Puppies are not small dogs. They are baby dogs. When you bring that adorable eight-week-old puppy please remember, that creature has been in the world for two months! Two. That is all. It is an infant, and it must be treated as such. Puppies need to eat and use the bathroom a lot. You are going to be running outside every two hours, or less, for a month. Even after the get the hang of potty breaking, they still will need to go out because they won't have the muscle control.
Picking the puppy is quite an exciting time. But don't dive in and drag out the first wiggly bundle you get your hands on. Watch the puppies. Watch how they interact, and if they have just been outside playing, please don't pick one at that moment!
See how the puppies react with their breeder and each other. Are they interested in you? Shy? Indifferent? That shy puppy in the corner is oh so pitiful. But unless you have experience working in building confidence in dogs, please don't buy it. That shy puppy has a high chance to become a not so shy legal suit later. Shy puppies are often scared puppies, which more often then not become scared dogs that may bite from fear.
Don't expect the puppy to be spotlessly clean, but they should be clean. The house and area they are in should be clean. If you think it's dirty and nasty, it probably is.
Try to meet puppy's parents. They will tell you what puppy will probably be like. Do not fall for any spiel about 'rare' puppies or 'rare' colors. Know the breed standard. If the color they are selling is unacceptable, and they are still producing it, then it is for profit and not the better of the breed. Turn and run away.
On the flip side, if you do want an exotic color, do some research. White Doberman Pinschers are partial albinos. Facts About Albino Dobermans. White German Shepherds are actually now a completely separate breed attempting to join the AKC. The white streak we loved on Lassies nose is a flaw in the collie. The list goes on and on. Know what you are looking at before you buy. "Rare" is not so rare. Don't let them lie to you about it.
The shots are normally laid out at 8, 12, 16, and 20 weeks of age. This is normaly a distemper booster that is a combo vaccine that also includes parvo virus. The puppies system is not strong enough to gain immunity from just one shot, so the follow-up is necessary.
At three months the puppy should get its kennel cough vaccine. Don't turn it down please! Kennel Cough does not come just from the kennel. It is a highly contagious bronchial infection. You're puppy can get it from walking to the bathroom and an infected dog has walked down the sidewalk. You're pet being a house pet does not protect it from becoming sick! Do not risk its life.
At four months, it is the law in the United States of America to get a rabies vaccine. A one-year rabies is recommended for the first vaccine, and then after that a three-year vaccine can be administered. Quite nice and convent that one.
We all scream at the puppy sometime. Even if it is incoherently in the night after two months of broken sleep for potty visits. However, it does absolutely nothing but make us feel a little bit better and confuse our young dog. They can understand that you are not happy, but they don't know why.
First, praise must be taught. A puppy does not automatically know that good dog is a good thing. You must rub and tickle and play, and show the puppy what it means to be praised. Eventually it will whittle down to 'good puppy', but in the beginning, as you stagger outside to use the potty, show the puppy what you mean.
On the flip side, punishment is rarely necessary in a physical form. The puppy is not maliciously biting you to destroy your concentration and wreck your house. It is playing, as puppies do, and as it would with its littermates. Often, the best recourse is to ignore the puppy, or in case if biting, scream OW. Within a week I have had any puppy I've done the OW scream on mouthing softer. The best part is until a 'drop' command is learned, OW can be used to get them off of other objects.
Puppies are responsive. Use that responsive ness for your advantage. Don't slap, scream, or shove their noises in their accidents. Instead reward them for what they do, and they will reward you by doing it.
Don't let them fool you. When you have large breed dogs, as I do, food is a crucial thing. Large puppies should not grow to quickly. On a high quality food they will still reach their maximum size, just not as quickly. Don't be proud that you pup is gaining 20 to 30lb's a month. You may be damaging their bones and joints with this.
For puppies over 70lbs they are now suggesting that you immediately switch to a high quality adult food. The puppy still gains the same nutrients, but the protean level is lower. The protean levels are what cause the large growth. Do your puppy a favor and put aside your pride at how big he is. Let him grow slowly, with good health. He will still be a monster in the end, but a healthy one.
Puppy food has its place, but it is not often with puppies. Please, please, please, don't fall for the 'Large Breed' puppy food angle! They put MORE protean and les fat in, meaning not only is your puppy growing fast but also it does not have the calories to keep up with that growth. A puppy should be active, don't let the labels fool you. A high quality adult food will give you a wonderful lifetime companion.
Once you have gotten your kennel cough vaccine, take puppy out with you. Take him to PetsMart, the park. Go the schools and let them see and experience young children. Let him see and experience the world. Go on short walks and car trips. Don't limit the puppy's world to your house and yard.
These things will give you a well-rounded dog. A dog that is confident around strangers and small children. Socialization is the key to nipping aggression in the bud. There is more in-depth information here.
But my puppy has no hair and its nails are fine!
Yeah, I know, but you are saving yourself, your vet, and your groomer heartache later. Get puppy used to being still for a brushing and having his feet and nails handled. These will make life so much easier for everyone that must handle and work with your pet.
