Raw feeding a litter of 6-week-old puppies

Weaning a whole litter onto raw at six weeks is genuinely exciting — but it's also the moment where nutrition matters most. Raw feeding done well can be excellent for puppies; done badly it creates gaps in calcium, phosphorus and essential fatty acids that cause real skeletal and developmental harm before you'd even notice the problem. The difference is balance and sourcing. To point you in the right direction: how many pups are in the litter, do you have a rough sense of the likely adult size of this mix, and are you looking for a ready-made complete raw option or planning to prepare something yourself?

Eight pups, medium-mix, and you want complete nutrition without having to calculate ratios yourself — that's exactly the right instinct at this stage. At six weeks their digestive systems are still developing, so texture matters as much as ingredients: you want something smooth enough that they can lap it up rather than needing to chew. Can I ask — are they still getting any access to mum, or is this a full wean?

That's a sensible transition window. While mum is still contributing, you can introduce raw as a complementary feed two or three times a day, then ramp up to full meals as she steps back. The product I'd point you to for this exact situation is Natures Menu Country Hunter 100% Raw Nuggets — specifically their puppy range. They're cold-pressed into small nuggets that thaw to a soft, moist consistency ideal for young pups, made from named single proteins with added vitamins and minerals to meet complete FEDIAF puppy nutritional standards. For eight medium-breed pups you'll go through volume fast, so I'd recommend buying in the 1kg frozen pouches in a multipack — cost-effective and you can rotate proteins to avoid fussiness developing early. Thaw in the fridge overnight, mash slightly with a fork for the youngest pups, and serve at room temperature.

At six weeks and for medium-breed pups, a rough starting guide is around 5–6% of their current body weight per day, split across four small meals. So if they're currently around 1kg each, that's roughly 50–60g per pup per day. As they grow quickly over the next few weeks you'll need to reassess weekly — weigh them regularly and increase accordingly. Natures Menu's packaging includes a puppy feeding guide, but the 5–6% rule for weaning-age pups is a solid working figure. Keep an eye on stool consistency: firm and well-formed means the quantity and transition speed are right; loose stools mean slow down or reduce the amount slightly.

Good call. One last thing worth knowing: when new owners take these pups home, make sure they leave with a clear feeding plan and ideally a small supply of the same product so adopters can continue or transition gradually. Switching food abruptly at rehoming age on top of the stress of a new home is a common cause of digestive upset. A handover note with the product name, current quantities and feeding frequency will make a real difference for both the pups and their new families.