Puppies are without a doubt some the most adorable things on the planet. Parenting a new puppy, however, is no walk in the park. Here’s a guide to help you care for the new addition to the family.

When the time comes to finally bring your new puppy home for the first time, you can pretty much count on three things: unbridled joy, cleaning up your puppy’s accidents, and a major lifestyle adjustment. As you’ll soon learn, a growing puppy needs much more than a food bowl and a doghouse to thrive. And while it may be a lot of work initially, it’s well worth the effort! Establishing good and healthy habits in those first few sleep-deprived weeks will lay the foundation for many dog years of happiness for you and your puppy.

1. Find a Good Vet

The first place you and your new puppy should go together is to the vet for a checkup. Although your puppy has passed two health inspections, we encourage new owners to take their puppy in within the first two weeks to set up a good vaccination plan and have your vet verify the health of your puppy. This visit will help you take the first steps toward a good preventive health routine. If you don’t have vet already, ask friends for recommendations. If you are in our area, I highly recommend Dr. Sara Schroeder at High Cliff Vet.

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2. Make the most of your first vet visit

• Set up a vaccination plan with your vet.
• Discuss safe options for controlling parasites, both external and internal.
• Learn which signs of illness to watch for during your puppy’s first few months.
• Ask about your vet’s recommendation for the best time to spay or neuter. We recommend to wait as long as possible to ensure your puppy receives all the important growth hormones.

3. Shop for quality food.

Your puppy’s body is growing in critical ways which is why you’ll need to select a food that formulated especially for puppies opposed to adult dogs. We recommend a high protein, small kibble puppy chow. Ask your vet when your puppy should be switched to an adult food. Make sure your puppy has fresh and abundant water available at all times.

4. Feed your new puppy free choice puppy food the first week he/she is home.

Age 8-12 weeks – 4 meals per day Age 3-6 months – 3 meals per day Age 6-12 months – 2 meals per day

Sometimes puppies act more finicky the first week with the adjustment of being rehomed, so you want it ready and available. After that, feed multiple times a day, giving them as much as they want for seven minutes and then take it away. This will help them to learn to eat when it is there and will also help with potty training, because they usually need to go to the bathroom right after they eat so you will know when that is rather than guessing throughout the game.

5. Establish a bathroom routine

According to the experts, your most potent allies in the quest to housetrain your puppy are patience, planning, and plenty of positive reinforcement. In addition, it’s probably not a bad idea to put a carpet cleaning plan in place as accidents will happen.

Until your puppy has had all of her vaccinations, you’ll want to find a place outdoors that’s inaccessible to other animals. This helps reduce the spread of viruses and disease. Make sure to give lots of positive reinforcement immediately whenever your puppy manages to potty outside and, almost equally important, refrain from punishing her/him when she/he has accidents indoors.

Knowing when to take your puppy out is almost as important as giving her praise whenever she does eliminate outdoors. Here’s a list of most common times to take your puppy out to potty.

• When you wake up
• Right before bed
• Immediately after your puppy eats or drinks a lot of water.
• When your puppy wakes up from a nap
• During and after physical activity

6. Watch for early signs of illness.

For the first few months, puppies are more susceptible to sudden bouts of illnesses that can be serious if not caught in the early stages. If you observe any of the following symptoms in your puppy, it’s time to contact the vet.

By teaching your puppy good manners, you’ll set your puppy up for a life of positive social interaction. In addition, obedience training will help forge a stronger bond between you and puppy.

Teaching your puppy to obey commands such as sit, stay, down, and come will not only impress your friends, but these commands will help keep your dog safe and under control in any potentially hazardous situations. Many puppy owners find that obedience classes are a great way to train both owner and dog. Classes typically begin accepting puppies at age 4-6 months.

TIP Keep it positive. Positive reinforcement, such as small treats, has been proven to be vastly more effective than punishment. Vocal praise has been known to be just as effective!

8. Be Sociable

Just like obedience training, proper socialization during puppyhood helps avoid behavioral problems down the road. We at On Golden Puppy provide lots of socialization to ensure your puppy is not only healthy but happy.