Today is August 24 and our Roxanne x Beau litter is 7 weeks and 3 days old. Each of the eight pups has a new home waiting. We have prepared this post to help those homes prepare for their visit here and their first days with "Pup" as a new member of the family. We hope those visiting our website looking for a pup can learn something valuable from this too.
Okay, there are several items or circumstances you need to be prepared for in advance of your visit here. Some of these include:
Dog crate. Crates are absolutely indispensable. You should have a crate with you to take Pup home in, especially if you have no travel partner. Crates are the safest way for you and Pup to travel in an automobile, help with housebreaking and keep Pup and your furniture safe when you cannot devote full attention to Pup. We strongly advise against wire crates. They do not offer the sense of seclusion that helps calm Pup, and the openings between the wires can catch and injure Pup's legs and jaws. This is our opinion based on actual experience, but if you must, at least a wire crate is still more useful than no crate at all. Beyond that, almost any plastic or metal crate works. It helps, a lot, to have a smaller size crate for a puppy. Since Pup will outgrow a small crate, buy a less costly two piece clamshell type at "Pet-Mart", or even find a used one (clean and disinfect first!). Save the big $$$ for a fancy crate when your dog reaches adult size. You do get what you pay for up to a point. We are still using a couple of cheap two piece crates bought at least 35 years ago. The best way to have a crate around when you need it is own at least two.
Collar and leash When you stop along the way home to get some exercise and relief for Pup, you need reliable control. Pup may be more stressed than you realize, and bolt across the road when you get out for a potty break. This means you need a suitable adjustable collar and leash attached and in your grasp before that car door opens. Several breeder friends are in full agreement on this matter. For the trip home, a harness might be even better. Note there are some responsible authorities now finding long term use of some harnesses are causing detrimental skeletal and muscle alignment issues. Bring a water bowl and a jug for water too.
Dog food You will save yourself a lot of headaches if you pick a good quality food and buy it before Pup comes home. We will provide you with some of the food that Pup is currently being fed, which is "Adult Chicken and Rice Recipe" from NutriSource Pet Foods. This is the same food our adult dogs get off season. NutriSource offers automatic shipping like Chewy and the cost is surprisingly modest for a good quality formula food. Even though it does not say "puppy food" it is labeled as "formulated to meet the nutritional levels established by the Association of American Feed Control Officials (AAFCO) Dog Food Nutrient Profiles for all life stages including growth of large size dogs". Any bag of dog food that meets these standards says so on the bag, usually on the back or side next to the ingredients list. There are several reasons why we choose this food. The protein comes from quality animal meat sources. It has no preservatives beyond salt, citric acid and mixed tocopherols (a healthy vitamin E compound taken from natural sources), and no corn, wheat, legumes or pulses (such as peas, beans, chickpeas, soybeans). Since this food has no artificial preservatives, you might find it loses a little palatability towards the end of the bag if Pup is your only dog, especially if you do not use an airtight food bin. NutriSource produces a puppy specific food with a similar ingredient profile, but with 25% more calories by weight. This is typical in the line up of many good dog food producers. It is very important that Pup gets a properly formulated food. Remember, the bag will say, "all life stages", "for puppies" or "for growth and reproduction". Among other things this means Pup gets enough calories in a serving and a proper balance of calcium to phosphorous. Soon we will transition our adult dogs to a more calorie dense food to help with stress and condition during training and hunting. The products we feed come at a good price point but there other good alternatives. Contact us to discuss. Be wary of switching foods too often if Pup keeps rejecting what you offer. Changing foods too often does rarely solves any problems, and creates especially picky eaters. Remember what your mother said, "Eat it. It's good for you." There are valid differences of opinion on dog food ingredients and some outright bad information. We are big fans of airtight food containers sized just right for an entire bag of dog food. We can show you the product we use.
