Dog and Puppy care

It is very important that you consider the many different breeds and cross-breeds of dogs, until you find the one which will fit in well with your lifestyle. There are many people who purchase or re-home a dog in good faith, only to later realise that the dog simply does not fit in with their lifestyle. There are so many unwanted dogs that end up in rescue societies and these can be one way of obtaining your pet. Rescue dogs, if adults, sometimes have developed bad habits but these can often be overcome with much love, time and patience. There are some however which may require much more hard work and those who are good mannered and just have been the subject of unlucky fate, such as an owner becoming ill, an owner passing away, marriage and family break- ups etc, the reasons go on and on. Not only do rescues have adult dogs in their care, but they also sometimes have puppies.

You may choose to purchase of offer a home to dog or puppy from the classified pet adverts in newspapers of on the Internet. If you do this please visit the dog in it's actual home environment. If you need time to think about it, then take this time. A good owner who has the dogs best interests at heart, will always understand and in fact probably prefer you to take your time as they would not like their dog re homed and then re homed again and again if it did not work out with the new owners. Be aware of the people who need the dog gone "yesterday" or immediately, sometimes these people are only interested in the money they will be getting for the dog and don't really care about the dog at all. There are however some circumstances which are beyond some peoples control which require a home found quickly for their pet. just be sensible in your choice.

You may choose to purchase a puppy, if you do this be sure to reseach the breed and much information on puppy care and dog care as you can never be prepared enough. In fact this applies (researching the breed/s) if you are obtaining an adult dog too.

If you are obtaining a puppy, be sure to see it with it's Mother. Don't purchase from unclean premises. Ensure all the puppies are clean, bright eyed, clean noses, nice clean coats, clean ears and are lively. Ensure you get your new puppy checked by a vet to confirm it is healthy.

Puppies and adult dogs cost money to house, feed and care for. Be sure you can afford this before you go ahead and get one. There is also training to consider and also your working life to consider, dogs should not be expected to be shut indoors all day, it is not fair on them, or healthy for them. they can become bored, anxious and a nuisance to neighbours from whining, barking and howling. Dogs make a mess, they shed their coats, dribble water, not to mention other things. Accidents can happen with a new dog, it may feel nervous and urinate indoors to start with. If you are serious about owning a dog, you must be prepared for the possible accidents that can happen, including, being sick or going to the toilet indoors.

However, with time most dogs settle down and puppies as they grow up become house clean with the correct house and toilet training. There are some dogs that haven't been house trained properly and this is not their fault, rather usually the fault of their owner or previous owner. Some dogs that are rescued can develop fear aggression, where they were not socialised properly or mis-handled when they were younger. This can show in many forms, examples of this are, urinating because of fear, urinating because of excitement, growling, snarling, snapping and even biting, because the dog feels threatened.

Dog and puppy care

Things you will need for your dog,

• A reputable vet for health checks, vaccination etc
• A bed for your dog, there are many good dog beds on the market and can be found in pet shops, in Argos, even in some supermarkets these days. There is a huge range of dog beds on the Internet.
• Some dog food, Usually you may find that diet the dog is already eating is a good diet and it may be best to stick with to start with as an sudden change in the dogs diet could cause stomach upsets. It is confusing enough for a dog to suddenly be placed in a new home, without the sudden change of food too. if you want to change the dogs diet, do so over a period of ten days, this will help to not upset the stomach quite so much. There are many manufactured dog foods on the market and these include, Complete dried food, Tinned dog food with should be fed with an equal amount of dog mixer or wholemeal biscuit. There are also, dog chubs, which look like giant sausages and frozen meat. Most of these foods will have the recommended daily feeding amounts on the packaging.
• A collar and lead
• Some dogs toys, be aware of soft toys as stuffing can be easily be riped out of them. Plastic toys can splinter, so make sure you buy a strong and safe dog toy.
• Dog worming tablets, which you can get from a pet shop, although I personally prefer to get worming granuals from my vet as they are considered much more effective.
• Flea shampoo, for bathing your dog if it has fleas
• A dog towel, to dry your dog with after it's bath
• A dog brush and comb
• Flea spray, for treating you dog if has fleas, you can safely use this before or after a flea shampoo. You must follow the instructions on the packaging to be sure not to make your dog ill.
• Alternatively you can get some suitable flea treatments from your vet. there is a product called Frontline which is a liquid in a pippet, and it is adminstered by placing directly onto the dogs skin. it not only kills fleas it also helps prevent them. Another very good flea preparation is Stronghold and this is my personal favourite, as it not only treats fleas, but ticks and mites I believe. It is administered in the same way as Frontline.
• Ear cleanser, you can purachase ear wipes or liquid ear cleanser, if you use the liquid ear cleanser, do not dig into the dogs ears, simply wipe the area you can see.
• Doggy tooth brush and doggy tooth paste, some dogs are not tollerant of having their teeth cleaned, but those who are young dogs or have been used to having their teeth cleaned, they wont mind. Never use human tooth paste on your dog as it contains soda's which are not good for your dogs stomach and can cause stomach upsets.
• Dog chews and treats, There are many dog chews and treats, there are dog biscuits, dog moist chews, dog hard chews, raw hide chews, raw hide bones, munchy bones, and many more.
• Dog vitamin or conditioning tablets

