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| Puppy Care |
| SHOPPING LIST FOR NEW PUPPY OWNERS: Nutri-Cal or Nutri-Stat 2 Tubes (one for home and one for trips) Place a small amount about the size of an pencil eraser on your finger the puppy will usually lap it off your finger, if the puppy will not open his mouth, then rub it on the gums and repeat this morning and at night time for the first month. Puppy food for small breeds Small food and water crocs. These are heavy bowls and don’t tip easily. Small rabbit water bottle for crate (this gives them more room and clean water while you are away) Puppy Training Pads Collar/Leash, retractable leashes are great (small ones) get ferret collars or cat collars for tiny pups Wire Exercise pen for either inside or outside unsupervised play, the rabbit ones are cheaper. Treats, I prefer the small moist bits, a small can at Petsmart Training Reward treats Medium Size Crate Sweater or rain coat for potting in bad weather Extra small or small Nail trimmers Brush Baby shampoo Ear powder and ear cleanser Q-tips Tooth Brush and paste Towels Hand size or washable pet blankets or baby blankets AFTER SHIPPING Do Not take your puppy to parks till after their 16 week vaccine has been given!! After Shipping: Immediately give your puppy some Nutria-cal—Put it on your finger and make the puppy eat it. You can give it about the size a pencil eraser several times per day. If it will not open its mouth, rub it on its gums. Check for gum color. It should be PINK not grey. If it is grey, it may be hypoglycemia. You need to get sugar into this puppy NOW. CALL the VET now. Buy Nutria-cal at Petsmart or pet store PRIOR to picking it up. In tiny toy breeds, I provide what you call sugar loading prior to shipment. 24 hours prior to shipping I provide sugar water and Nutria-cal to prepare for the trip. Hold the pup all the way home; this will help it get comfortable with you and your smell. Keep away from a/c vent and drafts. Get the puppy home to its new environment. Do not take the puppy anywhere else to show it off. This is very important. The pup has had a long journey and needs to get settled it as soon as possible. Provide fresh water and food and sleeping blanket and leave puppy be for at least 30 minutes. You might even give small portion of moist food too. I know it is so tempting to play with the pup, but let the pup regain its energy and Rehydrate. It will not do this if it is playing. They are just like children. They would rather play than eat. Bathing You are to protect them from ALL fear or danger. We try and make them feel they have been to a spa so they will enjoy bath time. First thing to do is wash your puppy's face with a wash cloth using plain water. Make sure you are Gentle with respect and consideration to your puppy. After the face is good and wet continue and get the entire puppy wet, then using shampoo lather you puppy up all over excluding the head. Scratch and massage all over this is what you puppy is use to here. After washing and massaging scratching make sure you get the potty trail area, then rinse well. After the puppy is rinsed good use you wash cloth again on the face this time put one drop of soap on the cloth scrunch the cloth to disturbing the soap around. Wash the puppies face and rinse using the cloth rinsing the cloth out over and over to make sure her face has been rinsed good. Gently with a ringed out wash cloth wash the inside ears make sure the water is rung out of the cloth Put a few drops of alcohol or a drying agent into ears After bath to make sure the puppies ears get dry. Use a puppy shampoo or baby shampoo especially around eyes, nose, and mouth. Keep the potty trail area clean and trimmed regularly. Blow Drying Lay the hair dryer on a counter turn on low Make sure you hands are always closest to the blow dryer if your hand get to hot you know your baby is too hot. Either push the blow dryer back or you and the puppy reposition. Get into a position were you can hold the puppy with both hands allowing the air to dry the puppy while you are rubbing the hair around your puppy will feel more loved and you will have both hands free to reassure your baby is alright. CHOKING What to do when your Puppy is choking: A choking puppy can’t breath! This is a very common accident, especially among puppies or uneasy dogs that bite and swallow almost anything. If the dog is playing with an object and he accidentally swallows it and it gets stuck in the larynx, he gets uneasy, he might run back and forth raising his head and rigid neck, or he might stay standing with his head and neck stretched out, as if looking for more air in order to