I'm having some problems with a litter of pups. Do you have any advice?

There is really no way for us to know what is going on with your puppies through email. We aren’t vets so we can’t tell you if you should use antibiotics and what the dosage should be for your moms and pups. It’s possible your puppy has a birth defect, I would try to tube feed it if you want to save it.

I would evaluate the health and diet you are feeding your breeding dogs, as a place to start for future litters. I would also make sure you aren’t using chemicals or vaccines on or around your breeding dogs.

Read this article on feeding a raw diet. It’s a work in progress but there is a lot of good information there.

I would also recommend these books, Natural Nutrition for Dogs & Cats and Raw Dog Food.

You can also go to our Feeding Dogs Page for a list of articles and books that will be helpful to you.

For information on vaccinations and the problems they cause please read our vaccinosis article.

I would also recommend these 2 books, Shock to the System and Vaccine Guide for Dogs & Cats.

For more information on natural health care and homeopathic treatment of your dogs (and cats), I highly recommend Homeopathic Care for Cats & Dogs and Natural Health for Dogs and Cats.

I firmly believe that all the issues people have with the health and vitality of breeding stock and offspring is directly related to the damage of substandard food and excessive chemicals (flea meds, household cleaners) and vaccines. Whenever you have litter mortality, the place to start looking for answers is with the parents. I would also check the thyroid levels of your breeding dogs before you breed again.