Home Contact Us Hospital Services Boarding Emergency Services Grooming and Bathing About Us Hours & Location Tour Our Clinic Newsletters Pet Health Information Flea Control Dental Disease Heartworm Disease in Dogs Heartworms in Cats New Puppy New Kitten Senior Pets Internet Links Mandy's Recommended Reading New Puppy Information We would like to congratulate you on the acquisition of your new puppy. Owning a dog can be an extremely rewarding experience, but it also carries with it quite a bit of responsibility. We hope this document will give you the information needed to make some good decisions regarding your puppy. First, let us say that we are grateful that you have chosen us to help you with your puppy's health care. If you have questions concerning any subject related to your puppy's health, please feel free to call our clinic. Our entire professional staff is willing and happy to help you. Puppy Playing Stimulating play is important during the first week. Stalking and pouncing are important behaviors in puppies and are necessary for proper muscular development. If given a sufficient outlet for these behaviors with toys, your puppy will be less likely to use family members for these activities. The best toys are lightweight and movable. These include Kong toys and rubber balls. Any toy that is small enough to be swallowed should be avoided. Discipline Disciplining a young puppy may be necessary if its behavior threatens people or property, but harsh punishment should be avoided. Hand clapping and using shaker cans or horns can be intimidating enough to inhibit undesirable behavior. However, remote punishment is preferred. Remote punishment consists of using something that appears unconnected to the punisher to stop the problem behavior. Examples include using spray bottles and making loud noises. Remote punishment is preferred because the puppy associates punishment with the undesirable act and not with you. Vaccinations There are many diseases that are fatal to dogs. Fortunately, we have the ability to prevent many of these by the use of very effective vaccines. In order to be effective, these vaccines must be given as a series of injections. Ideally, they are given at about 6, 9, 12, and 15 weeks of age, but this schedule may vary somewhat depending on several factors. The routine vaccination schedule will protect your puppy from six diseases: distemper, hepatitis, parainfluenza virus, parvovirus, rabies, and kennel cough. The first four are included in one injection that is given at 6, 9, 12, and 15 weeks old. Rabies vaccine is given at 12 weeks of age. Why the Series of Vaccinations When the puppy nurses its mother, it receives a temporary form of immunity through its mother's milk. This immunity is in the form of proteins called antibodies. For about 24-48 hours after birth, the puppy's intestine allows absorption of these antibodies directly into the blood stream. This immunity is of benefit during the first few weeks of the puppy's life, but, at some point, this immunity fails and the puppy must be able to make its own long-lasting immunity. Vaccinations are used for this purpose. As long as the mother's antibodies are present, vaccinations do not have a chance to stimulate the puppy's immune system. The mother's antibodies interfere by neutralizing the vaccine. Many factors determine when the puppy will be able to respond to the vaccinations. These include the level of immunity in the mother dog, how much antibody has been absorbed, and the number of vaccines given to the puppy. Since we do not know when an individual puppy will lose the short-term immunity, we give a series of vaccinations. We hope that at least two of these will fall in the window of time when the puppy has lost immunity from its mother but has not yet been exposed to disease. A single vaccination, even if effective, is not likely to stimulate the long-term immunity that is so important. The Rabies and Kennel Cough vaccine are exceptions to this, since one injection given at the proper time is enough to produce long-term immunity. Intestinal Worms Intestinal parasites are common in puppies. Puppies can become infected with parasites before they are born or later through their mother's milk. The microscopic examination of a stool sample will usually help us to determine the presence of intestinal parasites. We recommend this exam for all puppies. If we can not get a stool sample, please bring one at your earliest convenience. Even if we do not get a stool sample, we recommend deworming the puppy and repeating it in 3 weeks. It is important that it be repeated in about 3 weeks because the deworming medication only kills the adult worms. Within 3-4 weeks, the larval stages will have become adults and will need to be treated. Dogs remain susceptible to reinfection with hookworms and roundworms. Periodic deworming throughout the dog's life may be recommended for dogs that go outdoors. Tapeworms are the most common intestinal parasite of dogs. Puppies become infected with them when they swallow fleas; the eggs of the tapeworm live inside the flea. When the dog chews or licks its skin as a flea bites, the flea may be swallowed. The flea is digested within the dog's intestine; the tapeworm hatches and then anchors itself to the intestinal lining. Therefore, exposure to fleas may result in a new infection; this can occur in as little as two weeks. Dogs infected with tapeworms will pass small segments of the worms in their stool. The segments