breathe. He will try to get rid of the object with his paws, or try to throw up, which will produce a lot of pain, along with deafening screams or barks. He'll also start to salivate a lot and get very nervous in his desperate attempt to breathe and it is possible that he might even reject your help. Call or take your dog as quickly as possible to the veterinarian clinic. Don't lose even a second as your friend's life is in danger. You can try to remove the object from his throat if it is in reach of your fingers, but if it is way inside, don't blindly try to get it out as you might push it further in; and if the object is something sharp or splintery, it could injure even more the internal mucous membranes of the esophagus. You can try, if the dog is small, to hold him by the two hind legs letting the head hang downwards. Open his mouth pulled the tongue out and it is very pro-that the object that was instructing his throat will fall out. In the case of bigger animals, put him with his head downwards on your arm or leg. Quickly clean the throat with your fingers and pull his tongue out. If he has difficulties breathing, after you have removed the foreign object, start artificial breathing. When the dog chokes on food, place yourself behind the choking animal, raised him by his hind legs, embrace his waist allowing the head and shoulders to bend forward. Then close one hand, forming a fist which you will then grab with the other hand and place against the animal's abdomen, in between the belly and ribs. When applying pressure under the diaphragm, the air of the lungs compresses and comes out with force, making the piece of food that was stuck go shooting out. Another procedure would be to put the animal lying down on his side, giving him a strong blow in between the shoulders. Move the tongue to the side with a spoon. Open his mouth and with your index and thumb remove the piece of food. It could be a simple case or something serious, which would put his life in danger. Go to the veterinarian or animal center. If asphyxia is imminent, buy a special cannula for such a use in pharmacies and softly introduce it into his throat solo that he can breathe and wait to be relieved. If you are alone and you want to see where the object is, place the dog on his back against his legs. Raise the head backwards and upwards holding it’s in as straight a line as possible. By the altar or wall of the neck, you can make a detailed exploration until you find the object which will appear to be like a small tumor. Another thing that will help you if your dog's reaction when you pass your hand on that lump because it will hurt him. If you can try to move it upwards, toward the mouth and that way, you will be able to extract eight. If he offers resistance, you shouldn't force him. Make sure you dog doesn't stop breathing and try to get help, by all means, from the veterinarian clinic DENTAL CARE Dental care is very important in toy breeds. Usually a professional cleaning is required once per year. But you can help by brushing at least twice per week. You can tell when you dog needs a dental cleaning, look at the tartar on the back teeth. Also, bad breath is also a sign they need a cleaning!!! DIGESTIVE TRACT Also, there’re a host of parasites that live in the digestive tract in puppies that are normal levels; but when they transition stress it can bring out a host of problems, so it is very important for you to know what to watch for. A pup can be examined and stool show clear results, and the very next day can show to have coccidia or giardia because of the stress levels associated with Transitioning and new environment that evening. It is your responsibility to watch for the signs and symptoms of illnesses associated with transition over the first week or so and understand that this is all part of the buying process. You need to be also prepared for the vet bills associated with this. Watch puppy’s stools for the following: diarrhea, blood, or gel like substance. These are all signs of stress or coccidiosis. Call the vet and discuss right away. For loose stools from stress with travel you can give ½ cc pepto bismol or 1/4cc of Imodium or ½ cc Kaeopectate. EAR INFECTIONS Ear infections are more common in certain breeds. For me, I find it more common in poodles. It is very important to keep the hair pulled out of the ear canal, even in puppies. Your Groomer are qualified to handle this task.. An ear infection is caused by a number of things. Ear infections are mostly caused by moisture and bacteria and sometimes ear mites. Your vet can determine if there are mites or infection present with an otoscope. You can tell if his ears are