Puppy crying while she's eating. (Even soft food)

diegroblers

We got a new puppy last night. According to the previous owner, a Alaskan Malamute and Husky cross. The whole transaction started out very dodgy. Not that that has much to do with the puppy crying, but the point is I don't trust a word he says.

He told me she's 2 months old. She is very wobbly for supposedly being two months. With regards to the food, she didn't know what to do with it at first. Nor did she know what to do with water. And she cries ALL the time while she's eating. Before fetching her, I got puppy kibble, but she'll seem to chew a piece for a while, then spit it out again. I also got puppy wet food, and even though she didn't know what to do with it initially, the smell immediately attracted her and she gulped it down, while continuously crying. Same thing this morning.

If she is indeed 2 months old, I'd say she was definitely not weaned. She sniffs us like she would do the mother, to find teats.

Has anyone got any advice? Please, ANY advice would be helpful. I feel like a parent with a new baby: Constant crying and existing on little sleep.

tk123

diegroblers wrote: »

We got a new puppy last night. According to the previous owner, a Alaskan Malamute and Husky cross. The whole transaction started out very dodgy. Not that that has much to do with the puppy crying, but the point is I don't trust a word he says.

Why didn't you walk away?! Did you get a vaccination card with her - that would give an indication of age. What food was she on before you got her - my guy would only eat that the first few days as he recognised the smell.. I'd take her to the vet tbh for a once over..

maggiepip

Id second taking her to the vet, get her checked over and some advice.

andreac

Did you get a vaccination card with it? Has it been wormed?

I would try soaking the puppy food into mush so its easier for her to eat. If shes not used to dry food then it wont be very easy for her to eat it so soaking it will make it easier

Has she got any teeth yet?

Mod note: andreac I've deleted 2 of your comments as neither are helpful or constructive. Less of the judgemental tone thanks. Lets help the OP do the best for this pup please.

ISDW

Have you got any photos?

anniehoo

Can we watch the judgemental tone of this thread folks. The OPs situation isn't ideal we know, but rather than berating them, please help with the best advice you can for the sake of the health of the pup. If you can't do that, don't post at all. Thanks.

westies4ever

i can only reiterate what previous posters have said. soften the kibble with warm water and get the puppy vet checked.

on an aside, well done op for taking the pup, while not an ideal transaction at least it now has a nice home. it may well have been dumped otherwise.

FoxyVixen

It doesn't sound like the pup was weaned OP and I'd question if it's even 8wks old. To me it sounds younger and the seller may have just wanted to get rid of it

If you could throw up a photo as suggested than we may be able to give you a better understanding.

Personally, I'd get the pup to a vet ASAP to get its vaccinations and there you can be advised the best course of action if you have a puppy that should still be suckling.

paultf

+1 about visiting the vets. Anytime I got a new pup, first stop on the way home from the breeder was the vets - even if the pup seemed alright to me. Mainly for peace of mind but also the vet may spot something I didn't.

Good luck with the new pup.

diegroblers

Thank you for all the advice. I really appreciate it.

I'll definitely be taking her off to the vet today. No she hasn't got a vet card (even though the ad said she did). He said she's been wormed (I obviously won't trust that). Yes, she has her milk teeth. She's eating soft food very well, she just didn't know what to do in the beginning. Her sense of smell is HIGHLY developed. She goes nuts when she smells ANY food.

In the mean time, I think all the crying is mainly separation anxiety. If she can see me, (or my hand or feet :P ) she's fine. She'll start crying ANYTIME she can't see one of us. If she's sitting next to my feet, and I take a step away, she immediately cries.

But she's also had time to show us what an awesome puppy she is. She started playing yesterday, mock charges, clowning around, mouthing anything she can get those razor sharp teeth on. Apart from getting vet checked, I believe she'll settle in just fine.

Once again, thank you for the advice.