Vaccinations: Pup got it's first puppy vaccination on August 13, right at 6 weeks of age. That vaccination is the first in a series that will cover distemper, canine adenovirus types 1 and 2, parvovirus and parainfluenza virus. The common acronym for this shot is "DA2PP". Pup will get another on September 3rd (9 weeks). Pup should get the same vaccinations at 12 and 16 weeks. If you have not done so already, please schedule appointments with your veterinarian as close as possible to your arrival home with Pup for a health examination (see your sales/deposit agreement), and for12 and 16 week vaccinations. Don't skimp! A series of vaccinations is needed for Pup to fully develop immunity to these serious threats. Our dogs are also be vaccinated separately for leptospirosis, a bacterial infection associated with water, wet conditions and/or infected dogs or wildlife. There are various forms, called serovars of leptospirosis, and the vaccine does not cover all of them. This is a consideration in our area and many places we travel to to hunt. Never allow a leptospirosis vaccine to be administered along with a parvovirus/distemper (DA2PP) vaccine as a serious adverse reaction may result. Of course, your pup needs to be protected from rabies too. Your veterinarian may also recommend a Lyme disease vaccination that can help protect against Lyme, but not other important tick borne illnesses which can include Ehrlichiosis, Anaplasmosis, Rocky Mountain Spotted Fever or Babesiosis. It is rare for puppies to have negative reactions to vaccinations but it can happen. It is advisable to keep an eye on Pup for the first hour or more after vaccinations and be ready to return quickly to your veterinarian if Pup presents facial swelling, vomiting, hives, itchiness, diarrhea, or breathing difficulties. Kennel cough vaccination may also be indicated for certain circumstances. Wait till after
that last vaccination for play dates with other dogs. Any dog that is vaccinated can still be a carrier for something terribly lethal like parvovirus.
Worms, Fleas and Ticks Dogs are vulnerable to a number of internal and external parasites. Some internal parasites may be inevitable but at least do not stress Pup while they are present in a dormant stage. If you do not undertake a program to prevent impacts from these parasites, it's likely Pup will suffer in some way during it's lifetime. This is especially important for hunting dogs when extra physical stresses during the hunting season may "wake up" dormant parasites. Heartworm is a consideration apart from other internal parasites broadly associated with the gastrointestinal system. Whatever program you settle on, you need an on-going program to prevent infestation by adult heartworms. Pup will have been treated for certain internal parasites several times with Pyrantel (before 6 weeks of age) and Fenbendazole (after 6 weeks of age) before going home with you. You will get the dates of these treatments from us when you arrive. There are many ways to administer a complete parasite control program, and products change every year. On account of this, we do not make any recommendation other than you should consult with your veterinarian on a program going forward to deal with these parasites.
Time. You will never enjoy, or potentially waste, a more influential period of time with Pup than the days between Pup's arrival home with you and its 16 week birthday. Animal behaviorists tells us this is the period when Pup has the best chance to learn how to interact successfully with you and the world you live in. Pup needs to learn how to cope with reasonable stresses, to trust you, to rely on you for food and comfort, and to learn to interact with the world around it without fear. Make lots of time and have fun. If you are having fun, Pup likely is learning and having fun too. Conversely, if you are stressed, Pup will know it... every time, and learn to react negatively. At this age, Pup needs guidance, not punishment, to become the friendly, easy going partner you are looking for. This is a good time to learn to interact with your dog in a calm manner and tone of voice.
When you get here: We are in the practice of putting a blaze orange fleece garment on our mail box post to make it easy to spot our location from the road. The time of your visit to pick out your puppy is set up so you will have ample time to visit, ask questions and look at all the puppies you have to choose from. We will review materials you will take home along with your puppy, and make sure we have correct contact information to be submitted later by us into the microchip database along with your pup's microchip serial number.
Traveling home: Tractor Supply has stores nearby in the villages of Penn Yan and Bath if you need to purchase any of the items we mentioned here in the course of your trip here. Please plan on staying away from dog parks or dog walk areas at expressway rest stops. Both of these areas are for people, not dogs. Such places are loaded with stressful sights and smells, which we do not want Pup exposed to on an already stressful day. Pup's immunity is uncertain at this point too, and we already did a lot of work to keep Pup as worm and disease free as possible. Both of these areas are points of concentrated exposure to pathogens and parasites. Take a side road and find some place no one else goes with their dog. This is a good practice with any dog at any stage of life, and don't forget that bowl and water jug.
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