painful to him or if they feel hot to the touch or if he shakes his head a lot or scratches his ears a lot. They will also produce a foul sour smell and black dirt like wax. You can clean the ear with ear cleanser, or mouthwash. I use a syringe and put ½ cc in each ear and massage in. Then I come back with a q tip and clean out what I can see. Do not go too deep in the canal. If you have black wax present, you will need a prescription of ear medication. With good cleaning and medication, you can clear it up in about 5 days. Keep pup free from drafty areas. Too cold or too hot is not good. EYES SENSITIVE Your puppy can scratch the eye and cause an ulcer. This can be treated with terramyicinointment for 5-10 days depending on how deep the ulceration. Veterinary advice will be needed. If your puppy has runny eyes after its bath, you need to start using baby shampoo around the face area. FOOD We send puppy food with each puppy. When it comes time to change food, mix the food sent with new food and gradually end up with the new food. Feed a high quality puppy food such as Science Diet, or Iams for 12 months, then you can switch to a quality adult food. GIARDIA Watery diarrhea and vomiting can also be signs of giardia, hook worms, ecoli or the pup may have ingested something like a frog, or bug. Giardia is reported to be as commonly seen in 1 out of every 8 puppies seen in vet’ s offices. It can make your puppy very sick and can be fatal. Act very quickly and get puppy on medication. Watch for small blister like bumps on belly and groin area for staff infection. This is caused by moist bedding and is easily treated with good hygiene. Clean area twice daily at first sign of blisters and dry thoroughly and apply Neosporin. If no improvement in 2 days, an oral antibiotic is needed, consult your veterinarian. It is important during potty training to provide clean and dry bedding everyday, usually change out twice, am and pm. HYPOGLYCEMIA HYPOGLYCEMIA can be deadly. Toy breed puppies do not store much body sugar and have to replace it often. You will need to watch the tiny pups for this for about 4-5 months. Running and playing for a long period of time (even 15 minutes) without eating regularly will do it every time. Keep Nutria-cal Tube handy. IF your pup is crashing, use Karo syrup or sugar water immediately. This gets into their system faster than the Nutria-cal. You will not have time to make it to the vet. Some pups will even pass out, and get comatose and seizure, just get that sugar on the gums or in the mouth ASAP. (Approx 1/4 tsp every 20 minutes until they are standing and eating.) You should see that in just a few minutes after sugar they will regain their energy. IF this takes longer than 2 doses, you should call the vet. KENNEL COUGH Listen for cough or congestion or watch for runny nose or a hot nose. A puppy’s normal rectal temperature is 101 102. You can use a human digital thermometer to check for elevated temp. Take pup to vet right away with an abnormal temp. Bordetella or Kennel cough is common in puppies under 16 weeks old that are stressed or transitioning. It is very contagious and the virus lasts approximately 21 days. Treatment is usually not required unless the virus causes a secondary infection like bronchitis or pneumonia. A broad spectrum antibiotic is usually prescribed like chephalexin or doxycyclene. Sometimes my vet will prescribe some small dose steroid. This can be common in puppies being shipped because of the change in temperatures and climates. I no longer use the intranasalbordetella vaccine. In puppies younger than 12 weeks, it will more than likely give it a case of kennel cough. I have seen this happen more times than I like to mention! The best prevention is the injectable Bordetella vaccine at 12and 14 weeks old. This is also a requirement if you will be boarding your pet, as will all other vaccines. Watery or runny eye. MICRO-CHIPPING I highly recommend Micro-chipping your puppy. I can provide this service for an extra $50. Your vet can also do this. It is common at 4-5 months for pups to want to wander during potty time. This is the best thing you can do to help your pup find its home again. All vet clinics and shelters have the scanners now, and can help him to be reunited with you again! PARVO Depression, Vomiting, watery or bloody diarrhea and not eating are all signs of PARVO. Until your puppy has been fully vaccinated (3 rounds of puppy booster shots) your pup is open to catching this deadly disease. You must act very quickly and take the pup to the vet to get started on treatment right away. It is most common during the summer months. Parvo lives for years in the