There are a few things that we ask of you if you get one of our puppies. 

1. Find a veterinarian who you trust for the care and well-being of your dog,have an examination of your puppy within 72 hours of arrival.  You will need to continue with its vaccinations within a short time, emergencies happen, and long-term health care is important.  Make sure you’re comfortable with your dogs’ doctor.

2. Give your puppy the right nutrition.  Your puppy needs a large breed puppy chow.  Small breed puppy chow can cause it to grow too fast and possibly increase its risk of hip displaysia.  Feed your puppy 3 times a day while it’s so young and always make sure water is available.  From personal experience, the best dog foods have a lamb, chicken, and rice base.  Corn based dog foods seem to be harder for the digestive tract and it’s also a lot messier to clean up.  We wean our puppies onto VF Puppy Food, (veterinarian formulated), made by a company named Arkat.   There are very good dog foods out there, just make sure you read the label correctly.  A good puppy chow should have over 25% protein.

3. Exercise- just like us, dogs need exercise.  Please spend some time playing or walking your dog each day.

4. Spend a little time training your puppy each day.  The idea of giving praise and rewards to your puppy when it does something you like will be a rewarding experience.  Remember, dogs don’t naturally know what you expect.

5.  Puppies love to chew, so it is a good idea to provide “dog chews” made of rawhide (these help with teething and to remove tarter off of teeth.  It is also a good idea to provide soft and hard toys for them to play and learn with.  Just make sure that there aren’t any small pieces that will come off that they may choke on.

6. Please do not take the puppy into public places unless absolutely necessary, until the puppy has had all its vaccinations (as recommended by your veterinarian),to insure immunity against disease.

If you live in the Phoenix area, may I recommend that you visit my brother, Dr. Jake DeGraffenried (DVM). He is an excellent veterinarian, and has been practicing for several years, and has his own successful clinic.  Click on the box below for more information.