How To Avoid Having A Ruff Time With Your New Puppy
If you are bringing home a new puppy, you want to be sure you take the appropriate steps to get your puppy off to the very best start possible. This means being set up for immediate basic care and doing what you can to keep the puppy healthy. This article will give you some pointers on how you can easily achieve both of these goals.
Preparing for your new puppy
You want to have the basic supplies covered when you bring home a puppy. While toys can wait, you want to make sure their needs are met. Invest in a high quality puppy food that contains fewer fillers, such as corn. If your puppy is still quite young, then you may want to mix some soft kibble with hard kibble to make it easier for them to chew it.
You should also get food and water bowls that are either very heavy or that flare out toward the bottom. Puppies can be very sloppy eaters, and these bowls will help cut down on the mess. You should also be set up with a crate to keep them in when you aren't watching them. This will keep them safer, and it helps a lot with house training them. Puppies can't hold their bladder as long as adult dogs can, so you don't want to leave them in the crate for very long at all, but it helps to keep them from being destructive or going potty in the house while you are sleeping, showering or while you run to the store for something.
Make an appointment with the veterinarian
There are a few different reasons why you want to get your puppy in for an exam shortly after bringing them home. First, you want to make sure there is nothing wrong with them. Even if a puppy looks healthy to you, there may be something that needs to be treated.
It's not uncommon for a puppy to have worms. This is one example of something you want to have diagnosed and treated as soon as possible. You also want to establish your puppy as a client of the vet, so you can get them in right away in case of an emergency in the future. The puppy will need to get its vaccinations, as well as boosters. You may also want to set up an appointment to have them come back to be fixed. A vet like those at Southwest Florida Veterinary Specialists & 24-Hour Emergency Hospital can let you know exactly what's needed to ensure your puppy's ongoing health.