Puppy Care
Immediate Care (first few days):
When you bring Puppy home for the first time, he may
be a bit tired and confused. Offer him water and a little food, but don't
force him. To get him started, you may add a little canned dog food, or
some Karo Syrup. But get him used to the dry food as soon as possible.
I usually do NOT bathe him right before going home. He
may relieve himself on the journey home and that would make him a bit
smelly anyhow. I don't want to
stress him by having to bathe him too often.
So if you can bear to wait a day for a bath it would
be advisable. If not, use a puppy shampoo and dry him with a hairdryer,
keeping your hand under it also, so you can fluff his hair and make sure
the dryer doesn't get too hot. Then just keep him warm and comfortable and
he should feel right at home by the next day or sooner.
Now you have a new little friend. He or she will be
your true friend and companion for the rest of his/her life.
Now is the time to get your relationship off to a good
start. Puppy has been in a WARM, CLEAN environment, among its littermates
since he/she was born. For the first day or so it is important for you keep
your little friend warm and comfortable. The room temperature where Puppy
was living was kept between 78° F and 82° F. It will take Puppy a day or
two to adjust to his new surroundings and normal room temperature.
Providing Puppy with a soft blanket or towel or stuffed puppy toy (one
deemed safe for puppies) will help to alleviate some of the loneliness of
being separated from siblings.
Feeding
Leave our dry puppy food and clean, fresh water
available to Puppy at all times. Once a day Puppy has been given a small
portion (about a Tablespoon) of the dry food mixed with a little warm
water. Some Puppies really enjoy this as a special treat. Others simply are
content with the dry food alone.
You can usually tell if Puppy has had enough to eat.
His little belly will feel full, but NOT hard. He will be playful, NOT
listless, and he will have normal bowel movements.
Vet Care
Have Puppy checked by your Veterinarian within the two
working days mentioned in our Guarantee. If you and your Veterinarian
prefer a different brand of dog food, gradually wean him off our food. But follow your Vet's advice and give him
a good brand of food. My little breeds don't eat much, and every bite
counts.
Your veterinarian will put Puppy on a schedule for his
shots. He will have to continue with his puppy shots until he is about 4-6
months old. This is because most puppies receive immunity from their
mothers and even though he received shots, his mother's immunity overrides
them. They are given mainly as a precaution for the occasional puppy that
didn't receive enough immunity from his mother. At around 6 months of age
he will get his "adult" shots along with his Rabies shot. These
usually last a year.
Bath Time
Puppy has been bathed when he was weaned. Since it's
not good for puppies to have too many baths, we leave the next bath to his
new family. Get a good tearless puppy shampoo. Water should be warm, not
hot. Some folks prefer to fill a basin with water. I prefer to wet Puppy
down, then apply soap, rinse him off and repeat. Then, after towel drying
him, I use a hair dryer. I keep my hand constantly moving under the dryer
to make sure it’s not getting too hot. If you have help, you can
brush his hair backwards while moving the dryer. Otherwise, just stop
briefly and brush his hair and then continue drying. Drying against the nap will insure that
the underneath layers will dry and also make him look nice and fluffy.
Playtime
Sometimes it's hard for us to resist the urge to play
with Puppy. Especially if you have "human puppies" around. Please
be careful to supervise small children. At 8 weeks of age a little puppy
can easily be hurt. They love to play and tend to run after your moving
feet, or even lie down at them, sometimes when you are only standing still
for a moment or so. It's so easy for a small child to want to jump around
and watch Puppy chase their feet. And it's so easy to accidentally step on
Puppy. If Puppy gets hurt too many times he will either become very timid,
or aggressive.
It's also important to resist the urge to wake up
Puppy to play with him. Like his human counterparts, he will play to
exhaustion and could become so tired he will forget to even eat.
House Training
Once Puppy is house trained, he will be able to go out
to relieve himself in almost any kind of weather. But now as a baby, Puppy
really doesn't know what he is supposed to do, and if the weather is bad,
he will just stay in one place and shiver. So it would probably be best to
train Puppy to papers if you are in a South Dakota winter.
We recommend that you keep Puppy confined when you are
not with him. Having a Kennel (a traveling type) big enough to use as a bed
when he is full grown works well for House Breaking. As a puppy it gives
him room to move around, and have some space for food and water, but small
enough that he really won't want to soil his quarters. Puppy has been kept
on an open flooring, designed to stay clean and dry. He is not used to
having to eat and sleep in a dirty environment, and will not like it. So he
will not like to soil his surroundings.. Remember though, at 8-10 weeks old
he is still a "baby". And like humans, he doesn't have complete
control over all his bodily functions. So it's more a matter of
"catching" him at the right time. Scolding him after the fact
will only confuse him. Always reward him when he’s right. A loving
pat is a good reward. And please, never hit him if he makes a mistake!
In the kennel he is relatively quiet. So he will
probably be ready to relieve himself shortly after you let him out. Always
have cleain water available to him.
If you are home during the day, you could take the food away from
him and only feed him 4 times a day. He is so little though, and can't eat
a lot at one sitting, so it's important for you to make sure he is getting
enough to eat. That's why I recommend keeping the food in front of him all
the time.
I know you will have many years of pleasure from your
new friend. If you have any questions at all, please don't hesitate to give
us a call.
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