How to teach good eating habits:

Instead of making food available to your puppy at all times (free choice feeding), time limited meal feeding is recommended. At each feeding, give the puppy 20 minutes to eat all that it wants and then remove the remaining food. From weaning to 6 months of age (12 months for giant breeds), puppies are best fed at least 3 times a day at regular intervals.

House Training Your Puppy:

Initially, your puppy should be confined to a small box or crate that is large enough for it to lie down in with its legs extended. Food should be offered on a regular schedule. Every hour and before bedtime, carry your puppy to the same designated area to relieve itself. Successful urination or defecation should be rewarded with lavish praise. To prevent a puppy from defecating or urinating where it shouldn't, food or large amounts of water should not be left in the crate with the puppy overnight.

The length of time between trips outside the box or crate can be extended as the puppy learns to control its urinary bladder and bowels. The puppy will signal its intent by crying or sniffing earnestly at the floor when it needs to go out. The area of confinement should be gradually enlarged as the puppy learns control until it earns the right to spend the day unconfined. However, even when completely house-trained, puppies should be confined to small areas during the night to prevent accidents.

Vaccinations:

Puppies are very susceptible to certain infectious diseases, especially canine distemper, infectious canine hepatitis, parvo virus, parainfluenza and rabies. Puppies receive antibodies from their mother via the colostrum, which usually protects them from these diseases for 6 to 8 weeks. Once the puppies lose their maternal antibody protection they are at high risk of contracting these diseases if exposed to an infected animal. Since the duration of protection provided by maternal antibodies can vary (the range is 3 to 20 weeks), it is recommended that puppies be vaccinated on a repeat basis until 4 months of age. Once the vaccination series is completed, annual boosters are required to maintain protective antibody levels.

The initial vaccination series consists of one injection of a multivalent vaccine given at 6 to 8 weeks of age and three boosters given first at 9 to l2 weeks of age and next at 14 to l6 weeks of age. Puppies whose immune status is uncertain may receive additional injections of multivalent vaccine as early as 2 weeks of age. The rabies injection is given at 4 months of age or older.

Parasites:

Puppies should be checked for gastrointestinal parasites and dewormed at 3 weeks of age and older. They also require fecal reexaminations and deworming when they return for their routine vaccinations. Gastrointestinal parasites can cause serious disorders in puppies, including life threatening anemia, diarrhea, weakness from hypoglycemia, and weight loss. The most common parasites of puppies are hookworms, roundworms, whipworms, tapeworms, Giardia, and coccidia. The method of infection varies with the type of worm, but includes transplacental transfer, infection via milk while nursing, skin penetration, and oral ingestion. Treatment includes immediate therapy with appropriate medications, follow up therapy 2 to 4 weeks later to kill migrating stages of the parasite, and environmental clean up to prevent reinfection.

Dogs should be checked for worms on a regular basis: at 3 weeks of age; 6 to 8 weeks of age; 10 to 12 weeks of age; 14 to 16 weeks of age; and on an annual basis (minimum) as adults.

HOUSE TRAINING:

A puppy instinctively will not soil its bed if given alternative areas on which to relieve itself. Once puppies are old enough to begin eating solid food, they wander a short distance away from the bed to relieve themselves.

Puppies are not capable of controlling urination or defecation until 8 weeks of age. Before this time, they express their bowels or urinary bladder 15 to 30 minutes after awakening and eating, during intense activity, and before bedtime. House training for a new puppy usually takes from 2 to 4 weeks and is accomplished through confinement, a regular schedule of feeding and elimination breaks, a great deal of praise, and limited to no punishment.