Litter of puppies

Written by Anne | March 27, 2025

Your dog has just given birth to a beautiful litter of puppies – but what now? As an owner, it’s helpful to know what to look out for and what to keep in mind after the birth and in the weeks that follow.

Litter of Puppies

The vet can, of course, provide support. For example, you can ask your vet to carry out a litter check on the day of birth. During this check, all the puppies are examined, and things like the closure of the palate are inspected. The mother’s mammary glands are also checked to ensure everything is in order.

Content puppies mostly sleep and nurse. In the first two weeks, they won’t do much more than that. If they crawl around squeaking, it often signals a problem. They might be too cold or too warm, hungry, or need to relieve themselves.
If they’re cold, you can hang a heat lamp on one side of the whelping box. Always check the mother’s mammary glands if the puppies are particularly fussy. Is there milk? Are the glands red, swollen, overly warm or painful? If you’re in doubt, contact your vet.
Puppies need help passing stools during the early days. The mother usually licks their rear to stimulate this. If she doesn’t do this sufficiently, the puppies won’t be able to relieve themselves and may suffer from stomach pain. You can assist by gently rubbing their rear with a moistened cotton pad.

Newborn Puppies

Unlike human babies, puppies should only gain weight after birth—they shouldn’t lose any in the first days or weeks. It’s a good idea to mark the puppies with nail polish or a wool collar to distinguish them. You can also use the coloured collars from Trixie for this. Weigh the puppies every 12 hours for the first few days, then daily until they’re about 4 weeks old.
The puppy or puppies with the lowest birth weight should be monitored closely. A puppy should double its body weight within the first 10 days.
If the puppies aren’t gaining enough weight, or are losing it, contact your vet. The mother might not be producing enough milk, especially with a large litter or if she’s unwell. A mammary infection, for instance, may cause her to allow less nursing due to pain. It’s also possible that a puppy isn’t drinking properly for various reasons.

Feeding the Mother During Lactation

After giving birth, the mother’s milk production will continue to increase. It’s a good idea to offer her unlimited food so she can eat according to her needs.
From around 4 weeks of age, the puppies will slowly start eating solid food, and the milk production will begin to decrease. You can then gradually reduce the amount of puppy food you give the mother until her milk dries up. Once lactation has stopped, she can return to her usual food.

Feeding Puppies in the First 8 Weeks

In some cases, it may be necessary to supplement the puppies’ feeding. This might be required if the mother isn’t producing enough milk and the puppies aren’t growing properly. You can supplement their diet with formula, such as Royal Canin Babydog Milk.
If the mother has no milk at all or in the case of orphaned puppies, feeding them properly becomes a full-time job. During the first weeks, they’ll need feeding every 3 hours.
In the first 24–48 hours after birth, it’s crucial that puppies receive colostrum. Col-O-Dog from Biestwinkel is a good option. This gives them essential antibodies and helps build their immune system.

The formula can be given using a bottle. It’s important that the puppy drinks on its own—never force the milk into its mouth, as it can easily choke and develop pneumonia.

From around 4 weeks of age, you can start gradually introducing solid food, such as puppy kibble. It’s best to give each puppy its own bowl to prevent food aggression. By 6 to 8 weeks of age, the puppies should be fully weaned onto solid food.

Handling puppies

It’s important to give the mother and her puppies plenty of rest during the first few weeks. Friends and family are often excited to visit the puppies, but try to limit this during the first two weeks. Giving birth and caring for a litter can be stressful for the mother, and too many unfamiliar faces and noise around her are best avoided. Once the puppies are a bit older, occasional visitors are fine.

During this period, you can support your dog with products that help her adjust to the new environment and reduce feelings of anxiety or stress. Pet Remedy is specially developed to support dogs during stressful times, such as changes in their surroundings or the presence of new people, and helps reduce stress-related behaviours.

Make sure the puppies grow up in a home environment and are exposed to various stimuli—people, animals, sounds, and situations. The first socialisation phase begins at around 3 weeks and lasts until around 12 weeks of age. During this time, puppies start to explore the world, and all the impressions they take in are extremely important. The more experiences a puppy has during this phase, the better prepared they will be for similar situations as adults. Adequate interaction with their mother and littermates is crucial for social development. It’s also beneficial to offer different types of toys or let the puppies play outside, so they can explore and learn on their own.

Worming the Puppies and the Mother

Nearly all puppies become infected with roundworms in the first few weeks of life, and some are even infected in the womb. Dormant roundworm larvae in a pregnant dog can become active and infect the puppies before birth. They can also be transmitted through the mother’s milk.
This is why it’s important to deworm young puppies regularly—at 2, 4, 6 and 8 weeks of age. It’s recommended to deworm the mother at the same time as the puppies.

Vaccinating and Microchipping the Puppies

In the early weeks, puppies receive antibodies through their mother’s milk. However, this protection eventually fades, so it’s important to have them vaccinated against Distemper, Hepatitis, Parvovirus, Parainfluenza, and Leptospirosis. Microchipping is also a legal requirement.

Puppies should receive their first vaccination at 6 weeks of age. This is also a suitable time to have them microchipped.
If the puppies are pedigree dogs, they will be microchipped by the Dutch Kennel Club (Raad van Beheer) before they are 8 weeks old. In this case, bring the chip numbers to your vet. During this vet appointment, the puppies will also have a general health check. Are they in good condition? Does their heart sound normal? Have the male puppies’ testicles descended properly? They’ll also receive a pet passport noting the chip number, vaccination, and the vet’s findings.

Follow-up vaccinations are given at 9 and 12 weeks of age for full protection. This is typically the responsibility of the new owners, as most puppies go to their new homes between 8 and 9 weeks of age.
If one of the puppies is going to a new owner abroad, it may only leave the country at 15 weeks of age. These puppies must be vaccinated against rabies at 12 weeks and can cross borders 3 weeks later.

Visiting the vet is a big experience for young puppies. They’re exposed to all kinds of new stimuli—travelling in a carrier for the first time, a car ride, being placed on the examination table, and being checked over by a vet. This experience is incredibly valuable, as it teaches them that visiting the vet and being examined is normal.