What New Puppy Owners Need to Know
Hello, my name is Desi, and I am Frankie’s best buddy. I’m the Canine Co-Captain, and one of the four-legged family members of the
Robinson Animal Hospital team. My Dad, Dr. Tom Head, and his team will perform or address the following at your new puppy’s first visit with us at Robinson Animal Hospital:
(If you are the new owner of an adult dog,
please review the information further down the page.)
1. We will take a complete medical history. This will include discussing prior vaccinations and dewormings your puppy may have already received, any prior or current illnesses affecting your puppy, and any medications they may be taking. We will discuss with you any problems you have discovered with your new puppy. We will take the time to listen, and to address all of your concerns.
2. Complete physical exam: The doctor will examine your new puppy for any evidence of parasites, failure to thrive, infection, congenital defect, hereditary disease, or other illness.
3. Heartworm Testing (If your puppy is approx. 6 months old or older)
4. Fecal Test: Checks your puppy’s feces for evidence of intestinal parasites. Intestinal parasites can be transmitted not only to other pets, but to people as well.
*Bringing a fresh stool sample from your new puppy with you
to your appointment will help make things a little easier for them*
5. We will be proactive in the treatment of any problems found during the physical exam. Little puppies’ immune systems are not mature and they are not as strong as they will be later, so illness and infection can progress quickly. It’s therefore important to act fast to address problems.
6. Intestinal parasites are very sneaky, and their eggs are not always present in the stool sample, even if a puppy has worms. Puppies get worms from their mom before they are born, and also through the milk while nursing (Thanks, Mom), as well as from littermates (Thanks guys). In addition, many puppies go through a stage of eating stool, which is another way puppies can acquire intestinal parasites. We will, therefore, be proactive in deworming your puppy and, if needed, your other pets, in order to protect the health of your family and of all your pets.
7. Vaccinations are very important to protect your new puppy’s health in the prevention of disease.
It is very important to start the Distemper/Adenovirus /Parainfluenza/Parvo (DAPP) vaccination series at 6 to 8 weeks old. This vaccination is boostered every 3-4 weeks until your puppy is 16 weeks old. DAPP vaccination is boostered annually, however, for dogs with limited exposure to other dogs, this can be converted to a 3 year vaccination, once a dog is 3 years old.
Bordatella vaccination is given to help prevent this upper respiratory infection, often called “Kennel Cough”. This vaccination is boostered every 6 months.
Rabies vaccination is done between 12 weeks old and 16 weeks old. The first rabies vaccination a dog receives is good for a year. Subsequent rabies vaccinations are good for 3 years.
Other vaccines may also be needed, depending on your pet’s exposure risk to areas frequented by wildlife and to ticks. These include vaccinations for Leptospirosis and Lyme Disease, both of which can infect not only dogs, but people as well. The initial series for both of these includes 2 vaccinations, 3-4 weeks apart. They are both boostered annually
It is also very important to protect your puppy from unvaccinated or sick dogs, from areas where sick dogs have been, and also to avoid areas such as pet stores or dog parks until your puppy is fully vaccinated at approx. 4 months old.
8. Heartworm prevention, Flea/Tick protection: These should be started as early as possible, to help protect your puppy and family from these parasites. We will discuss the proper use of heartworm prevention, as well as the best flea and tick control strategies, based on your puppy’s situation and environment.
9. Spaying or Neutering: Unless your new puppy is specifically intended to be used for breeding, they should be spayed (female) or neutered (male) at approx. 6 months old. There are many health and behavioral benefits in doing so, which we would be glad to discuss with you in detail. Prior to surgery, your puppy should have a blood panel performed in order to assess the health of their internal organs that process the anesthetics.
10. Microchip identification is a very helpful way to identify your puppy if lost or stolen. The percentage of lost puppies returned to their owners is much higher for microchipped puppies than for those without microchips.
