Recommendations for Your New Puppy

Puppy Vaccination Schedule

- Distemper/adenovirus/parainfluenza/parvovirus (DAPPV) vaccines should be given at approximately eight, twelve, and sixteen weeks of age.

- Parvovirus KF-11 booster at twenty weeks of age.Rabies vaccine can be given anytime after three months of age. This vaccine is good for one year the first time it is given.

- Lyme vaccination is available upon request.

- Bordatella vaccine (kennel cough) is recommended if you will be boarding your dog. The vaccine is most effective ten days prior to exposure, and is good for up to six months.

- Leptospirosis vaccine is recommended if your dog will be drinking water out of ponds or other places where rodents have urinated. This can be started at twelve weeks and is a series of two vaccines, two to four weeks apart, and then annually.

Fecal Sample

This should be collected by the first or second visit so that it can be checked for parasite (worm) infestations. Deworming for roundworms and hookworms is recommended at the first two visits, given the large number of puppies with these worms, the chance of false negative fecal exams, and the chance of accidental infection to humans, especially young children.

Heartworm Preventive

This should be started immediately. This medication prevents heartworm infection from mosquito bites and also protects against intestinal parasite infestations that puppies might pick up from the ground. Some of the heartworm preventives also help control fleas, ticks and mites.

Puppy Play

While playing with your puppy, you should open the mouth, look into the ears, roll him or her over and examine the belly, look between the toes and play with the feet. This will help make the veterinary exams easier, and also will make your puppy less anxious if you decide to clip the nails. We can show you proper and safe techniques for doing this.

Diet

Any brand name puppy food, fed three times a day until about sixteen weeks of age, and then fed two times a day is fine. Hills, Iams, Purina and Waltham are all top quality products and are a few examples of a good choice of puppy food.

Recommended Toys

These include nylabones, rope toys with the knots intact, hard rubber toys (Kong), and gumabone toys. One should avoid toys with removable parts which could be swallowed and cause intestinal obstruction. String toys should be avoided as this could be swallowed and cause damage to the intestinal tract.

Avoid Exposure to Electric Cords

Biting an electric cord can set off abnormal neurological reflexes which can result to lung damage and respiratory failure.

Behavior Training

Crate training is a safe method of housebreaking your puppy. It will also keep him or her out of danger when left alone and will protect your home and belongings from the natural instincts of chewing. Once the puppy vaccine series has been completed, puppy training classes are recommended, both for training and for socialization with other people and dogs in a controlled environment.

Flea & Tick Control

There are several products available for this purpose. Program is a once a month flea preventive, and when combined with heartworm preventive, is called Sentinel. Advantage is a monthly flea adulticide liquid pour on product. Frontline Topspot is a once-a-month flea and tick adulticide liquid pour-on product. Revolution is a once-a-month heartworm, mite, flea and tick liquid pour-on product.

Spaying and Neutering

Unless you plan to breed your puppy, it is recommended that you spay or neuter at six months of age. This eliminates the chances of your pet developing mammary and testicular cancer, uterine or prostate infections, and behavioral problems such as roaming, aggression, and urine marking.

Oral Hygiene

Once your puppy has all his or her adult teeth (at about seven months of age), it is recommended that you brush the teeth using toothpaste designed especially for pets.