Dear Dr. John,

My two-year-old Great Dane had a litter of puppies just over two weeks ago. She is not a good mother compared to others I have bred. She is starting to not clean the puppies to help them to go to the bathroom and she is even seeming to hesitate on nursing them properly.

What can I do to help them? Do I wipe their rear areas? As for food, can I wean them early starting now with soft puppy food or would that not be a good idea? Why would she be doing this and is there anything I can do to help her reacclimate to her pups? H.D.

Dear H.D.,

One never really knows why a dog doesn’t properly care for her litter. One possibility is if the pups start developing teeth and nursing the puppies is too painful. If the litter is large, she might just be too exhausted or simply inexperienced if this is her first litter. Another possibility is if she is sick.

You could take her and the puppies in for a quick examination and assessment with your veterinarian that can answer all of these questions. As for getting her back to properly caring for the puppies, that might be difficult. Try handling them all and giving her some extra care as well. The litter at the age where they can almost start to manage on their own but, for now, you may have to put in some work.

As for urinating and defecating, puppies usually start to do so on their own at 3-4 weeks of age without stimulation. So, for now, use a wet warm cloth to rub their genitals and anal areas at least six times daily to get them to go and preferably a short time after feedings.

Aare the puppies looking thin or losing weight? If so, speak with your veterinarian about a good plan starting with some replacement formula and then start weaning them with the introduction of soft puppy food. Given their age, you could probably try starting them now on such a diet and stick to a regular consistent feeding and elimination schedule of every 4 hours to start. Good luck!

Dr. John de Jong is President of the World Veterinary Association. He owns and operates the Boston Mobile Veterinary Clinic and can be reached at 781-899-9994.