There is nothing more precious than a healthy puppy. If you are a breeder and want your charges to stay that way, its best that you take a lesson in proper puppy care.
How a breeder spends time with his puppies is one of the most important aspects that will determine how they will behave as adult dogs. In order to ensure that your litter does not get into any accidents and remains healthy, keep the following tips in mind
Keep them Away from Cat Litter
If you happen to own a cat and are a responsible pet owner there should be cat litter for your feline to do its business. However, while scented cat litter can avoid any embarrassing smells from stinking up the place they are lethal to puppies. A bigger dog might only get sick from ingesting cat litter but the same can kill a puppy. Therefore keep the litter where only the cat can reach it.
Also keep your floors clean and free from any trinkets that might get lodged in a puppys throat. Puppies love to chew on things and a dropped crayon would be too hard to resist.
Regular Grooming
The mother of the puppies might lick them on a regular basis but it wont hurt to groom them yourself once in a while. This will involve regular hair brushing, clipping their nails and baths. Fur that is not groomed is susceptible to tick and flea infestations which can turn fatal for younger dogs. Its best that you start the grooming after a month or two after birth.
Feed them Quality Food
Its best that you feed your charges quality food during the first few years. Remember, they are still at the development stage. If they are still weaning only buy formula that is specifically made for weaning puppies. Hills pet nutrition would tell you the same.
The reason why is simple. A younger dogs digestive system cannot digest large amounts of nutrients like an older dog. Do not make the mistake of feeding them cows milk!
Once your puppies start eating solids you can also try adding some fresh vegetables in their diet. This does not mean that you slice up a whole cabbage and expect them to eat it. Start off slow by adding some grated carrots on their regular food.
Overfeeding them is just as harmful as feeding them too little as well. How do you determine that? Make sure that a puppys stomach does not get bigger than its chest. The water bowl must also be removed an hour after feeding.
Vet Visits
A vet is more qualified to handling puppies than you are. A thorough physical examination would help you sniff out any abnormalities that might be worth looking into. This involves spaying/neutering, de-worming and vaccination shots.
If the puppies havent been given their shots make sure that you keep them away from other animals (except their mother) before they do. Animals like cats and other dogs might pick up diseases or other bacteria that can be transferred onto a vulnerable puppy.
Potential customers who come to see them must also be asked to leave their shoes at the door for this purpose as well. Also make sure that you do not entertain any customers until the puppies are at least 4 weeks old.
About the Author
The author is a pet lover and breeder. In his spare time he loves to take his dogs out for walks and spends most of his time writing blogs that educate people about taking proper care of their pets like hills pet nutrition.