For puppies

• All of the above,
• With flea preparations, please check with your vet or dog breeder what flea treatments are suitable for you new puppy and from what age you can use them safely.
• Dog worming treatments especially for puppies. dosage usually explained by vet or on product packaging.
• A suitable food, vet or dog breeder will advise.
• A dog traveling cage is useful to transport the puppy home and for other traveling trips.
• You may decide to use a dog cage rather than a dog bed. this can be a useful house training aid if used correctly. Puppies and dogs should never be left for long periods confined to a crate. they are purely used for sleeping in, and during the day, the door should be left undone so the puppy or dog can go in and out of its own accord. It is alright to use the crate for times when the puppy is resting But is not alright to shut them in there so that they end up spending the majority of the day and night in there.
• Vaccinations and health checks, your puppy will need to have the canine diseases vaccinations, this is usually two vaccinations and then a booster vaccination in a years time.
• plastic dog beds are sometimes considered more suitable for puppies, as puppies like to chew whilst they are cutting their teeth, you should place warm blankets inside the bed for them to sleep on comfortably.
• you will need patience with your new puppy when it comes to toilet training and general house rules/training.
• A puppy socialisation class is a good thing to go to, not only for your puppy but for you too.your puppy gets the chance to socialise with other puppies and learn how to behave and you get to meet other people in the same situation. you can thenm ove onto training classes as the dog gets older.

Caring for a puppy

It is very important for you new puppy to have his or her own bed or basket to sleep in, this should be placed in a warm and draft free position in the home. This is your puppies territory and this will help to give him or her a sense of security. You could start by teaching your puppy the comand "in your bed" you should place your puppy gently into its bed once you have given the command. The puppy will soon learn to go into its bed when asked. You must not punish your puppy for not going into its bed as it may take some time for it to learn what is espected of it and it may then become fearful of you, rather, you should always place your puppy into the basket and praise good behaviour.

A puppy which has just left it's mother and litter mates will find he/she has alot to get used to, new surroundings, new people, new smells, new sights, Quite a lot to get used to and in a very short space of time. The puppy finds himself/herself, alone at night for the first time. it is not uncommon for the puppy to feel alone and to howl. if you are sure he is not cold or hungry, try to ignore the noise as much as possible, it may be difficult but try to ignore it as much as possible, without upsetting your neighbours. As a puppy that gets into the habit of you coming to them at every noise you make will soon learn that, that behaviour will get them the company thay are wanting at a very inconvenient hour for you! You may find that this howl or whining lasts for a few nights, but try to remain strong as you will not do yourself any favours by being tempted to take the pup to your bedroom . By getting your puppy over reliant on you it makes it harder for the pup when it grows up, for example if you stay at a friends or if you need to leave your dog with a friend or if you need to place your dog in kennels whilst you go on a holiday, it would make it harder for the dog to settle. During the day it is a good idea to get your puppy used to being on his/her own for short periods of time, pop out into the garden for a few minutes, then pop out for ten minutes, the puppy will get used to the fact that being on it's own for short periods of time is normal daily life and will learn to feel secure and confiident when left on its own in it's bed or basket.

Training your puppy

You should not expect to much when it comes to training your puppy. At early stages in the pup's new life with you, you should expect to be actively teaching house training and perhaps a couple of basic commands. As the weeks pass by, you will be able to teach the puppy a few more commands. You will need to be patient and not make the training sessions too long, a few minutes, twice a day is suffient. Some people house train their puppies using paper training, this is where they choose to use newspapers, which they place on the floor and encourage the puppy to use these when they are unable to be go out into the garden to relieve themselves. They then move the paper further away until the puppy gets used to going to the toilet wherever the papers are placed, gradually the papers are moved next to the door that leads to the garden. This method of training is ideal to use when the puppy has not had its vaccinations, as puppies can pick up many diseases from the ground so this why many people use this method up until then. The puppy must be encouraged to learn to relieve itself outdoors, take the puppy to the designated toilet area after feeding, after playing and on awaking, a sign that the puppy is going to go to the toilet is it circling around. When the puppy goes to the toilet, you must give it lots of praise. You must remeber that the puppy only has a small bladder therefore you must be prepared for some accidents. The puppy should never be told off for a toilet accident.

It may be best to place the puppy in the kitchen or a room with hard flooring whilst you are house training as you may not like accidents on your carpets or soft furnishing. All accidents must be cleaned as soon as possible and you must work hard with the house training as a dog that is allowed to remain in dirty conditions will probably become a dirty dog later on in life. You should disinfect the soiled area with a pet safe disinfectant. As the puppy gets older it has more bladder control and can make it to the outdoors and garden easier.

