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In the wild, weaning begins naturally as soon as the puppies start to develop their teeth at three to four weeks of age. Suckling then irritates or hurts the mother who will move away and leave her puppies for longer and longer periods. Natural weaning involves the female dog vomiting her food and the puppies consuming the vomitus. Many pets will also do this and cause concern to owners. It is usually a natural maternal function and nothing to be worried about.

Once the puppies' eyes are open, the sooner the puppies are weaned, the less the strain on the mother and the sooner she will return to normal condition.

If the puppies have been hand raised for any reason, the sooner they are weaned and eating solid food on their own, the better. It is worthwhile to begin offering soft foods as soon as their eyes are open.

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14y ago

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