ground and becomes active in heat and humidity. You can carry it home even on your shoes or clothing. Do not let your puppy down on public ground where other dogs have defecated. Parvo lives in the dirt from where other infected dogs may have gone. Until your pup has had its last puppy booster this is very import. If you have had a dog that has had parvo, call your vet about how to sanitize the ground and yard. Signs of parvo are vomiting, diarrhea and lethargy. This is a very deadly disease and must be treated by a vet immediately for good results. I actually have had a case of parvo from a customer taking the puppy to the vet the very next day, so be extra cautious and call the vet prior to your arrival and don’ t be afraid to ask if they have seen parvo today! It can actually be on their clothing, even though they have disinfected the counters and exam tables. POTTY TRAINING Potty Training is probably the most difficult part of owning a new puppy. Until the pup is 12 weeks old, it is unable to really control or give you much warning when it needs to potty. Most pups act nervous or sniff the floor and walk in circles. Watch for this and say your command you choose, “need to go outside?”, “need to potty?” and take the pup outside or to your potty location. Usually by 12 wks a puppy can hold it about 6-7 hours at night too. There are several methods you can use: The very most important part to potty training is to keep the pup on the same schedule and the same location every day. Right now the pup needs food and water available all day, but by 3-4 months old you can start a feeding schedule 3 times per day and by 6 months 2 times per day and by 1 year, once per day. His eating schedule will help you predict when the pup will need to go. They will almost always go within 10 minutes after they have eaten. So you can see how important a feeding schedule is! Crate Training while you are away and at night. You will need a crate about 2-3 times the size of your pet, do not get a huge crate because the pup will just potty in the corner and be able to get away from it. The idea behind crate training is to teach the pup to hold it so that it does not dirty itself. From a very young age, I see the puppies get off their bedding towel to potty on the training pads so that they do not have to lie in wet bedding. So this is an instinctive behavior. You must not put food or water in the crate at night. If you are gone all day long to work, you will need to leave food and water. Sometimes with a small pup, a water bottle is the cleanest method of watering. They will usually turn over their water and get all wet. I would leave a tiny crate type bowl with about a ½ a cup of puppy food in it. Let the pup out at the same times everyday, first thing in the morning. When the pup hears people getting up it will too start becoming active and want out to potty, do this before you do anything else. Take pup out to same area every time. You might also want to leave the poop on the ground for a few days so that it knows it is okay to go there. I would then allow the pup to eat and drink and 10 minutes later let the pup out again. You may need to confine a small area to make the pup realize this is breakfast time, not play time. Provide water and food bowl outside of the crate. It would be nice if you could go home at lunch to let the pup out. Provide at least one dry towel for the pup and one or two toys. Repeat the breakfast routine again, take pup out to potty first thing, bring it back in and feed and water it and take it out again. Offer extended playtimes outside of crate whenever possible, at least 2-3 times per day. Do not scold the pup for mistakes, they will happen. If you scold the pup, it will learn that potty is a bad thing in general and will go hide to this in a hidden location. Make sure that you excessively praise the pup for potting in the correct location EVERY TIME. Small soft training treats are great too for puppies. Puppy Training Pads are good if you live in an apartment and can’t take the dog out several times during the day. Keep them in the same location. You can buy pad holders that keep the pup from playing with and tearing up the pads as easy! Doggie Door/ Outside Training is the best method by far. To get pup familiar with doggie door, have someone on the outside and you inside and pass the pup thru the opening several times to help the pup understand and not to be afraid, praise the pup after using it correctly. You may need to combine this method with some of the above methods. But be careful not to confuse the puppy. POTTY TRAINING RULES By PetSmart The secret to potty training is consistency! Everybody