Similar to human babies, many people view a newborn puppy as a delicate little bean that requires special handling, while others believe that newborn puppies shouldn’t be handled at all. People unfamiliar with dealing with a new litter have frequently asked, “Can you touch newborn puppies?
Some people worry that if they hold newborn puppies they might hurt them, while others worry that the mother may reject them if they smell like humans (much like with birds). However, it’s not as bad as you might think to hold a newborn puppy. Here, we will debunk the myths and theories surrounding this issue and offer useful guidance on how to care for a young puppy.
Why Newborn Puppies Shouldn’t Be Handled Often
Puppies, like all newborns, are defenseless and totally reliant on their mother’s care and protection. For the first three weeks of their lives, they are both blind and deaf. They require prodding to eat as well as stimulation to urinate and feces.
Newborn puppies aren’t able to maintain their own body temperature and can easily become too cold. When you handle a puppy and remove them from their mother’s warmth, they could become dangerously cold more quickly than you realize.
Puppies need to eat frequently when they are young to maintain normal blood sugar levels. Until they get older, their bodies are unable to keep their blood sugar levels stable. Regular human contact can disrupt a puppy’s feeding schedule and cause low blood sugar, which can result in seizures and even death.
Because their immune systems haven’t fully matured, newborn puppies are more susceptible to illness. Being handled by people or spending time around other animals could expose them to dangerous illnesses or parasites.
According to studies, a puppy’s relationship with its mother has a significant impact on how they will behave as adults. The less human contact and handling the pups receive, as long as the mother dog is caring for them and they are doing well, the better off they will be.
Additionally, your veterinarian will advise you on what to look out for to ensure the puppies’ continued health. To ensure that the puppies’ nails don’t snag on their mother while they’re nursing, you should probably trim them. By the time they are 10 days old, most puppies require their first nail trim. You can learn how to do this safely and effectively from a veterinarian, veterinary technician, or skilled groomer.
Puppies under three weeks old should generally not be lifted, held, or carried because they are very delicate and even a slight fall could cause serious injury or death. However, you’ll have to lift them while carrying out routine health and husbandry tasks. The majority of breeders advise weighing brand-new puppies once per day so you can monitor their development week by week. To safely weigh your puppies and learn how much weight they should be gaining based on their breed, speak with your veterinarian.
Its very rare for a mother dog to need assistance rearing her pups, but it does happen. Newborn puppies cant control their own body temperatures and they need to nurse almost constantly. VCA Hospitals says they should stay snuggled up with each other and their mom for at least the first 10 days. If you see a puppy younger than 10 to 14 days old off by itself, this is a sign theres a veterinary emergency.
Deaths can even be accidental. Inexperienced mothers occasionally roll onto puppies and suffocate them by accident. Unfortunately, some dogs don’t make good mothers because they simply lack any maternal instinct. This is particularly typical in puppies or during a dog’s first heat.
There is a persistent misconception that handling infant animals will make their mothers reject them. This is almost never true, and puppies are no exception. Family dogs actually frequently tolerate their favorite humans touching their young ones very well. While touching a puppy won’t cause his mother to reject him, that doesn’t mean you should do it without thinking first. While different breeders and veterinarians have different opinions on when and how often you should handle newborn puppies, most do agree on a few fundamental principles.
When can you hold a newborn puppy then?
That said, it is still acceptable to touch, pick up, handle, and hold puppies before the three-week mark. There will be times when you’ll have to manage them for their benefit because you have no choice.
Here are some situations where you can interact with newborn puppies before they reach the age of three weeks.
Before the 3-week mark, you might be forced to touch a newborn puppy in any of the aforementioned scenarios.
FAQ
Can newborn puppies be touched by humans?
Approximately three weeks after their birth, puppies are ready for handling. Before this age, you really shouldn’t touch them unless you have to. However, exercise caution because some mothers, especially those who are nursing, can be hostile.
What happens if you touch newborn puppies?
Regular human contact can disrupt a puppy’s feeding schedule and cause low blood sugar, which can result in seizures and even death. Because their immune systems haven’t fully matured, newborn puppies are more susceptible to illness.
How long until you can touch puppies after birth?
You can, and should, start gently handling the puppies1 for brief periods of time by about three weeks old for purposes other than basic health care. You can try carefully picking up the puppies once their eyes are open, holding them for a while, and putting them back in the box.
Will my dog bite me if I touch her puppies?
If you ignore a mother dog’s growling and snarling, she might bite. Mother dog may become more agitated if you stay around the whelping area and touch the pups frequently. If you need to weigh the puppies every day, you might want to eat and go potty outside when mother dog leaves the puppies.