Importance of Veterinary Care in puppy care

Just like people, dogs receive a certain degree of immunity (known as maternal immunity) that is passed from their mothers at birth and also shortly thereafter through her milk. Vaccinations cannot effectively stimulate the puppy's immune system until this maternal immunity wears off. Because maternal immunity declines slowly over time, puppies should be vaccinated every 2 to 3 weeks until they are about 4 months old. This ensures that the puppy receives an effective dose of vaccine soon after maternal protection is gone. Restricting access to unvaccinated dogs until the full series of vaccinations has been given is important to avoid disease.

Puppies need frequent vaccinations until they are 4 to 5 months old.

Intestinal parasites are most common in puppies. Larvae are often passed through the placenta or mother's milk. Worms are so common that new puppies are often treated with a broad-spectrum wormer as a routine preventive measure. Faecal examinations, with additional treatments as necessary, are usually done every 2 to 4 weeks, until 2 successive faecal examinations are negative.

The earliest training that your puppy must learn is housetraining. With patience, persistence, and consistency, housetraining usually takes only a few weeks. The key is to take the puppy outdoors at the times that dogs naturally eliminate and to praise them enthusiastically when they do. Establishing a designated area that the puppy can associate with elimination can be helpful. If accidents happen, take your pet outside to the designated elimination area and praise it for eliminating (if it does so). Punishment, such as rubbing a dog's nose in urine or faeces, does no good and can even have a negative effect on training. Each accident indoors sets the process back a little, so the fewer accidents, the better.