Your Dog

Your puppy is entering a totally new and sometimes scary environment coming to your home. Imagine how the world must look from your puppy's point of view: everything is quite large relative to you; the giant people with the booming or shrill voices; and a totally unfamiliar environment away from your siblings and mom. All-in-all, a stressful experience and one that may call for quite a bit of patience on your part.

Nutrition plays an important role in your dog's life. We recommend top quality cat foods (i.e. IVD Life Stages, Iams, Science Diet) to provide the nutrients necessary for growth and continued health. These diets have undergone rigorous testing to ensure their quality.

Many foods will claim to be a premium food, but many have not undergone extensive feeding trials. Top quality foods are easily digestible and your puppy will eat less and poop less with these diets than other commercial brands.

When you are training your puppy, remember to use positive reinforcement. Praise them when they do good, and they will remember that. Unless you catch them in the act, scolding them is actually not much use. Dogs do not have the long-term associative abilities of humans to connect what they did then with the scolding they are getting now.

One of the biggest concerns of pet owners is how to best house train their new companion. A method called crate-training is usually preferred. You provide the puppy with a crate (essentially a large pet carrier) as their home. This becomes both their "time-out" place, their bed, and a safe haven they can go when they want some alone time. Most dogs are very loathe to go to the bathroom in the same place where they sleep. By consistently taking the puppy out of the crate and immediately going outdoors to the appropriate potty place, and then praising the appropriate behavior, they will usually catch on quite quickly.

A training class is a very good idea for both you and your puppy. While teaching you how to best instruct your new friend, it strengthens the bond between you and firmly places you as the leader of the family pack. This is especially important with larger or aggressive breeds of dogs. Most puppy classes will accept dogs of 3 to 4 months of age, if they have had a full set of vaccinations. This is when they are the most receptive to learning new behaviors, and the positive socialization with other pets and people is very good for them at this stage of development as well.

Dogs, like humans, are individuals. Each has a different personality and different requirements in terms of attention, food and "alone" time. Figuring out how to best deal with your new companion is up to you. We can help ensure that you and your dog have a long, happy life together through preventative medicine and annual check-ups.