If you have a breed that will later require grooming, go look for groomers. Look at their shops, or perhaps see if your vet's office also offers, or recommends grooming. Talk to groomers about clips, and when the hair should be done. Many puppies should be left as furry monsters so that their coats can fully develop. Clipping early can over stimulate hair and cause improper texture to grow. Keep a furry beast until its six months old and just brush at home. Then off to the groomers.
Although, you can probably have the face and feet cleaned up. This will also get your puppy used to having the clippers on it, and being handled in a strange environment. Please do not take your puppy to any groomer that does not require vaccinations. This only puts your pet at risk.
The crate is not a little box in which you are condemning the dog to. I normally don't put anything but newspaper in with the puppy at first. It is hard to resist the thick, fluffy towel, but the puppy will pee on the tower, the towel will absorb the urine, and the puppy does not learn to not go in the crate.
The newspaper makes it easier to clean, but the puppy must deal with the damp, reeking kennel. 98% of puppies will attempt to hold themselves when faced with this situation. There is always that 2% that will not.
Now, for the crate to be used successfully, you need to be consistent about taking the puppy out. If you ignore when he whines, he will go in the crate and eventually accept that as how it is. Puppies from pet stores already have to go in their 'crate' so especially diligence is needed to correct them of this habit.
Not all whining is because we have to go out! We all know this. However, when my puppies whine in their crates for the first month, I take them out, and if it is 'bed' or 'nap' time, I put them back in. Don't play with the puppy no matter how cute they are. Just take him out and put him back.
Puppies are lonely in their crate, which is why they whine. I keep my pups crated by my bed. I use a wire crate for the first month or two, and then switch to the plastic, airline kind we all know so well. Putting a puppy alone, downstairs, is pretty uncomfortable and unhappy making for the puppy.
All of my critters are house pets, and my dogs sleep in my room to some degree or another. I prefer them there then locked away downstairs where they can't love on me, or, heaven forbid, protect me if something happened. A puppy has come from a litter and a mother. The lack of social and physical contact is devastating at this stage.
The crate is also not a place of punishment. It is a time out corner, but not a place to leave the puppy when you are mad. I do find it useful to crate the puppy after you become mad, so that you can cool off away from the baby.
The crate is a tool, as the leash is a tool. You use a tool, but you do not become dependent upon it.
Puppies initially chew as an exploration. They chew you because that is how they play. At around four months chewing begins as part of teething. This will last until seven months, and all I can say is, get some chew toys! Chew toys are best if they are hard, durable rubber, or in some way edible.
I do not suggest rawhide chips, and only rawhide if it is compressed, or you are watching the pet. Rawhide can be swallowed and inflate to cause intestinal blockage and death. Isn't it great?
A muzzle grab is very simple, although hard if you've picked a breed without a muzzle. Simple grasp the puppy's muzzle, and hold it firmly enough that they cannot jerk it from your hand easily. At this time say "no bite" or whatever your anti-bite command is. Once the puppy whimpers, release. Repeat as necessary.
The other way to avoid the jaws of distraction is observation. When the puppy cannot be in your site, crate him. If you are in a room, put up gates so he has to stay in the room with you. If you can't put up gates, put on his leash and tie him to you. Lack of supervision will get your house destroyed.
Seven puppies and I have lost one pair of shoes. Someone else left that pair of shoes in the dog's area. That is the sum of my damage because I followed the simple steps above.
It is not too early to begin to train your puppy. Don't wait until he is 6 months old to put on a collar and leash. Leash break him in the first two days. It does not have to be rough. Putting on the leash and letting him drag it around gets him used to it. Then sit on the floor and hold it. When he reaches the end and bucks, let him. After a while they get the clue. The longest it has taken me to leash break a puppy is three days with the above method.
Training classes are a good one. I am not a high advocate for PetsMart, but they do serve a purpose. Please go and check out the class, the instructor, and the methods before you go to the class. You do NOT have to use a choker. You can, and the instructions for the class will say to get one but you do not have to use one. I does make it easier, but never use a choke collar on a young dog. Choke collars are not meant to be used constantly, and if your dog lunges a lot they can damage their throat.
If you are comfortable in the class, then so will your puppy be. If you don't like it, leave. Do not let someone else ruin your dog because they said that their way is the holy writ that keeps the world from falling into the void.
Practice at home, and be repetitive. Through repetition your pet will learn what you want. Keep at it at home, at class, and anywhere the two of you are. The results can only be positive.
Don't play with your hands and let the puppy bite and gnaw unless you plan to have an adult dog biting and gnawing at you. When you get down at the puppy's level to play, make sure you are still a bit above him. This helps to reassert your alpha role. You should also start and end playtime.
Also, you should win most of the time. Let the puppy win sometimes so that their confidence is not damaged, but you need to win enough that they do not decide you're a wimp and a push over. On the flip side, for those raising working dogs, the puppy should win all of the time to build confidence. This makes a pushier dog, but that is what you want out in the field.
Playtime should only go as far as the puppy becomes tired. If you have a large hyper breed you will have to monitor playtime and end it before the puppy is complexly worn out. Their bones and joints are fragile, and too much rough play can damage them.
After play, go outside to the bathroom and have a nap in the crate.