New Puppy Health 101
Everything from Puppy Shots to Diet & Exercise
New puppies are so much fun—but taking care of the puppy health basics is an important part of starting your life together.
Imagine that you’ve just added a Cocker Spaniel to your family. Taffy is a bouncing ball of fluff and everyone is excited about her. Where will she sleep? Where will her bowl go? What color collar to buy her?
The fun has just begun, but there are some important medical and health precautions to take, too.
First Things First: Puppy Shots and Your Vet
Every new puppy should have an examination by a veterinarian where you discuss basic puppy health and how to schedule your puppy’s shots. Specifically, the doctor will do a physical, look for signs of external parasites, do a fecal check for puppy worms and go over a customized vaccination schedule.
Dog vaccinations today are now described as “core” (a good idea for every dog) and “non-core” (vaccines that only some dogs will need). Puppies start off with a series of vaccines aimed at protecting the pup after its maternal immunity wears off and its own immune system kicks in. Veterinarians usually start vaccines at eight weeks and give rounds every three to four weeks until sixteen weeks of age.
Most puppies will need a series of vaccines for distemper and parvo, as well as a rabies vaccination, but, these days, non-core customization is the latest trend in puppy shots.
Which vaccines Taffy will need and how often she receives them will depend on a variety of factors, including your geographic area, your travel plans, and Taffy’s home situation. For example, a dog that lives in Connecticut, a state with a high deer population, has a higher risk of contracting Lyme disease than a dog that lives in Arizona.
Core vaccines include:
- Distemper
- Rabies
- Parvo
- Canine adenovirus 2 (Hepatitis)
Non-core vaccines include:
- Parainfluenza (kennel cough)
- Bordetella (kennel cough)
- Lyme disease
- Leptospirosis
Your veterinarian will discuss all sorts of puppy worms with you—both external and internal—and how to prevent them. Puppy worms, or parasites, drain nutrients from your puppy and may spread other diseases. Some of these diseases and parasites can even be spread to people.
External Puppy Worms
A heavy load of parasites could be fatal to a young pup. Depending on the parasites found, your veterinarian may suggest a topical treatment, baths, dips, sprays or powders. These products contain chemicals to repel, kill or prevent growth and development of parasites.
External Parasites include:
- Fleas—small, fast moving, brown, biting parasites
- Ticks—rarely moving, small parasites that attach to the host and expand with the host’s blood
- Mites—may be so small they are only detected with a microscope
- Lice—small parasites that attach to the host’s hair
Your veterinarian will test Taffy’s fecal sample for internal parasites, then choose a de-wormer that’s appropriate for those parasites, usually an oral medication.
Internal Puppy Worms
Internal parasites include:
- Roundworms or ascarids—very common, may be found in vomit
- Hookworms—drain the host’s blood
- Whipworms—cause serious diarrhea and drain nutrients
- Tapeworms—look like dried rice near rectum
- Giardia—a protozoa that causes diarrhea
Microchipping
Finally, Taffy should be microchipped by your veterinarian so you can retrieve and identify her if she gets lost. Her breeder or your shelter may have already had her microchipped, but make sure the number is registered so that you can be contacted if your puppy sneaks out from under your fence and ends up in a shelter.
Puppy Diet
For at least the first few days at home, Taffy should be fed the special puppy diet the breeder or shelter had her eating. She is already dealing with so many new things, it’s best to keep her stomach filled with familiar food. Your puppy’s diet will change, though, so help her through the transition the way you would with any other change.
If you and your veterinarian decide not to wait for more growth, but just to switch her to a different puppy diet, change over to the new food gradually. Start with ¾ of the familiar food and ¼ new food, and gradually increase the amount of new food while reducing the amount of old food.
Most puppies handle diet changes well. Puppies do best with a nutritious puppy food for at least the first couple of months. Feeding regular meals will help you determine how well Taffy is eating and will help with housebreaking, too.
The Fit Pup
Exercise is an important part of puppy health. Regular exercise will help Taffy grow strong bones and muscles. Pups who get regular exercise are better behaved and less destructive. Plus, it’s fun to go on walks together!
Exercise can include:
- Short walks—no mile-long hikes until at least six months of age.
- Throwing low-flying disks, making sure that Taffy stays on the ground. Puppies should not jump until they are at least ten months of age.
- Rolling a ball.
- Dragging a toy on the ground and letting her chase it.
- Teaching her tricks, like shaking, rolling over, and fetching a toy.
You and Taffy are going to have tons of fun if you can manage your puppy’s health and set a foundation for a healthy life together.
Dr. Eldredge, DVM, graduated from Cornell University and was the first recipient of the Gentle Doctor Award. She has won national writing awards from the Cat Writers’ Association and the Dog Writers’ Association of America. She lives in upstate New York with seven dogs, one cat, six horses, two donkeys, nine ducks, thirteen sheep, one goat and three primates - her husband, daughter and son.