Autumn 2003

Getting A New Puppy

You are about to become the proud parents of a new, fluffy ball of puppy! Congratulations! But before you collect Fido, here are a few points you may like to consider…

All baby dogs grow rapidly in the first few months of life, much more quickly than a human does. A dog needs to fit all of its growth and maturing into 12-18 months, where as a human takes 18 years to reach the same point! This means that puppies grow FAST, and need to have a high quality diet so their bodies can meet the demands of getting bigger.

All puppies should start out on a puppy GROWTH diet, which is a specially formulated diet that supplies enough calcium and phosphorus and energy for growing bones. The best way to ensure they are getting all they need is to use a good quality commercial dry diet; you may add in fresh or cooked meat and vegies, cheese and eggs as well. Large breed dogs (like those adult dogs that are larger than 25 kilos) will need a slightly different composition to smaller dogs, and this is found in the large-breed puppy growth formula.

The larger the dog, the slower it will take to mature into an adult. A small Poodle or Maltese will probably had its adult shape by 8-12 months of age, where as a Great Dane may continue to grow (though more slowly towards the end) till she is 18 months of age, so continue feeding the growth diet until your dog is an adult.

Mostly though, dogs grow very rapidly till they are 4-6 months of age and then their rate slows, so they don’t get much taller, but they fill out, by depositing fat and building up muscle.

Initially feed your pup three meals a day, otherwise they will get very hungry. This comes back to what I was saying about them growing very quickly – they use up the energy from one meal in a couple of hours and need another to keep them going. Depending on the dog and its appetite, drop back to two meals a day between 3-5 months of age. Dogs can continue to eat twice a day for their whole lives, if you wish. The amount fed depends on the type of food and the age and breed of the dog, most good quality foods have some information on the back of the pack, or ring your vet or check with the breeder. It is important that your pup does not get fat during this period as this may lead to problems with bones later on (for example, hip dysplasia), so a slightly leaner pup is better than a roly-poly one.   As they get past maturity, a dog’s growth rate slows and she will need to eat less than what you expect. It does not take as much energy to keep an adult dog healthy as it does to meet the needs of a growing pup! So after 6 months of age, depending on the breed, reduce the amount of food you give to keep your pooch lean with a lovely waist and ribs which are easily felt.

How do you pick a healthy pup? Mostly use your common sense! Puppies should be bright-eyed and alert, and playful. Any discharge from the nose or eyes, or sneezing may indicate an upper respiratory tract infection. The coat should be glossy and the pup needs to be a good weight, not too fat! If you can see the ribs or spine bones, they are too thin, and may be undernourished. See if you can watch them eat, they should have a hearty appetite. They should be interacting with the other puppies and their mum. If you happen to catch them when they are asleep, see if you can revisit in an hour or so. Naturally, very young animals need to spend a large part of the day resting, so don’t assume a sleepy pup is a lethargic pup! And soft or sloppy faeces may mean the pup has diarrhoea, but it may not be caused by worms or bugs. Stress or a change in diet can cause sloppy poo, but if there is a chronic diarrhoea which has been going on for more than a few days, the pups will probably be skinny.

Many breeders remove dew claws from the front legs of pedigree dogs when they are very young. Dew claws are residual toes which the dogs have evolved not to need, they are equivalent to a thumb in humans. Rarely a dog will have dew claws on their back legs. If your dog still has dew claws, mostly they will not cause a problem, though some very active dogs will catch them and may rip them. So if your pup has dew claws then it is not the end of the world, they may not ever cause a problem. But if they stick out a lot and look like they will get caught, they can be removed when the pup is desexed at about 6 months of age.

Some pedigree dogs have their tails docked, typical breeds include the Mini Schnauzer, the Doberman, the Rottweiler. If you are going to buy a dog from a breeder and you are on a waiting list, they have a chat with the breeder about leaving the tail intact. Docking a dog’s tail is a very old fashion habit that was started by breed societies to change the way a dog looks. It has NOTHING to do with the function of a tail. A dog’s tail is a very important part of it’s body, it helps it to communicate with other dogs and people, and to dock this severely reduces the signals your pooch can send out to the rest of the world. It is like cutting off a finger to make your hand look better! Request that your breeder does not dock your puppy’s tail. In the ACT, it is now illegal to dock a dog’s tail. Anyone who knows a dog with a tail knows how fantastic it is to see it wagging!

When you buy your new pup, ensure that it comes from a hygienic environment. If it comes from a pet shop, make sure that the cage has clean straw on the floor and the dog is not sitting in faeces or urine. Similarly, if it comes from a breeder, are the mum’s kennels clean? Your puppy should have been regularly wormed by the time you get it home.

Now you have the pup at home, the fun begins! A lot of things need to happen in the next few weeks. The most important thing to ask is have they had a vaccine? All dogs need at least two vaccinations, and sometimes three to protect against infectious diseases. The first is at 6-8 weeks of age. The second booster is at 12 weeks of age. It is important that your puppy does not come into contact with other unvaccinated dogs before the second booster, so avoid public places like the park or the footpath. May pups will begin puppy preschool between 8-16 wks of age, and so check that all of the other pups in the class have been vaccinated.  The final booster is at 16-18 weeks.

Puppy preschool is very important for socialising your new dog and teaching basic obedience – it is highly recommended. Also, your pup needs worming every fortnight till they are 12 weeks of age, then every three months. About 12 weeks of age is a good time to start it on heartworm prevention, a monthly tablet.

Finally, check with your vet or breeder about the time to desex your pooch. Most local councils in Australia encourage desexing by reducing the premiums for registration for neutered animals. I recommend desexing your dog when they are about 6 months of age, as I feel that they are able to cope with the procedure better at this stage.

Having a new puppy is a very exciting time, enjoy it!

Don’t forget to take lots of photos!