must follow the rules! This is my cheat sheet' for my potty training. If you need any other help please let me know. He/She should not be asked to go when he/she is in his/her crate, if you will be gone longer than he/she can hold it he/she needs to be in a small bathroom, playpen, ETC. This should contain an appropriate toilet!! #1 Do not leave your puppy/dog unattended! You have two options on what to do with your dog when you are at home: a) Keep him/her with you on a leash in the house. Wherever you go in the house the puppy must be with you. To be aware of when he/she has to use the bathroom you must be able to see it. OR b) Keep your puppy in a safe are when you cannot watch him/her (shower,cooking,etc.) A safe area can be a crate, exercise pen, or a small gated off area such as a kitchen or a bathroom. #2 Do not leave food and water Out food should be given 2-3 times a day. At each feeding the food is only left out for 15 minutes, no longer! Dogs usually have to go out to the bathroom 15-45 min after eating. Water should be offered often throughout the day (every hour if possible) Bring your puppy/dog to his/her bathroom area within 10 minutes of drinking. #3 Do not punish your puppy/dog for accidents! If you catch your puppy having an accident then CALMLY walk up to your puppy/dog and get them to the correct bathroom area (pick up or lead) Sometimes people make a big deal over an accident. This usually succeeds in frightening your puppy and may make them scared to use the bathroom in front of you…even if they are in the correct bathroom area. If you DID NOT catch your puppy/dog having an accident, there is nothing you can do about it. Just clean up the mess and watch your puppy better next time…REMEMBER RULE #1. #4 When cleaning up a mess… Make sure you use products formulated for pet stain and odors, such as SIMPLE SOLUTIONS or NATURES MIRACLE. Many household cleaners contain chemicals that resemble the smell of urine (to a dog) and may attract your puppy/dog to soil the same area repeatedly. #5 The ‘five minute rule’: (My favorite.) You can teach your puppy/dog to use the bathroom within 5 minutes (can be applied to outside or inside). Bring your puppy outside (ON A LEASH!), stand in one spot with him/her for 5 minutes. If your puppy does not go to the bathroom within those 5 minutes, lead or carry your puppy back in the house and carry him/her for 2-3 minutes, no longer! (You may put the puppy in the crate instead of carrying him/her for those 2-3 minutes). After 2-3 minutes inside take your puppy/dog back outside to the same location and wait for another 5 minutes. Repeat this process until your puppy/dog goes potty. After he/she goes to the bathroom throw your puppy a party…lots of praise, a treat, and then take them for a walk or let them off leash to play (only in a secured yard please!). #6 Crates… The crate should have enough room for your puppy/dog stand up, turn around and lay down COMFORTABLY! It’s a great idea to have a crate for your dog and teach him how to hang out in it. This is extremely useful for stays at the vet, groomer, boarding kennel, or for travel. #7 Set your puppy up for success! Take them outside as much as possible. Puppies/dogs usually have to go to the bathroom after napping, playing, eating or drinking. Smelling the floor, circling, crying, or getting very distracted are all signs that your puppy/dog may have to ‘go’. The secret to potty training is consistency! Everybody must follow the rules! I would get him enrolled in a reward based puppy class such as those offered at Petsmart. Petsmart classes are inexpensive, fun and easy, and guaranteed. (Estimated price $150.00 for a 8 week class) SCHEDULED MAINTENANCE A vet exam within 72 hours is required to keep the guarantee in effect. Provide the shot record to the vet. In 2 weeks the puppy will need its last (3rd) puppy booster and in the following week a rabies vaccine. It is very IMPORTANT to keep immunizations up-to-date. Worm your puppy every 2 weeks for 6 months and then monthly. Start Front line at 12 weeks. Start Heart Guard at 6 months, see your vet. I use Panacur (or safeguard) VETERINARIAN APPOINTMENT Get puppy to vet within 72 hours for vet exam to keep your guarantee in effect. Take your shot record so you vet can see what he/she has received from my kennel. In 2 weeks your pup will need its last (3rd) puppy booster and then in a few wks its rabies vaccine. Health issues to watch for: There are many things to watch for but I have found these to be the most common. I can not stress the importance of up-to-date immunizations are to your pet. Even a week late on a shot can cost your puppy its life. Top |