Teacup or small size puppies need extra
care and nurturing. They eat special diets and must eat every 2 to 4
hours because they have small tummies and can't hold much food.. Their
food and water must be available to them at all times so that they
can eat, drink and potty as their body needs to. They cannot sleep
with you at night until they are older and can go over 6 hours without
eating. Eating regularly day and night is critical for a tiny size dog
until they are grown. If you are a person with a busy schedule (away
from home over 8 hrs. at a time), you may not be a candidate for a
teacup size puppy. If you have someone who can check on it every few
hours for you to see that it is eating and drinking as well as moving
about normally you may do fine with it,but without some help the puppy
may not do well for you. Hypoglycemia attacks can occur without
warning and if not attended to quickly, with proper support, the puppy
can die. Once they mature at 6 to 8 months of age, this is usually not
an issue, but it is an issue until the puppy matures. A lot of
careful consideration and planning must go into the decision to
purchase a teacup size puppy. They are not suitable for households with
other pets to contend with, small children, and very busy lifestyles.
They are much like raising a premature baby. Proper diet, lots of
rest/quiet time, and not too much outside stimulation until they are
about 6 to 8 months old.. Be prepared to fix them a place inside for
bathroom time when the weather is cold, rainy or bad. They will take
cold just like any other pet that is not used to environmental changes
and this can cause illness. Newspaper, potty pads or litter boxes made
for dogs are a good substitute to train them to if you live in a bad
climate. This can be placed in the confined area they live in and they
will learn to use it. They will train quickly to whichever method you
choose. The most important rule is to always have food ; water
available for your puppy at all times! Due to their small size,
teacups must replenish their energy more frequently than larger size
puppies. The only way to do this, is by supplying plenty of
nourishment in the form of food. You must remember that puppies only
eat very small amounts of food at a time but they exert large amounts
of energy. Also, do not change the puppies food for the first 2 weeks
until the puppy has adjusted to it's new home and then do it
gradually.
