5wk old bassethound schnoodle mix!

by Tracy
(New Carlisle,ohio,45344)

We went and picked out a puppy he is a male bassethound schnoodle mix. We was told the mom stopped feeding them and that he was 5wks old!

Is that bad to be that young and leave mother and family? How do you take care of a puppy that age?

He only has his K9 but the other teeth are starting to come in. Thank You



Hi Tracy
At 5 weeks old your puppy is a tiny baby, way too young to have left his momma and probably barely weaned. It's very irresponsible for breeders to sell puppies at that age, and is illegal in some states.

I would advise you to have the breeder put him back with his mom and littermates for at least another 2 - 3 weeks if at all possible. This would be much better for him.

However, I realize that this may not be a possibility for you, and if that's the case you will just need to take care of him yourselves.

He should be able to eat dry puppy food if it is soaked in warm water for 10 - 15 minutes before you feed it to him. He will also be able to lap water, he doesn't need milk now.

Feed him three times a day at least, and make sure he has water available all the time.

His bladder/bowel control will be non-existent so don't expect house training to be a possibility yet. Once he reaches about 8 weeks old, I would suggest getting a crate and starting to crate training him, it's the easiest and quickest way.

For now, read my Potty Training page and my and Puppy Development pages. They will give you the advice and information you need to take care of this little guy.

With lots of love, care and patience I'm sure you can give him everything he needs. Best of luck!