Just FYI: Up until yesterday, I didn't know puppy selling in car-parks or from the boots of cars was a 'thing'. The guy I spoke to, said he didn't just want to give his address, because I could be anybody, which makes sense if you don't watch the news and don't know any better. I really had no clue about any of this. So yeah, I guess I'm guilty of naivety. I did not want to leave the puppy with him. The puppy was incredibly stressed and shaking off her feet. She stank and was absolutely filthy, with dirt caked on her paws. I know I complicated things by taking her, and adding to the demand, but better people than me can sort that problem out. I just wanted to make a difference to this puppy.

tk123

What's done is done... so off to the vets today who will probably start her vaccinations again so better you bring her sooner rather than later. Anyhoos what a lovely puppy!!! What did you call her?

diegroblers

tk123 wrote: »

What's done is done... so off to the vets today who will probably start her vaccinations again so better you bring her sooner rather than later. Anyhoos what a lovely puppy!!! What did you call her?

Diesel.

She really is adorable.

maggiepip

Ah shes lovely...at least she has a good home now:)

mymo

She's gorgeous, but I don't think she looks 8wks, more like 5 or 6 weeks, but it's hard to tell, she may just not of had the best start. The vet will give advice re the vaccinations, they might say wait a week or two to build her up if she's younger. Worming would be first priority, and a good puppy food, not supermarket stuff, look for named meat (lamb, chicken, beef, etc) rather than just "meat" on the ingredients list. If she's not drinking well add water to the wet food, just enough to make it sloppy, and four meals a day to start.
Don't bring her out until all vaccinations are done, and keep walks short, too much exercise is ba for joints, rule is 5mins per month of age.
Hope she brings you many happy years, and don't forget to post lots of photos!

Gokei

Cool name.

westies4ever

diegroblers wrote: »

Diesel.

She really is adorable.

shes lovely OP. Dont beat yourself up too much about what happened. I bought my first dog from a backyard breeder from done deal. I hadnt a clue I was doing the wrong thing. I just thought thats how you bought a puppy.

Im much more aware now of animal welfare and my second dog is a rescue. I can honestly say I will never buy another dog. You seem really nice and have the pups best interests at heart. just take it as a lesson learned for the next time.

brinty

What a gorgeous dog OP, best of luck with everything and whilst ye might have made an error at least you had the compassion totake her on. In future you'll know what to doi if you're getting another dog. +1 on the vet and vaccinations, they should give you good advice on what foods to get to build up lil Diesel. Don't get supermarket pedigree chum crap!!! Get proper Royal Canin, red mills, Clinivet foods for puppies they are tailored to the specific breeds nutritional requirements. This will keep your dog good and healthy too. We only give our lil guy, Elmo the bassett hound, the Royal Canin stuff. He loves it but he also loves some spuds very now and again
Once again best of luck and many happy years of doggie compansionship ahead

Nody

brinty wrote: »

What a gorgeous dog OP, best of luck with everything and whilst ye might have made an error at least you had the compassion totake her on. In future you'll know what to doi if you're getting another dog. +1 on the vet and vaccinations, they should give you good advice on what foods to get to build up lil Diesel. Don't get supermarket pedigree chum crap!!! Get proper Royal Canin, red mills, Clinivet foods for puppies they are tailored to the specific breeds nutritional requirements. This will keep your dog good and healthy too. We only give our lil guy, Elmo the bassett hound, the Royal Canin stuff. He loves it but he also loves some spuds very now and again
Once again best of luck and many happy years of doggie compansionship ahead

Sorry but RC is not exactly high quality either (but not as bad as supermarket store brands); as a rule of thumb if it's sold by a vet or advertised it's not high quality and/or overpriced for what you get.

Bullseye1

I think we could find fault with all food types.

ABajaninCork

Aww, she looks a delight! And I love the name Diesel - so cool. How did you decide on the name?

Nody

Bullseye1 wrote: »

I think we could find fault with all food types.

