- Health
Recommendations -
We strive to produce healthy, happy puppies
who will adjust easily to their new homes and will be easy to live with. We are
careful about choosing quality breeding stock and we raise puppies on wholesome
foods: fresh goat's milk, beef, turkey and even pastured chicken when available.
At seven weeks of age we introduce quality dry food to make an easier transition
to the diet most new owners will provide. After the puppy goes home a good
foundation has been laid and the new owners are faced with many decisions to
raise their puppy. This page is intended as tips to help our puppy owners with
those decisions.
Diet - Do's-
- We recommend raw feeding as the best diet for dogs, but it's not the best choice for every dog owner. It requires some reading, commitment and more work than other diets. But if you decide to feed a raw diet with adequate calcium/phosphorus ratio and an appropriate variety of foods it will be the best you can do for your dog's health and longevity. There are great books and yahoo groups (forums) which provide information, support and sources. More info on raw food here: http://www.raw-dogs.com/links.html
- If you prefer to feed dry food, we strongly recommend that puppies be fed a high quality dog food with less than 26% protein, at least until they are 12-14 months of age to prevent future problems with your dog's bones. We recommend Eagle Pack Large & Giant Breed Puppy Formula - http://www.eaglepack.com/Pages/HS_LGPuppy.html Supermarket dog foods are NOT recommended as they use cheap ingredients with low nutritional value.
- Puppies need to grow at a SLOW pace. We all love rolly-polly puppies, but that's only good when puppies are nursing. Once they are weaned nature intended for them to grow SLOWLY. Don't feed your puppy for record size or weight, always feed so the puppy will still be a little bit hungry; you are not being cruel, you are being wise. You are preventing hip dysplasia, pano and other bone related problems by allowing the puppy to grow at a slower rate. The book Grow Your Pups with Bones has several important chapters on this subject.
Diet - Dont's-
- Don't feed your dog cooked
bones of any kind. Cooking changes the structure of the bone, the dog can't
digest it
and it can be fatal.
- Don't allow your dog to eat, drink and then run or play. German Shepherds are
prone to bloat (torsion of the stomach) and may die of it in minutes.
- Don't feed chocolate.
- To prevent diarrhea:
Don't give your puppy pasteurized
milk.
Don't give raw foods and dog food together, each food is digested at a different rate.
If switching from one dog food to another, mix both foods and reduce the old food gradually.
Exercise - Do's and Dont's-
- Playing with your puppy is good exercise, as long as he can stop as soon as he is tired. Jogging with your puppy is not recommended until the puppy is at least a year old. Then start slowly and make sure to jog on grass, not on pavement. A young dog's bones/joints are still very sensitive and can be permanently harmed by too much exercise.
- Don't let your puppy run on slippery surfaces like linoleum or hardwood--this is one early cause for hip problems later on. The best place to exercise your puppy is on grass where he will have firm footing.
Vaccinations - Do's and Dont's-
- Please be informed about the new protocol taught at vet schools regarding schedules and frequency of vaccinations for puppies and dogs. Read on how over-vaccination can affect your dog. If you agree with it, follow the new vaccinations protocol as stated on this page: http://www.wellpet.org/vaccines/dodds-schedule.htm more info on the Links page. Since our puppies leave soon after they are 8 weeks old we vaccinate them (Intervet Progard Parvo and Distemper) a few days prior to leaving, to avoid adding to the trip/new home stress. The ideal is to give the first vaccines at 9 -10 weeks of age, when the mother's protection has worn out (making the vaccine more effective). We can't send puppies without vaccines unless the new owner requests it in writing.
-Don't take your puppy under 16 weeks to dog shows, highway rest areas, parks or other places frequented by other dogs. Same goes for you, stay away from the previously mentioned places and kennels/dog shelters where you can pick up infections and bring them home in your shoes, etc. The first vaccines a puppy receives do not cover him 100% and he can catch parvovirus or other diseases that can be fatal for a young pup. Avoiding exposure is the first and best prevention.
- Don't allow your puppy to
receive more than two vaccines at the same time, the combination vaccines: 5 in
1, "Puppy Shots", etc are to be avoided. Vaccines
challenge the immune system in a complex way
and injecting several at the same time is a major attack to the immune system
from which many puppies can't ever recover, leaving puppies with lifelong
allergies and chronic problems. Read our Vaccine
Quotables page for conscientious vets opinions.
- Don't vaccinate your puppy when stressed or sick.
- It's been proven that over-vaccination (yearly boosters) produces chronic diseases. Avoid unnecessary vaccinations.
-If you must take a young puppy to the vet's make sure the clinic has not had any cases of parvo recently. Even though vet offices are disinfected routinely they are the most likely places to expose your puppy to disease.
Spay/Neuter - Do's and Dont's-
It's best to spay/neuter after 2 years of age to allow for complete growth. Hormones are necessary for good bone/joint development. We support spaying/neutering as breeding prevention, but if you can prevent breeding without surgical means it's healthier for the dog to remain whole to prevent cancer, skeletal problems (including hip-dysplasia), etc. This is very important reading: http://www.caninesports.com/SpayNeuter.html
House-Training
Eight week old puppies are just babies. They are not housebroken and are too young to contain themselves, they need to grow up several more weeks before they can wait for any period of time. At this time they don't even "know" any better, except that they will avoid soiling the place where they sleep. But puppies are easily housebroken if we remember a few simple tips:
- Puppies need to go out right after they wake up from a nap, after they eat and after they drink. If you provide food and drink several times a day you will know when you need to take your puppy out, it will be trained very quickly.
- If the puppy has an accident in the house be patient with yourself (you didn't follow the previous tip) do better next time :)
- Restrict puppy to a small area of the house at first, like the kitchen, where the floor is easy to clean and allow the puppy access to the rest of the house gradually as he gets more familiar. Supervise him at all times to avoid chewing on electric cords, etc, etc. Your puppy will want to be with you as much as you let him, he will be lonely at first and will miss his mother and littermates; you are now his universe.
- If you have other pets introduce them gently to your puppy one at a time, making sure they get along. Supervise them closely for at least a week. Keep them separate at meal times. Males may be aggressive to puppies.
- A crate is a good "den" for a puppy, he will feel secure and comfortable. If you need to leave the puppy alone for a period of time the crate will be the best place. If you will have to be away for several hours you may want to get a large crate where he has enough room to sleep in one side and "go" in the other, if he has to. Safe toys are important--German Shepherds are good chewers so make sure he won't be able to chew off pieces and swallow them. A good old-fashioned raw bone is the best toy for a puppy, a knuckle bone will give your puppy hours of bliss.
We recommend attending Puppy Kindergarden classes after puppies are through with their early vaccines at 16 weeks of age. Puppies need to be socialized and exposed to as many different situations as possible on their first year to ensure they grow familiar to other dogs and people. Obedience training is best achieved early. Also, training strengthens the bond with your puppy and allows him to act on his innate desire to please his human.
Please check out our Links and Recommended Reading pages for more information and resources.