are white in color and look like grains of rice. They are about 1/8 inch (3 mm) long and may be seen crawling on the surface of the stool. They may also stick to the hair under the tail. If that occurs, they will dry out, shrink to about half their size, and become golden in color. Tapeworm segments do not pass every day or in every stool sample; therefore, inspection of several consecutive bowel movements may be needed to find them. We may examine a stool sample in our office and not find them, then you may find them the next day. If you find them at any time, please notify us so we may provide the appropriate drug for treatment. Heartworms Heartworms are important parasites, especially in certain climates. They can live in your dog's heart and cause major damage to the heart and lungs. Heartworms are transmitted by mosquitoes so your dog does not have to be in contact with another dog to be exposed. Fortunately, we have products that will protect your dog from heartworms. These products are very safe and very effective if given regularly. Heartguard and Sentinel are oral tablets that are given once monthly, Revolution is a monthly topical prevention, and Pro Heart 6 is an injection that lasts for 6 months. Be aware that having a long haircoat or staying primarily indoors does not protect a dog against heartworm infection. Heartworm preventatives are dosed according to your dog's weight. As the weight increases, the dosage should also increase. Please note the dosing instructions on the package. Food for Puppies Diet is extremely important in the growing months of a dog's life, and there are two important criteria that should be met in selecting food for your puppy. We recommend a NAME BRAND FOOD made by a national dog food company, and a form of food MADE FOR PUPPIES. This should be fed until your puppy is about 12-18 months of age, depending on its size. Table foods are not recommended. Because they are generally very tasty, dogs can begin to hold out for these and not eat their well-balanced dog food. Eating table scraps can even cause vomiting, diarrhea, and even pancreatitis. We enjoy a variety of things to eat in our diet. However, most dogs actually prefer not to change from one food to another. If you decide to switch your dog's food, do it gradually over a 5-7 day period. In addition to table foods, it is also important that you not give bones to your dog. Bones of birds (chicken, turkey, etc.) are hollow and splinter easily producing very sharp, pointed pieced of bones. These can easily pierce the esophagus, stomach, and intestines, resulting in peritonitis and even death. Feeding Schedules The most popular method of feeding is commonly called "meal feeding". This means that the puppy is fed at specific times of the day. A measured amound of food should be offered 3-4 times per day for 5-12 week old puppies. What is not eaten within 30 minutes is taken up. If the food is eaten within 3-4 minutes, the quantity is probably not sufficient. Puppies fed in this manner generally begin to cut themselves out of one of those meals by 3-4 months of age and perhaps another one later. If a meal is ignored for several days, it should be discontinued. "Free choice feeding" means that food is available at all times. This method is okay when the puppy is young, but dogs tend to overeat and become obese with this method. IF THERE ARE SIGNS OF WEIGHT GAIN AFTER THE OPTIMAL WEIGHT IS REACHED, THIS METHOD OF FEEDING SHOULD BE DISCONTINUED. Feeding measured amounts at certain times during the day is a better way to maintain a healthy weight of the dog. Housebreaking Housebreaking should begin as soon as your puppy enters his new home. How long the training must continue depends on both the puppy and you. Some pups learn sooner than others. Your dog wants to please you, but a puppy's memory is short, so your patience is important. A good rule of thumb is that you can only expect a young puppy to "hold it" for as long in hours as he is in months. For example, an 8 week old or 2 month old puppy could not be expected to go more than 2 hours without a necessary elimination. Whether that occurs inside or outside is up to the owner by giving the puppy frequent opportunities to go outside. -The puppy's bed may be a box or crate, open at one end and slightly larger than the puppy may deficate or urinate in a corner rather than go outside. If the bed is smaller, the puppy will do its "business" outside rather than soil its bed. The puppy will have a natural inclination not to soil its bed. -The secret to housebreaking is repetition. The puppy should be taken outside frequently and praised abundantly after any urination or bowel movement. Bathroom trips outside should only last 2-3 minutes, at most, to allow the puppy to make the association between being outside and "taking care of business". If the puppy does not eliminate within that period, he/she should be should be taken back in, and the trip repeated in 30 minutes to 1 hour. -The moment he has relieved himself, praise him abundantly and immediately bring him into the house. Do not let him play about. The toilet period and play period should be definately separate in the puppy's routine. -After feeding, the puppy may become uneasy and walk in circles sniffing at the floor. The puppy should then be taken outside immediately. -This routine should be repeated every hour or two throughout the day, especially after meals and naps. -When the puppy is taken out to play, it is