Newborn puppies
require constant attention and monitoring for proper health and nutrition.
Taking care of newborn puppies requires an observant eye and ear, diligent medical updates and attentive care. Keeping newborn puppies warm is number one because chilling can result in serious illness or an unfair death. Note that dogs are born both blind and deaf; their eyelids are sealed shut and their ear canals sealed over. By 14 days, puppy eyes open and by the 17th day their ear canals clear. At 25 days old, puppies respond to sights and sounds and can begin to explore their world.
Living Environment
Puppies are susceptible to germs and bacteria so you need to monitor your pups for signs of illness.
Puppies require an environment kept at temperatures between 85 and 90 degrees F. Gradually you can decrease that temperature to 80 degrees by the seventh to 10th day, and 72 degrees by the end of the fourth week.
Because newborn puppies are susceptible to bacteria and germs, you need to change bedding daily. Use newspapers or clean, easy-to-wash towels to create a pen or open-topped box for a puppy bed. The mother dog will try to keep the area clean herself but she can use help.
Body Temperature
Puppy litters generally snuggle up with their mother and other pups to regulate body temperature; gentle human touch helps, too.
Because newborn puppies are unable to maintain their body temperature, during the first four or five days of a puppy's life their bodies are susceptible to sudden changes in temperature.
According to a Best Friends Animal Society neonatal puppy care guide, for the first week of a newborn puppy's life a normal rectal temperature is 95 to 99 degrees F. The second week should bring temperatures from 97 to 100 degrees. When the puppy turns four weeks, its temperature should reach the normal temperature of an adult dog, about 100 to 102 degrees.
Daily Monitoring
Weighing newborn puppies daily assures you your puppies are healthy. If a puppy is losing weight, consult a veterinarian. Any puppy experiencing weight loss needs immediate medical attention. Through daily monitoring, if a newborn puppy has an illness, you can identify and treat the problem early.
Continual Crying
Puppies that whine or cry often may be neglected by their mothers; you can help by taking them to the vet.
If a newborn puppy constantly whelps, wines or softly barks this could indicate a serious medical problem. The mother may neglect babies she thinks will not survive. You can attempt to save the neglected puppy by removing the pup and hand raising it.
Sometimes these pups will not survive no matter how much love and care you provide. Pet Place, a pet company that publishes thousands of veterinarian approved articles, recommends a veterinary examination for any abnormal signs in a newborn pup.
Detailed Medical Files
Detailed puppy medical files record events like birth, vaccines, fecal sample evaluations, abnormalities, sicknesses and grooming appointments. Reports remind you what medical and other attention your puppy needs and when.
Parasites, De-worming and Fecal Exams
As puppies grow up and start to poke around in trash and investigate new tastes, parasites are a common problem. Ticks, fleas, heartworms and intestinal worms are the most common problems. You can attempt, with planning and medical assistance when necessary, to keep a puppy from ever picking up a parasite. Vets have medications to prevent parasites and to eradicate them if they are already present.
Newborn dogs are also susceptible to nasty intestinal parasites. Roundworms, hookworms, whipworms, coccidia and giardia are common invaders. According to Pet Place, since dogs can give birth to puppies already infected with roundworms, veterinarians recommend de-worming all puppies in a litter.
Vets examine a puppy's fecal sample to determine if de-worming is necessary. Initial de-wormings sometimes do not completely get rid of all intestinal worms and a puppy may need additional de-worming. Monthly medications exist that help prevent some of these parasites from developing. However, fecal exams are still important for maintaining a puppy's health.
Vaccinations
Puppy vaccines fight against contagious diseases. Veterinarians administer initial vaccine shots to puppies 6 to 8 weeks old and continue giving shots every three to four weeks until the pup reaches 4 or 5 months old.
Until a puppy reaches the five-month mark, every three to four weeks you should take your puppy in for a booster vaccine. This additional dose of a vaccine "boosts" a puppy's immune system and protects him from diseases like parainfluenza (a respiratory disease), rabies, hepatitis and bordetella, a bacteria that causes kennel cough which is sometimes caught in dog-boarding facilities.
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