Rescued 4 week old puppy! HELP?!

[Blue_Bentley (Got the BAN STICK)]

Hi guys! A week ago today I rescued a 4 week old puppy hu was the only left from his litter his circumstances were that his mum wasn't producing any milk and was being hurt by the puppy's suckling on her and killed them all but my pup?! Why did she not kill him and will this mean that my puppy has bad genetics and be a dangerous dog? The mum is a lovely dog around all other dogs and people especially children though and so is the dad. Because of this they needed the pup out of the house ASAP so as soon as I heard about this I jus had to rescue the little guy he is only 5 weeks old and I have him on wet puppy food ATM and lactol. Because he is sooo young any tips what so ever would be a huge help thanks!

[Princesspaola21]

He is cute as a button! I think "mean dogs" are a product of bad pet ownership or neglect. Raise him right and he will make you a great family friend! Make sure to get him vet care pretty soon he will need his puppy shots!


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[Blue_Bentley (Got the BAN STICK)]

Anybody help me please?

[ames]

What are you asking for help with. Although dogs are indeed products of their environment, training and genetics do play a role. How well do you know who gave you the puppy? Have you net the mother before? how old was she before she was bred? Some pups are not good mothers, especially young puppies.

Typically the 4-8 week time spent with their mothers is not nursing. They are learning how to play and socialize with their siblings. Since your pup doesn't have siblings I would wait until all the shits are given and socialize with well behaved pups and owners you know to hep teach your dog. There are many things to know, so what is it your looking to find out? Whats up with the Lactol? I have heard of GOATS milk, since cow is not good for dogs, what is the lactol? Has your pup seen the vet? Very cute BTW!!

[harleyquinn]

puppy at that age learn alot of social interaction skills from their littermates. however, being around well adjusted dogs of any age can be just as good. just mother him and if you do not have dogs of your own bring a friend's around him on a daily basis. just make sure the other dog is up to date on ALL shots! postive human and dog interaction will ensure he is just as well rounded as any other pup.

[BullyGal]

Remember to enforce bite inhibition! Check around the training section for other socialization tips! Also socialization does not mean dog parks. You can socialize him with the people you already know. Keep him at your house for now until his shots are up to date. You have him at the critical age where socialization is a key element some breeders fail to do.

[gh32]

Originally Posted by Blue_Bentley

Hi guys! A week ago today I rescued a 4 week old puppy hu was the only left from his litter his circumstances were that his mum wasn't producing any milk and was being hurt by the puppy's suckling on her and killed them all but my pup?! Why did she not kill him and will this mean that my puppy has bad genetics and be a dangerous dog? The mum is a lovely dog around all other dogs and people especially children though and so is the dad. Because of this they needed the pup out of the house ASAP so as soon as I heard about this I jus had to rescue the little guy he is only 5 weeks old and I have him on wet puppy food ATM and lactol. Because he is sooo young any tips what so ever would be a huge help thanks!

Being weaned off at 4 weeks isn't the end of the world,I've had dogs that was to rough for the pups and I had to take them off the mother to avoid having dead pups myself.They are eating some dog food by this stage,buy some dehydrated puppy formula(it's available at the vet or even Wal Mart) and it should be fine. It has no reason at this point to be a dangerous dog,if it turns out to be,it has nothing to do with the early weaning age.I've seen lots of pups weaned early and they do fine later in life.

[Blue_Bentley (Got the BAN STICK)]

Thanks for tips well I'm new to the breed I was a bit un prepared but I just had to take him they couldn't have him any longer, I met the mother wen I went to get him I do not know her well at all but she was very friendly and they had 2 small children who she was perfect, lactol is baby dog milk formula which he drinks but I cannot for the life of me get him to drink water?!? And what I wanted help with was just any tips you guys could give me as I am still learning use have already given me quite a few

[harleyquinn]

if he wont drink water try giving him low sodium chicken broth and slowing start diluting it over the course of a month or two

[kg420]

Originally Posted by Princesspaola21

He is cute as a button! I think "mean dogs" are a product of bad pet ownership or neglect. Raise him right and he will make you a great family friend! Make sure to get him vet care pretty soon he will need his puppy shots!


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It depends on what your talking about when you say "mean dogs" human aggression was never ever tolerated in APBTs but they were bred for hundreds of years to be combat dogs. Dog aggression was a desired trait they were bred for. People often get stuck on this "it's all in how you raise them" but that's just not true. While, yes, owner and environment have a big impact on a dog, you ultimately can not change it's genetics. You can love and baby them all you want but that will have absolutely NO impact on if the pup will grow up to be dog aggressive or not, that's where genetics come into play.
One of the biggest problems pit type dogs are faced with is the owners who refuse to acknowledge the history of the breed. They push this, they're are no mean dogs people train them to be that way and its all in how you raise them. If a dog is DA they're quick to make an excuses like, it must have been abused or attack by other dogs. These same people are always the one who end up giving up on the dog and having them put down, all for acting totally normal for this breed. In fact if you look in the training section there's a bunch of threads about this same thing. People get these dogs thinking as long as they love them and don't mistreat them they're grow up perfect, and once maturity sets in and they don't get along with house mates anymore they get scared and think there's something wrong with their dog, or it just snapped and is dangerous. There are a lot of very good dogs who ultimately loose their lives simply because their owners are uneducated on their breed. It's seriously sad. Putting down a pit type dog for dog aggression is like killing a lab for retrieving, or killing a Shepard for herding, it's completely absurd. The sad part is that a lot of the "pit bull advocates" spread this stuff and so more and more people believe it. What they should be doing is educating people on breed traits and responsible ownership. These aren't little poof dogs they are a strong powerful breed and people need to stop sugar coating them and setting them up for failure.

[BullyGal]

Also what did the Vet say about his rear legs? They look bowed and cowhocked to me. I wonder if its from nutritional deficiency and will correct itself with a proper diet?