wise to leave the house by another door and avoid taking him near his usual "bathroom area". Never play with your puppy until after he has been taken out and has eliminated. -There will, of course, be some "accidents" in the house. Never let one of these slip by unnoticed; punishment 30 seconds after the offense is too late. Verbally scold the puppy and rush him outside. Then scrub the area of mishap with an enzymatic cleaner that will eliminate the odor. -Positive reinforcement of proper urine and bowel habits is more important as properly applied discipline. When your puppy urinates or deficates in the correct place, spend several minutes stroking and praising him. Socialization of Puppies The Socialization Period for dogs is between 4 and 12 weeks of age. During that time, the puppy is very impressionable to social influences. If it has good experiences with men, women, children, cats, other dogs, etc., it is likely to accept them throughout life. If the experiences are absent or unpleasant, it may become apprehensive or adverse to any of them. Therefore, during the period of socialization, we encourage you to expose your dog to as many types of social events and influences as possible. Three Curious Things About Puppies Puppies may be observed to make unusual sounds or movements during their sleep. This is called "activated sleep". It probably occurs because your puppy is dreaming and trying to participate in the dream. Puppies also have "puppy breath". There is a characteristic smell about a puppy's breath. It is not particularly offensive or desirable. It is much like the smell of a new car. It is present a few weeks then disappears. Puppies also frequently have episodes of hiccups. They may occur for 10-20 minutes at a time then spontaneously disappear. They are probably related to swallowing of air when eating and do not produce any significant distress to your dog. They will stop as your puppy gets a little older. Chewing One of the characteristics of puppies is chewing. Puppies are trying their new teeth so chewing is a normal behavior. The puppy's baby teeth are present by about 4 weeks of age. They begin to fall out at 4 months of age and are replaced by the adult (permanent) teeth by about 6 months of age. Therefore, chewing is a puppy characteristic that you can expect until about 6-7 months of age. It is important that you do what you can to direct your puppy's chewing toward acceptable objects. Trimming Toenails Puppies have very sharp toenails. They can be trimmed with nail trimmers made for dogs and cats. If you take too much off the nail, you will get into the quick; bleeding and pain will occur. To prevent this, here are a few helpful points: 1. If your dog has clear or white nails, you can see the pink of the quick through the nail. Avoid the pink area, and you should be out of the quick. 2. If your dog has black nails, you will not be able to see the quick so only cut 1/32" (1 mm) of the nail at a time until the dog begins to get sensitive. The sensitivity will usually occur before you are into the blood vessel. With black nails, it is likely that you will get too close on at least one nail. 3. If your dog has some clear and some black nails, use the average clear nail as a guide for cutting the black ones. 4. When cutting nails, use sharp trimmers. Dull trimmers tend to crush the nail and cause pain even if you are not in the quick. 5. You should always have styptic powder available. This is sold in pet stores under several trade names, but it will be labeled for use in trimming nails. Spaying Females Spaying offers several advantages. The female's heat periods result in about 2-3 weeks of vaginal bleeding. This can be quite annoying if your dog is kept indoors. Male dogs are attracted from blocks away and, in fact, seem to come out of the woodwork. They seem to go over, around, and through many doors or fences. Your dog will have a heat period about every 6 months. Spaying is the removal of the uterus and overies. Therefore, heat periods no longer occur and unplanned litters are prevented. It has been proven that as the female dog gets older, there is a significant incidence of breast cancer and uterine infections if she has not been spayed. Spaying before she has any heat periods will virtually eliminate the chance of either. If you do not plan to breed your dog, we strongly recommend that she be spayed before her first heat period. This can be done anytime after she is 6 months old. Neutering Males Neutering offers several advantages. Male dogs are attracted to a female dog in heat and will climb over or go through fences to find her. Male dogs are more aggressive and more likely to fight, especially with other male dogs. As dogs age, the prostate gland frequently enlarges and causes difficulty urinating and defecating. Neutering will solve, or greatly help, all of these problems that come with owning a male dog. The surgery can be performed any time after the dog is 6 months old. Pet Identification The latest in pet retrieval is microchipping. This tiny device is implanted with a needle so the process is much like getting an injection. Our scanner can detect these chips; animal shelters across the country also have scanners. A national registry permits the return of microchipped pets throughout the United States and Canada. You can also get a tag with your information to put on your dog's collar. 1456 Preston Forest Square • Dallas, Texas 75230 972-385-3555 • Click here to send us email!