Article: Improper tube feeding, by overfeeding or putting the tube down the trachea instead of the esophagus, can lead to aspiration pneumonia in young puppies. If you tube feed your puppy, doing it correctly can prevent another bout of aspiration pneumonia: Make sure no air bubbles are in the milk formula. Before inserting the feeding tube, measure it from your puppy's mouth to its last rib. Place your puppy on its side to do the measuring. Slowly thread the tube over the puppy's tongue and down the throat. Run your thumb and index finger along your puppy's neck to make sure you can feel the trachea and the feeding tube. Do not hold your puppy by its abdomen after the tube feeding. When giving oral liquid medications to a puppy using a syringe, it can be easy for that medication to end up in the puppy's lungs, causing aspiration pneumonia. To prevent aspiration pneumonia when giving liquid medication: Hold your puppy's head in your non-dominant hand and the syringe in your dominant hand. Place the syringe in your puppy's mouth and angle it to the side. Do not angle it toward the back of the throatthe medication could end up in your puppy's lungs. Slowly empty the syringe. Place just a few drops in your puppy's mouth at a time, giving it time to swallow and breathe. If your young puppy has cleft palate, it will likely need surgery to prevent aspiration pneumonia from happening again. During the surgery, your vet will close the opening in the top of your puppy's mouth, lessening the chance of liquid or food going into the lungs. Surgery could also be needed if your puppy breathed a foreign object into its lungs. If you decide on surgery, your vet will take special precautions to ensure your puppy does not accidentally breathe anything into its lungs before it has fully woken up from surgery. Surgery can be expensive. If you have financial concerns, discuss these with your vet when deciding on whether your puppy should have surgery.

What is a summary?
Tube feed your puppy carefully. Use caution when giving liquid medications. Correct your puppy's cleft palate.