Best Diet for a pregnant pug?

[silverfawnpug]

Hey,

I'm going to be breeding my pug bitch, she's happy and healthy and the stud is a crufts champion.

I've been supplementing her with vitamin E tablets up to now, and I've also got some raspberry leaf I will be giving to her from three weeks into the pregnancy, as in my research I have found many people use it with pregnant bitch's as it helps strengthen the uterine wall and can help avoid a difficult pregnancy by strengthing the muscles too :-)

She's just come into season now, but I already have a full whelping kit, whelping box and arrangements with my vet and out of hours vet in case of emergecny and she needs a c section.

I want to know what the best diet is I can give her, throughout the pregnancy to ensure that she stays happy and healthy throughout :-)

She currently eats pure meat mince that I get frozen from the pet shop, and also eukanuba complete biscuit, though I'm happy to gradually phase both these out to something more suitable, that anyone can reccomend.... I also live in england if thats relevant to anyone :-)

[Wonka & Nilla]

Moderator note:
While this is a food/diet question, it's really more of a breeding-related question so I have moved it to the Breeding forum. Hopefully you will get some knowledgeable responses there from some of the people on PugVillage who have experience with this.

Please read the breeding forum guidelines here: ****Guidelines for the Pug Breeding Forum--A Must Read****

[silverfawnpug]

Anyone?

We want everything perfect for her.

Our "mentor" reccommend good dog meat, or pure meat mince, along with complete biscuits and also adding some scrambled egg and cheese every now and then?

[Wally 'n' Leto]

I know nothing about this, but if she's doing well on what you have her on, I would imagine that it would be less stressful for her system to stick with that than make a big change. However, I'm not a breeder, so.....

[MrsGreene]

The majority of people on Pug Village have spayed/neutered animals, many rescued from puppy mill situations. many of us have no knowledge of breeding, which is an undertaking not for the faint of heart. You might send a pm to the folks who ARE knowledgeable, like shaynapug or Kismetpugs. They are very conscientious about their breeding programs and can be helpful to a novice. I know they are both quite busy right now between personal situations, showing, and puppies! You might search their postings for information, if they are too busy to respond right away. Another good source of information and advice would be to find an ethical breeder in your area and ask for basics from them. Sometimes it is difficult to tell which breeders are which, but a quality, ethical breeder will have very few litters in a year, won't breed an animal that is under a certain age, and most certainly pays out much more in veterinary fees for genetic testing, prenatal care, and puppy care/ vaccinations, etc, than they expect to recoup from selling the litter. They will also require puppy contracts that require altering for pet quality animals, and require owners to return animals to them instead of rehoming or surrendering to a shelter. They will be able to tell you where the majority, if not all, of the pups they bred are at any given time.

One of our few breeders on PV very recently drove several hours from home to retrieve a pup she sold two years ago from a shelter. She had microchipped and registered the pup before she sold it so the shelter was able to reach her. After fetching the dog home, she discovered the dog was pregnant, and carefully found suitable homes for the pups and the mom, AFTER of course, spending all the money to make sure the mom was healthy, and raising the pups. On top of the litter she was already raising.

About all I know is that gravid females of all species need additional nutrients during gestation, particularly calcium.

[Candice07]

Kismet Pugs is a great breeder on our forum, Look her up and ask her about it.

[Angus2009]

What is the name of the stud you are using? What year did he win BOB at Crufts?

The breeder you got your bitch from should be able to advise what diet would be best for her.

[shaynapug]

I have always just fed my girls their own food as it's a good one!