Puppy Care

Immediate Care (first few days):

When you pick up Puppy from the airport he will likely be a bit 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 did NOT bathe him prior to shipping because the shredded newspaper and the fact that he may have relieved himself would make him a bit smelly anyhow, and I don't want to stress him by bathing 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 it 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 and 82 degrees F. It will take Puppy a day or two to adjust to its 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 Eukanuba dry puppy food (small breed) 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 the Eukanuba. 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 its not getting too hot. If you have help on a long hair puppy, you can brush the 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.

If you have purchased a smaller breed puppy such as a Yorkie or Maltese, they tend to be more fragile than our Shih Tzus.

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.

In the kennel he is relatively quiet. So he will probably be ready to relieve himself shortly after you let him out. 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.