Please take your puppy to the ‘well visit’ check up with your own veterinarian within 3-5 business days in order to make sure everything is okay with your new puppy.  Hopefully you have scheduled this appointment long before the puppy arrives. This is a precautionary physical to make sure that your puppy is in good health. Make sure that you take your puppy’s shot record with you so your vet will know their medical history. You will be provided a written record of this when you pick up or receive your puppy. Puppies need an 5-in-1 (parvo, distemper, leptospirosis, hepatitis and para influenza vaccination) no later than 10-12 weeks of age. Between 14 - 16 weeks another 5-in-1 plus rabies will be due. Some states require a bordetellosis vaccine also. Check with your veterinarian and follow the schedule they recommend. Remember, until your puppies immunizations are complete, please be sure to hold your new puppy in your lap and keep them away from other dogs and off the floor at the vets. This also means not letting strangers or children pet your puppy. This is how many diseases such as parvo are spread and these diseases can be deadly for your puppy. I prefer Advantage Flea drops for control of fleas and tapeworms. (Check with your veterinarian)

Training should start immediately. Remember it is sometimes not easy for a puppy younger than 12 weeks of age to ‘hold it’ all night long.  Normally I don’t let my puppies go before that age, but circumstances may aries where I’ll have to.   The more time that you spend with your puppy, the smarter they will become!  PLEASE, NEVER STRIKE OR SCREAM AT YOUR PUPPY. NOR DO YOU SHOVE THEIR NOSE IN THEIR FECES OR URINE. My Shih Tzu’s are specifically bred for intelligence and respond very well to a firm NO NO, or a clap! Shih Tzu’s can be sensitive. Mistreat them and you could break their spirit and therefore their trust. 

MAKE SURE TO SET A DATE to have your pet spayed or neutered!!  There are many health benefits to spaying and neutering. Neutering a male at a young age will eliminate his desire to mark his territory and many times will prevent leg lifting altogether, which is huge with housebreaking - trust me!  But it also makes the males much better pets and helps prevent certain types of cancer.  Same thing with the females, you don’t have to deal with their hormones every 6 months or so when they go into heat and bleed and look for males to mate with.  Again, it helps to prevent certain types of cancer for the females too - ovarian, breast, uteran, etc….

Never leave your puppy outside alone! Even if you have a fenced in area. Tiny toy puppies can easily slip through the 2″ mesh of a fence. They have been known to also climb the fence, get their head stuck in the mesh and choke.  Plus, now in a lot of areas there are predators (besides theifs!) who will easily pick up a 2-3 pound pup like a coyote or a hawk.  Horrible thoughts, but true.

The most important thing to remember is just to give your new pet a lot of love and attention. There is nothing wrong with cuddling your puppy in your lap (with their blanket) while you relax and watch a movie. This can actually be quite comforting to your puppy and help to establish a wonderful bond with you and your puppy that will continue to grow and last forever. And please remember to keep in touch,  I love hearing how my babies are doing and I can’t get enough pictures!

FEEDING YOUR PUPPY AND
LEAVING HIM ALONE WHILE YOU WORK….

Leave dry food in his play area so he can eat when he wakes up from naps, in the morning and in the evenings or just whenever they want to eat. Trying to make a schedule for the puppy before 12 weeks usually doesn’t work. For the first several weeks, they will pick their own times to eat so make sure they have access to food at all times. Sometimes a puppy is stressed due to changing environments and won’t eat enough the first week. If your puppy doesn’t eat for a period of about 8 hours, give them 1/4 cup of WHOLE milk to keep their blood sugar level up. This could cause some puppies to develop a loose stool, so if this happens, do not give milk anymore.
Make sure your puppy has access to water ALL DAY LONG. Be sure the bowl isn’t big enough for them to climb into as they will get wet and you want to make sure they stay warm and dry. At 12 weeks of age, you can start picking up the water and food bowls at night to aid in potty training but have food and water accessible all day.
If you have to leave your puppy home alone all day, leave 1 cup of dry crushed puppy food and small shallow bowl of water for the time you are away. Try to feed your puppy softened puppy food before you leave and again when you get home. After a few weeks you can probably eliminate the soft feedings. Remember to keep your puppy in a small enough area so he can easily find his food and water. Puppies CANNOT find their way through a house to find where their water and food is located. In time they will but at first they need to be secured in a small area when you aren’t playing with them. The size of a baby playpen is perfect. They will eat and drink when they want to, not when you want them to. So they need to be able to find their food, water and paper potty easily.

PLAYING WITH A PUPPY

For the first several weeks, make sure you do not play (running, jumping etc) with your puppy for more than 30 minutes at a time. Puppies MUST get plenty of rest for the first few weeks after you bring your them home. Remember “Never wake a sleeping puppy up to play”. Try to provide soft toys for your puppy to play with. Be sure there are no object that can be chewed off and swallowed.

Do NOT throw your puppy in the air or move his head quickly in a playful manner. Keep in mind that a puppy is tiny and should be treated like you would a premature human baby that you have just brought home from the hospital. The most common mistake new owners usually make is playing with their puppy too much. Too much activity will deplete their blood sugar!! You could have a very sick puppy on your hands. Be patient. The first few weeks will go by quickly and their playtime will increase. When you see your puppy has fallen asleep, put them in their “puppy area” for their nap. When they wake up, they will walk to the potty paper and usually pee, then go to their food/water and eat/drink. At around 12 weeks of age (just a few weeks past the age I usually let them go) you should be able to train a puppy to eat when you want them to. Until then, they must be able to find their food/water when they decide they want it.

IF YOU ARE PICKING YOUR PUPPY UP AT THE AIRPORT

Below is a list of a few helpful items to bring along for your first meeting:

1. The crate your puppy arrives in is yours to keep for car travel and night crating during the house training period. You may find that your puppy will continue to freely go into the crate to sleep with door left open.

2. Try to bring paper towels in case of car sickness or other mistakes. Moist baby wipes are also great to have on hand for quick clean ups.

3. A soft towel or baby blanket for your puppy to snuggle in or in case of an “accident”.

4. A small bottle of bottled water and a shallow bowl for drinking, in case your puppy gets thirsty.

I do ask that you please give me a call or email me to let me know your puppy has arrived safely. I care for my “babies” and worry about their safety and well being. It will only take a moment of your time to let me know that everything is going ok and I will be forever grateful for the courtesy.