puppy brings up milk through nose when sneezing

by Lizan Slabber
(Velddrif, South Africa)

I brought a miniature doberman pincher today but when the puppy sneezes she brings up milk through his nose.

The guy I brought her from gave her cow milk and baby cereal. As far as my knowledge goes, you can not give cow milk to puppies but rather mix it with water?

Please help???






Hi Lizan
If a puppy occasionally sneezes milk from her nose then it's not something I'd worry about too much, but if it's a regular occurrence there may be a health issue here.

Sometimes puppies are born with a palate defect (the upper part of the mouth) and there's an opening that shouldn't be there which allows milk/water to get into the nasal passages, and from there it can be inhaled into the lungs.

It's not terribly unusual and depending on how severe it is a pup with this problem may need surgery. I'm not sure how old your puppy is or whether she's nursing or lapping properly, and whether or not she has any other health problems so it's difficult to really advise you. Except to say that I would recommend that you get your veterinarian to take a look at her and make sure that there's no treatment needed.

If a pup has a defect that regularly allows milk into the nose and lungs it can lead to infection, even pneumonia, which can be fatal.

Cows milk is not advisable for puppies as it upsets their tummies. Depending on how old your puppy is she should either be getting puppy milk formula or be able to drink plain water. Again depending on her age she should be moving onto eating dry puppy food soaked in warm puppy milk or warm water rather than cereal.

Puppies normally begin weaning at around 3 - 4 weeks of age and should be eating dry puppy food and lapping water by 6 - 7 weeks old. You can take a look at my new born puppies and puppy development pages to learn more about what to expect from your pup at various ages.

Hope this helps, best of luck with your little girl.