Puppies
The Scenario
It's Christmas day. Your kids run down the stairs, turn the corner, and see the lights, the tree, and a new car in the driveway with a giant bow on it (Do people actually do that?). One of the presents starts to shake, and a perfect little golden lab puppy pops out. The kids are crying tears of joy, you sip on your coffee, snow is falling. It is perfect.
The Reality Check
"Then your perfect puppy takes a s*** on the carpet, starts to chew on the electric cord, and… are those fleas? Puppies can't have fleas this early, right? It's winter!"
You told your wife you only wanted that DeWalt impact driver, but here we are. Ideally, you are in an area where a vet can see new patients. So read my Your Vet Visit blog, grab your puppy (and your credit card), and hopefully, your visit will go as smoothly as your new puppy's diarrhea on your favorite pair of shoes.
The First Visit Checklist
1. The "List" Write down questions before your visit.
Why: You will forget every one of the 30 questions your wife told you to ask.
2. The Sample (Poop) Bring in a fecal sample.
Note: No, we do not care what container it is in, and no, we don’t need a heaping stocking’s worth.
The Test: We check for intestinal worms (Roundworms, Whipworms, Hookworms) and protozoa (Giardia, Coccidia). These make your puppy sick and your carpet messy.
3. The History Know where you got the puppy and if it had any previous vaccines.
The "Lemon Check": We spend the first exam looking for congenital conditions such as cleft palates, heart murmurs, and hernias.
A note on pet insurance. Talk to your veterinarian, but if you are considering insurance, now is a better time to get it than later in life due to preexisting conditions.
The Vaccine Menu
We generally start vaccines at 8 weeks old.
The Core (Required)
DHPP (Distemper/Parvo):
What: Distemper, Hepatitis, Parainfluenza, and the dreaded Parvovirus.
Schedule: Start at 6–8 weeks, then every 4 weeks until 16 weeks old.
Rabies:
Mr. King didn't have Tad die just for you not to vaccinate your pet. (Cujo) (Rabies is always fatal)
Schedule: Once around 16 weeks. Legally Required.
Lepto (Region Dependent):
What: A disease from wildlife urine that can spread to humans. In our area, this is considered Core.
The Non-Core (Lifestyle)
Lyme: Transmitted by ticks. Highly recommended if you live in Michigan or tick-heavy areas.
Bordetella (Kennel Cough): Required for boarding/grooming. It limits severity but doesn't strictly "prevent" the disease (like the flu shot).
Influenza: The "other" vaccine boarding places often require.
Deworming & Prevention
Puppies have diarrhea. A lot. Did they eat a dead mouse? Do they have tapeworms? Or do they just feel like causing chaos?
The Plan: We deworm at the first 1–2 visits.
The Meds: Modern heartworm preventatives often cover intestinal parasites too. Ask us which one covers all your bases.
Summary
Training: Start with Crate, Leash, and Name training immediately. You have the first 16 weeks to expose them to as many sights, sounds, and smells as possible (without exposing them to diseases they aren’t fully vaccinated for). It is crucial that by each veterinary visit, they have experienced 100 new ‘things.’
Touching their paws and starting to brush their teeth will also help with nail trims and brushing in the future!
Spaying/Neutering, Heartworm, & Diet: You can't imagine the relief I felt when I realized I'd already written posts for these.
And if you happen to look down and notice your puppy is, in fact, a Kitten... well, put down the spiked eggnog and click that link instead.
