Puppy’s Homecoming

Once puppy has received Health Certificate from Veterinarian, I will call you to make an appointment for pickup.

Once you have made the decision to bring a new puppy into your life, contact your vet to schedule an appointment within two business days for a well-puppy checkup. This is mandatory for your Health Guarantee.

Initial vaccinations will not guarantee that your puppy will be immune, but the entire series of vaccinations must be completed in order to protect your puppy from viruses/disease. During this time, it is best to keep your puppy away from unknown animals, groomers, stores, parks and kennels.

Your Puppy’s Homecoming
Your Puppy will be sent home with a Puppy Pack which will include a bag of food, Treats/Chews, microchip inserted, treatment of Revolution and Receiving Blanket/Toy. As part of the Puppy Pack that is sent home with your puppy, the receiving blanket or toy will have familiar comforting scents that he/she will recognize. You can put this with your new puppy which will comfort him/her on the ride home and during the first few stressful nights. It is pretty much guaranteed that your puppy will cry and whine the first few nights but by following the suggestions in this article you should be equipped with the knowledge of how to deal with this.

Once Your Get Your Puppy Home
When you first bring your new puppy home you should immediately take him out to potty. Once he has been to potty bring him into the area where you plan for him to sleep. I find the best place is the family room – center of my house and the puppy doesn’t feel isolated. Allow your new puppy to have supervised exploration of the area at their own pace and try to resist overly fussing your puppy. If you notice that your puppy is a little anxious try not to amplify this by soothing them. Any attention for fearful behavior will only reinforce this response i.e. when I am fearful, I get attention. It is important that your puppy learns coping strategies in stressful situations. You will have made your house as pet friendly as possible so this in itself will minimize stress, interfering in the exploration of your puppy’s new home will actually add to any anxiety.

 
 
 
 
 
 
 
 
 

What If My Puppy Doesn’t Want To Eat
Your puppy is currently eating Open Farm Puppy Recipe With Ancient Grains and Olewo Carrots.

For grooming, tear stains, hotspots, etc., read our Grooming page.

Go about your usual day to day life without over fussing but make sure you take him out regularly to pee and poop – I take a mental note of approximately 1 1/2 hours per month of age to take the puppy potty. Don’t worry if your puppy isn’t eating a full meal the first day – it’s completely normal, just be sure to keep an eye on the puppy to make sure he is well. If you have any questions or concerns, do not hesitate to contact me. Your puppy will be sent home with a bag of his food. My Bichon puppies are “free-fed” – meaning that they are given 1/2 cup of dry kibble first thing in the morning and allowed to graze all day long. If they eat the 1/2 cup, then I measure another 1/2 cup and continue to monitor. At night, I take their food and water away. But most certainly, once you take your puppy home, start the transition to your lifestyle. If you work during the day, I would immediately start your puppy off on a scheduled feeding. This way you are going to have better control of potty training your puppy.

Where To Purchase Food
Click on link below to purchase food.

Open Farm Puppy Recipe With Ancient Grains and Olewo Carrots.

How To Stop Your Puppy Crying At Night
Be prepared for the crying at night as there are very few puppies who don’t go through this. As long as you have provided your puppy with water, puppy training pads and a comfortable bed in a room that is neither too hot nor too cold you can rest assured that their needs are catered for. If you want to give your puppy a toilet break in the middle of the night then try to schedule it rather than go down when they are crying, as you will reinforce the crying behavior.

The first night can be one of the most frustrating and upsetting times when you are lying in bed and hear that little whimper. Some useful items is to wrap a hot water bottle in a towel or thick blanket and put it at one end of the bed. This simulates the warmth of another dog. Put a ticking clock in the room with your puppy to simulate the heart beat of another dog; your puppy is used to sleeping with its brothers and sisters. A stuffed animal can be of great comfort to your puppy; a little larger than them is usually a good fit (make sure it does not have any plastic parts for your puppy to chew on).

Dog appeasing pheromone can be purchased from your vet or Amazon and comes in two forms. A plug in (in the same way an air freshener works) or a spray that can be applied to bedding. It releases a synthetic analogue of a pheromone that is secreted by bitches during whelping. It has been proven to relax dogs and puppies and should allow for a more peaceful night sleep. It has also been demonstrated that it can reduce fear and even improve house training acquisition.

Make sure your puppy is worn out before you leave it for the night. A short walk before bed or some intensive training/play time are essential. Once you have worn your puppy out the best thing to do is to take him or her out to the bathroom so you know if they cry they do not need to be let out. After they have peed and pooped, take your puppy to its bed and say “bed”, gently say “goodnight” and walk away. Make sure your puppy has a potty pad (young puppies cannot hold their “business” all night) just in case they need to go and a nice comfortable bed. Also be aware of the temperature; too hot or too cold or your puppy won’t sleep well.

When you leave your puppy for the night try not to make too much of a fuss. After the preparation for bed, your puppy should be settled and you can simply leave the room without encouraging your puppy to cry. This is the trickiest part for any new puppy owner. When the puppy cries or barks throughout the night you must not go down to the puppy. Given you have followed the previous advice you can be rest assured you have covered all of your puppies needs. It can be a difficult first few nights but by going down to check on the puppy you can accidentally reinforce the barking. This can mean your puppy learns I bark and Mum or Dad come running down i.e. I get attention. It makes little difference if you go down to comfort or chastise the puppy as at this stage any attention is good attention. If you have already been going to your puppy when it cries, then the same rules apply but the results will take slightly longer to see. Fear not, young puppies are extremely quick learners. This puppy training method will pay you back ten fold and being consistent will enable your puppy to cope with being left alone during the day and help prevent other attention seeking behaviors while you are busy around the house.

The time that you take now to train your new puppy will be worth what you receive in return as they become an adult.

Initially your puppy needs plenty of rest, so handling and playtime should be kept to a minimum. If you have children, be sure to instruct them of the proper way in which to pick up and hold the puppy; a puppy should never be picked up by it’s front legs or neck. Do not let puppy jump on or off the furniture. Until a puppy can jump ON the furniture they cannot get off. If they are too small as an adult to jump onto the furniture, they should never be left unattended. They could get a foot stuck between the cushions and pull a ligament or slip a patella. Be consistent and patient with your puppy; he/she will reward you with unconditional love and companionship.

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Barron’s Dog Bibles Bichon Frise

This is a must read book about your Bichon Frise puppy. Very well written – and is spot on correct with all Bichon Frise related matters.