It's not the food type; it's the fact RC is being touted (priced and sold) as a top of the line feeding line when it is far from it . It's basically the same BS Whiskas and Felix run with as well and it annoys me (as a pet owner) to have been feeding what I thought was top of the line premium food (at premium prices wanting the best for my pets) only to find out I've been fooled.

ABajaninCork

As a side note, I'd stay off the RC too. Seems it doesn't agree with a LOT of dogs, including my own. Get something like Burns or James Wellbeloved. Much better for the little lady.

andreac

I wouldnt recommend RC either. Way too overpriced if you ask me!!

brinty

ABajaninCork wrote: »

As a side note, I'd stay off the RC too. Seems it doesn't agree with a LOT of dogs, including my own. Get something like Burns or James Wellbeloved. Much better for the little lady.

Sorry about that OP. Get whatever the vet tells you to get and you won't go wrong. I could be wrong on the RC thing, my wife generally buys our fella's food, so it could be something else, but as OP said we couldd find fault with every food brand.

More importantly, hope Diesel is settling in now and getting use d to the surroundings

andreac

I actually wouldnt go with what the vet recommends as they usually only recommend what they are selling. They are not experts in nutrition and usually only go for the mosty expensive or what they sell.

You will get a lot better advice on food from folks here and not a biased one sided one from the vet.

A lot of vets arent great when it comes to knowledge on nutrition and some are dead against feeding Raw too.

ISDW

I have quite a lot of experience with huskies and malamutes, and I would say you won't go far wrong starting her off on royal canin puppy food. Not really sure which though, as a mal would be a large dog and a husky a medium, probably best to err on the large size. In fact though, as she is so young, and I agree with another poster that she's probably around 5/6 weeks, look at the RC puppy mousse, its great to start them off, and nice and soft and easy to eat, mix it in with the dry food, whichever one you decide to go with. I would agree however that vet's don't do much nutrition training. The northern breeds do really well on a raw diet, if thats something you think you could do.

Be aware that it is very, very common for huskies to have diarrhoea due to overfeeding, so I would recommend feeding her 4 times a day, small meals, then ease down to 3 a day, down to twice when she's around a year old. They really don't need as much food as you'd think a dog of that size would, they are very efficient eaters, and overfeeding is the main cause of stomach upsets in the breeds.

Best of luck with her, please do lots of research into both breeds, and be aware of their very high prey drive, and that she should really only ever be exercised on lead, unless in an unenclosed area. Malllies can have same sex aggression, so maybe try to get her enrolled in some puppy socialisation classes when she's old enough, so that she gets to meet other dogs and play with them.

We have a Diesel as well, quite a few sibes and mals with that name

diegroblers

ABajaninCork wrote: »

Aww, she looks a delight! And I love the name Diesel - so cool. How did you decide on the name?

The tips of her hair is an orangy color, reminded me of the color of cinnamon or diesel, didn't care too much to call her Cinnamon.

andreac wrote: »

...

A lot of vets arent great when it comes to knowledge on nutrition and some are dead against feeding Raw too.

I'm not surprised, it would be a huge loss of income for them if everyone suddenly went to raw. :P

ISDW wrote: »

...

The northern breeds do really well on a raw diet, if thats something you think you could do.

I was considering exactly that. I'm really anti anything processed. I've seen what a difference decent food (food where you know exactly what's in there, AND DO NOT NEED A LABEL TO TELL YOU WHAT IS IN IT /endrant )

Apart from the health benefits, it chaps my hide that you can get real food for about the same price as processed rubbish. I can buy chicken at Lidl for €3 p/kg for Pete's sake!

Thanks for all the support and advice, guys, I really appreciate it. I'm sure I'll be back often to get more advice as issues crops up.

noddyone2

westies4ever wrote: »

i can only reiterate what previous posters have said. soften the kibble with warm water and get the puppy vet checked.

on an aside, well done op for taking the pup, while not an ideal transaction at least it now has a nice home. it may well have been dumped otherwise.