The things to start to teach your puppy are simple commands such as "get in your bed", "Stay", when you call your pup's name and he or she comes to you, make sure you make a big fuss of him or her and that way the pup will associate coming to you as a pleasant experience. calling the pup's name at it's meal times is another way of the pup learning to associate coming to you as a pleasant and rewarding experience. You also need to get your pup used to wearing a collar, you must also attach an id disc to the pup's collar, this should state your name, usually surname, telephone number, postcode and the dogs name if you wish. Alternatively you could just have your name and address on it. You should also get the pup used to having a lead attached to the collar, eventually the pup will learn to walk with with you holding the other end of the lead. There is nothing worse than watching an owner being dragged up the road, or the puppy lagging behind because it has not been taught properly how to walk. In time after the vaccinations have been done, you could enrole yourself and your puppy to a puppy socialisation class or training class, this can be great fun for the both of you.

Feeding your puppy

You may be lucky enough to have recieved a diet sheet with your puppy, continue with this for the period the diest sheet states. if you do not have a diet sheet. puppies aged 7 - 12 weeks could be fed four small meals per day. Puppies aged 12 weeks - 6 months can be fed three meals per day, you will need to add more food to each feed gradually as the dog grows older. Puppies aged 6 months - 1 year old could be fed 2 meals per day. be sure to follow the feeding requirements on the dog food packaging and if you are unsure you shoudl consult the breeder or your vet. If the Puppy is leaving some of the food, but seems otherwise active and well, you may be overfeeding at the each meal time. However if your puppy is not eating and appears uninterested in things and sleepy, be sure to visit your vet.

Brushing and bathing

It should not usually be necessary to have to bath your puppy but if you need to you should use a puppy safe shampoo, luke warm water and avoid getting water and shampoo in the puppies eyes and ears, be very careful around the puppies face. if your puppy should get fleas, please do not use any flea shampoo or flea spray on your puppy as these should not be used until the puppy is at least 12 weeks old. Just use a puppy safe shampoo or baby shampoo, then comb through gently with a flea comb, you may well find that most of the fleas will be removed whilst bathing and combing. Dry the puppy with a towel and keep the puppy warm and away from any draughs.

Teething

The puppy will loose its puppy teeth somewhere between the age of 12 weeks and 6 months and these puppy teeth will fall out as the new adult teeth start to come through.The puppy will need plenty of suitable things to chew on to aid with this.

Worming and vacinations

Worming can be discused with your vet at the time of vaccinations. vaccinations are important to puppies, they help to protect them against canine diseases. The Puppy will usually have these vaccinations somewhere between 8 and 12 weeks of age.Puppies should be kept in the home until they have these vaccinations and they should not come into contact with unvacinated dogs. Viral infections can easily be picked up from the ground or grass where any other dog has been walked, even if your puppy has not come into contact with another dog.

Dog care

The dog, like the puppy, must have it's own bed or basket, its special place that belongs to them. Your dog should know to go to its bed when it is told and should have learnt some commands, such as come, stay, heel, sit, lay down, you can even progress further and teach your dog tricks if you have the patience, you could teach them to give their paw, (shake hands), speak, roll over etc the list goes on and on.

It goes without saying that you should brush and check your dog for parasites at least weekly, this will also give you the opportunity to check ears, eyes, feet, nails etc. Periodic bathing is a good way to freshen up your dog.

A good diet is important, again there is so many dog foods to choose from. Feeding once per day or splitting the meal into two feeding times per day is acceptable, esspecially for the larger breeds who may find it too much to take all the food in at once.

Exercising you dog is one of the main important things in your dogs life. A walk for about an hour a day is the minimum or you could split it into two half hour walks per day. Some large dogs and very energetic dogs will like to eur dogxercise more. Small breeds may like to walk for less time. A good run off the lead is ideal, providing you are in a safe enclosed area. A game of ball is another good way to exercise your dog as well as playing with it at the same time. When taking you dog out in public it is important that your dog is under control. Farmers have the right to shoot your dog if it is running in his field, especially where sheep are. You should also always clean up after your dog. Dog feaces is a danger to children and not pleasant for other people to step in. You can get fined if you do not clean up after your dog in a public place. There are poop scoopes and poop bags available from most good pet shops. Alternatively you could use a carrier bag or baby nappy bags.

Continuing with training classes is a good way to learn further commands and is good for your dog, or joing a training class for the first time. There will probably be other adult dogs there which are very obedient and others that are not so much obedient and learning.

Regular health check ups with your vet is a great way to help to prevent and illness progressing too far. there are vaccinations, dental checks, weight, worming, flea treatments, and so much more a vet can do for your dog.

Cleaning your adult dogs teeth is also important and if this is something which your dog has been used to from a puppy, it may save you the expense of dental vet bills later on. Alternatively or aswell you can give your dog a hard bone from time to time. There are many bones available, but please do not give your dog chicken bones as these can splinter and get stuck within the dog. Pet stores have a wide selection of dog bones availalbe and they even have dental hard chews which may be a safer alternative. Remember Never to use human tooth paste on your dogs teeth as they contain soda's which upset your dogs stomach, always use a specially prepared tooth paste for dogs. There are doggy tooth brushes available which look similar to human ones, there are finger tooth brushes, which fit on the end of your finger too, I find these much easier to use.

This dog care is only the icing on the cake, there is so much more to know. I will make a further hub on dog illnesses and more things in the future.

I hope that you have enjoyed my hub "Dog and Puppy Care"

Tracy x