it back up the next day.Shes not use to getting much to eat.I did ask these questions at the vets office but the receptionist wasn't really that helpful.

She appears to be from 6 weeks to maybe 12 weeks,I'm not sure the type though I believe she will be a larger type dog.Her legs are long and she does has webbed toes.Pictures will follow soon.No one is looking for her.I'm not sure what I will do with her.My first thoughts are getting her healthy...

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Comments (6)

mazer415
13 years ago
I know your heart is in the right place, but that puppy really needs to be checked out by a vet. just making sure she is vaccinated by you is not enough and if you have other pets you might inadvertently be bringing a pathogen into your home which might endanger other pets. Plus a check up gives you and your vet a base line to work with. Let the vet know you are planning on vaccinating the pup yourself, but the vet really needs to do a blood draw and manipulate and palpate the pup.
Dry puppy food wetted is fine, 4 or 5 times a day is also good it keeps her blood sugars consistent all day. If she is 6 weeks you might get her a supplement to help her put on weight, mix it into her wetted dry food.
Too much too soon will always cause voimting as will too rich too soon. Gradually increase everything....good luck
carmen_grower_2007
13 years ago
Sounds like you are doing a great job. Four small meals a day would be great (moist or not.) She is gorging herself because she hasn't had enough to eat for awhile.

We do our own shots too, and personally I would wait until she is fat and happy to give her puppy shots. Her system is stressed and she needs to bulk-up right now. Your love will heal her far faster than any medications.
sylviatexas1
13 years ago
As Carmen says, her little system has had a lot to cope with already.

I'd wait, too.

& bless you for helping this little 'un!
izzie
13 years ago
Probably has worms. You really need to get it to the vet or get some de-wormer at least. Throwing up and not gaining weight could be from that also. Is its' tummy distended/bloated?
debbiep_gw
Original Author
13 years ago
As stated I have dewormed her,on the first day she arrived.No distended/bloated stomach and she threw up only the once.I do believe I gave her to much to eat.Shes doing good as of now.Thanks for the responses.
debd18
13 years ago
I agree with mazer about the trip to the vet. I don't think an office visit would cost that much and you could still do the shots. That way you'll know for sure that her weight is due to lack of food and not some other condition. Also, the vet can determine her age to help you determine the proper amount to feed. Good luck with her.