Saucy Pet

Posts Tagged ‘puppy health’

Once you have determined that your dog is pregnant you have approximately 62 days from the date of conception before the puppies arrive. This is just a generalization, some females will whelp earlier and some may whelp later. What you will need to look for is a change in behavior or nesting behavior, along with a frop in body temperature. Start taking her temperature two to three times a day at the same time each day when she is calm and relaxed at about day 58 to day 60. A regular (normal) temperature is between 100 to 101 degrees Fahrenheit. When her temperature drops to 98 to 99 degrees the puppies will typically be born within 24 hours.

After an initial drop in body temperature, it is important to give your vet a call to check in. You need to let him or her know that whelping will happen with a day so that he or she is prepared should you need to bring the dog in. Make sure you have transportation and that you have someone that can drive or help you move the dog, even if she is a small breed. A good idea is to line the backseat or the crate with heavy towels and remove any or all dog pajamas she might be wearing, as this can be a very messy time to move the dog. You’ll want to

Prepare a whelping box that has sides high enough to keep the puppies in but low enough to allow the mother dog to get out. A dog gate may be used to keep puppies from wandering. Use paper towels or other disposable absorbent materials for the whelping process. Don’t use anything that may irritate the female or the puppies and avoid using anything with chemical treatment such as fabric softener or deodorizers.

Although most females will know what to do you should also have thread, sharp scissors, iodine or antibacterial solution, surgical gloves and several towels on hand. If the mother does not lick the puppies the towels can be used to dry them and clear the mucus and materials from their nose after whelping. The thread and iodine is used to tie off and disinfect the umbilical cord and the scissors are used to cut it if the mother does bite through the cord.

If you own a puppy, you’ll know how stressful it can be to clean him. However, in order to stay on top of good dog health care, it is important that you bathe your puppy on a regular basis. Your puppy will learn what the cleaning process involves at an early age, and this is good. So, in order to have a clean, happy dog at the end, the way you go about your pet health practices is important and you should take the following advice:

The first thing – before you even run the bathwater – is to collect all the supplies you will need. Get a dog coat conditioner and a decent sized brush if your dog has a long coat. Also get a generously-sized towel to wrap your pooch in later. Then you need to make sure you’re wearing clothes that you don’t mind about getting wet. It is advisable to bathe the puppy when he is hungry, as he will be more attentive then. Call your puppy to you and offer a treat, remove his collar and give him a few more treats. Remember, you want this to be fun. Then its time to get the brush out, which some dogs don’t like. Any knots or tangles in your puppy’s coat will tighten and become worse when wet, so you want to comb out all tangles before turning on the tap. Get some conditioner on the fur and brush this through all the way to the ends.

Pay attention to the areas behind your dog’s ears. Tell your puppy how good he is at having a bath and reward him with treats. Show him his toy and let him play with it a little in the tub before you turn on the water. Bear in mind that a puppy with skin sensitivities should have a baby shampoo used on its head. You don’t want to burn your puppy’s delicate skin, so always test the water temperature before filling the bath tub. Once checked, gently soak the puppy’s coat with luke warm water. The trick with shampoo is massaging it, and this should be done in short circles. It is also useful to use a scrub brush to massage the shampoo in. After completing this once, make sure you do it again to make sure your puppy is extra clean. You’ll always find that there’s more soap to get out! The final step is to condition the fur and rinse, and when this is complete its time for the towel to dry your puppy off.

The majority of all new puppy owners ask the question “How big will my puppy get?”  To determine puppy growth rate, one has to consider a lot of variables to ever be able to get an accurate answer for any individual dog breed.And even then, you will be able to only get an average “puppy growth rate” range…or that ballpark figure.

But now how does is a person to estimate how big their puppy is going to get?It helps if you know that puppies at different ages grow at different rates.  The same way that puppies of different breeds grow at different rates.This makes it very difficult to pin point exactly to the pound, how big your puppy is going to be at one year old.  And, if it will continue to grow larger in it’s second year.

Determine Puppy Growth Rate

Generally speaking, here is one way to determine puppy growth rate.An adult dog will weigh almost twice as much as it did when it reached 4 months of age.And the rule of thumb for those giant breeds, your dog will double what their weight at 5 months. 

So, before buying a puppy, a person really needs to do their research on the different breeds of dogs.  You need to know if your new canine is going to reach 9 pounds or 109 pounds.You have to educate yourself on the puppy growth rate of the different breeds of dogs. 

Different Breeds Grow At Different Rates

An average small breed dog, like a toy poodle will reach full weight by year one, at 8 pounds.A bulldog will reach 20 lbs at year one, and 35 by year two.A larger breed dog, like a german shepherd will reach 70 pounds by year one, and 75 pounds by year two.And the largest breeds, like a great dane will reach 110 by year one, and 130 by year two.

NOTE: Two male puppies from the same liter can also vary in size, the same way two brothers can be very different in size.  (I’m three inches taller, and fifty pounds lighter than either of my brothers)

What About Genetics

This then tells me, that genetics can also play a big part in puppy growth rate.  I have a slender, long legged toy poodle that was not suppose to get any bigger than her 6 pound mother.Instead, she grabbed the genes of her mothers sister, and has topped out at eleven pounds.Just understand that puppy growth rate is an average, an estimate of what your dog could grow up to be.  (And I wouldn’t trade my eleven pound poodle for any six pound poodle in the world.)

Find out everything you need to know about your puppy’s health.