11. Pet Health Insurance can help cover both unexpected expenses that arise due to illness or injury, as well as routine healthcare. Check out this link: www.petinsurance.com.
12. Puppy training classes are a great way for your puppy to learn to interact well with other dogs and people (socialization), and to help them be teachable while recognizing that you are the “Alpha Pack Leader”. Sally Said So Professional Dog Trainers are local, very talented, and dedicated to this purpose. Check them out at www.sallysaidso.com
What New Adult Dog Owners Need to Know
1. We will take a complete medical history. This will include discussing any ongoing health problems your new dog has, reviewing current medications and any recent lab work, determine vaccine and heartworm prevention status, as well as discussing if your current flea/tick prevention is effective. We will discuss any problems you have discovered with your new dog. We will take the time to listen, and to address all of your concerns.
2. Complete Physical Exam: The doctor will examine your pet for any sign of parasites, infection, chronic or metabolic disease, arthritis, heart disease, dental disease, cancer, hereditary disease, or other illness.
3. Blood panel and urinalysis: If not recently done, this is very important in order to help assess your pet’s overall health, and to also look for evidence of organ dysfunction, endocrine disorders, metabolic disease, heart disease, or cancer.
4. Fecal test: Looks for evidence of intestinal worms, which can be transmitted to other pets, and to people as well.
*Bringing a fresh stool sample from your new dog with you
to your appointment will help make things a little easier for them*
5. Heartworm testing and heartworm prevention: Heartworm disease is easily prevented by giving heartworm prevention once a month, year round.
Dogs not currently taking heartworm prevention or dogs that are late for their heartworm prevention: Heartworm testing must be done, and dogs must test negative prior to starting heartworm prevention. Testing should be repeated 6 months after beginning prevention, then annually. Heartworm prevention can be started immediately, if the first heartworm test is negative.
Dogs that are current on heartworm prevention (as determined by when prevention was last dispensed), must have a heartworm test annually.
Dogs that test POSITIVE for heartworms: We will discuss with you how your dog’s heartworms can be treated. In many cases, this multiple-step process can be started the same day.
Heartworm testing also detects antibodies to some of the more common tick borne diseases, which sheads light on your new dog’s past or recent exposure to ticks and the diseases they can carry.
6. Vaccinations: We will determine your new pet’s vaccine status from previous medical records, and make sure they have the vaccinations they need to protect them from the diseases they may be exposed to.
7. We will be proactive in treating any problems found during the physical exam or on the blood panel and urinalysis. Early intervention is a key to achieving the best outcome possible.
8. Treatment for intestinal parasites: this is important in adult dogs (even if their stool appears normal) under the following conditions: parasites present in the fecal sample; dogs that are not current on heartworm prevention; dogs exposed to other pets with worms; dogs that eat stool (dog, cat, wildlife); dogs that have had fleas; dogs that have diarrhea. We will therefore be proactive in deworming your new dog and, if needed, your other pets, in order to protect the health of your family and of all your pets.
9. Flea and Tick Control: We will discuss the proper use of flea/tick prevention, and the best strategies to use, based on your dog’s situation and environment, to control these disease carrying pests, in order to protect their health and your family’s health.
10. Microchip Identification is a very helpful way to identify your pet if lost or stolen. The percentage of lost dogs returned to their owners is much higher for microchipped pets than for pets without microchip identification.
11. Pet Health Insurance can help cover both unexpected expenses that arise due to illness or injury, as well as routine healthcare. Check out this link: www.petinsurance.com
12. Dog Training: Introducing a new adult dog into your home can sometimes present challenges, such as problems of interaction with existing pets, or if your new dog has established behavior patterns that are not ideal for your family situation. If you are facing behavior or training challenges with your new pet, these can often be effectively addressed by a professional dog trainer. Sally Said So Professional Dog Trainers are local, very talented, and dedicated to correcting behavior challenges. Check them out at www.sallysaidso.com.