As above. Give lots of love, have lots of patience, you'll be rewarded. Well done.

brinty

diegroblers wrote: »

The tips of her hair is an orangy color, reminded me of the color of cinnamon or diesel, didn't care too much to call her Cinnamon.



I'm not surprised, it would be a huge loss of income for them if everyone suddenly went to raw. :P



I was considering exactly that. I'm really anti anything processed. I've seen what a difference decent food (food where you know exactly what's in there, AND DO NOT NEED A LABEL TO TELL YOU WHAT IS IN IT /endrant )

Apart from the health benefits, it chaps my hide that you can get real food for about the same price as processed rubbish. I can buy chicken at Lidl for €3 p/kg for Pete's sake!

Thanks for all the support and advice, guys, I really appreciate it. I'm sure I'll be back often to get more advice as issues crops up.

Most important thing of all is to enjoy it...you'll get out what you put in. You seem likely a lovely person and your heart is in the right place for Diesel, so she'll be a great dog.

diegroblers

Thanks guys. Right now, she's curled up and sleeping against my foot.

JustAThought

brinty wrote: »

Sorry about that OP. Get whatever the vet tells you to get and you won't go wrong. I could be wrong on the RC thing, my wife generally buys our fella's food, so it could be something else, but as OP said we couldd find fault with every food brand.

More importantly, hope Diesel is settling in now and getting use d to the surroundings

What a Georgous pup!!! And fair dies
To You for trying to help him out and find out how best to make his little life and new Home as happy as possible. +1 on the vets but when you go don't let him down on the floor to To play with other dogs as he could catch something From the Floor or them as he's not vaccinated
Yet.

Sounds like little Diesels going
To have a great life & a Great New Family.

endacl

anniehoo wrote: »

Can we watch the judgemental tone of this thread folks. The OPs situation isn't ideal we know, but rather than berating them, please help with the best advice you can for the sake of the health of the pup. If you can't do that, don't post at all. Thanks.

Usually just a lurker on this forum, but I'd have to second this. Bottom line is the pup is no longer in the hands of a dodgy breeder/dealer, and living with somebody who is looking for advice on the best way forward with the animal's best interest in mind.

I'm all for berating people for doing the wrong thing, but when they're looking for advice on doing the right thing, maybe advice is the best thing to give? I'd certainly rather see the pup where they are now than where they were. They didn't get the best start in life by all accounts, but things seem to be looking up.

brinty

How is wee Diesel going for you now OP, has she settled in and munching her way through her noms??

diegroblers

Hi guys. Poor Diesel has been renamed (incredible opposition to naming a female dog Diesel) to Georgie (short for George, but they don't know that), as in "and I will hug him and love him and squeeze him and call him George" )

The vet estimated her at about 7 weeks and said she's healthy and doing well. She said she has no issue with raw diet, she just think it is a lot of hassle to try and make sure that the dogs get all the nutrients that they need. So she got her shot and de-worming and she'll be back for more. We paid €43 for the lot. I expected it to be more.

She's doing really well with crate training and such. She's even gone outside for business on her own a couple of times.

Thank you for all the support!

ABajaninCork

BOOOOOOO!!! I loved the name Diesel... But George sounds just as nice. Glad to hear she's coming along nicely!!

diegroblers

I know! Me too!

Madisonmenece

late to the party but I own both a mal and a husky and I would say you have more mal than husky on your hands. Our mal was very uncoordinated for a long time also in comparison to the husky, but don't be fooled they can move fairly swift when they want, also he had a extremely powerful sense of smell.

In regards to foods a of my favorite are Orijen, Eden, Acana, cardigans & skinners. I feed raw and personally but it is down your own personal choice.

congrats on your new pup

diegroblers

Madisonmenece wrote: »

he had a extremely powerful sense of smell.

Tell me about it!!! You can't bring ANYTHING near her and she goes CRAZY! Luckily she calms down when she realizes that she's not going to get anything.