Puppy Care

Puppy diarrhoea can be unpleasant to deal with, especially when you’re already working on house-training your puppy. Aside from the difficulty for you, no owner wants to see their puppy suffer. It can also be tricky to recognise when puppy diarrhoea is a sign of something serious, and when it can be easily dealt with. This article gives you some information about puppy diarrhoea, plus practical advice on treating it. What gives a puppy diarrhoea? There are a number of different triggers for diarrhoea in puppies. The majority of these triggers are not serious and can be easily addressed in order to stop your puppy suffering.

Playing with your puppy is a huge part of your relationship, and it has loads of benefits too! Games help keep your playful puppy active and healthy, and it gives you the chance to get to know one another better.

We all love puppies, right? It’s near impossible for any dog lover not to, surely. Wriggly, fluffy, loving and extremely cute – why wouldn’t you love them? We adore the little rascals – and they’re not just adorable; they’re interesting, too. Read on to find out some of our favourite facts about puppies. 1. Born helpless You might expect puppies to be helpless when they’re born. (They’re babies, after all!) But did you know that they’re effectively born deaf and blind, with no teeth? It’s one of our favourite puppy facts! Even the famous canine sense of smell isn’t active when a puppy is born, and their eyes and ears are closed. Their eyes open when they are between 10 and 14 days old, with eyesight fully developing at about 7 weeks. 2. The first sense to develop is touch Born without most of their senses fully developed, the first sense that puppies develop is touch. Almost from the very moment they are born, a puppy’s mother will lick and nuzzle them, stimulating their sense of touch. Touch continues to be important for your puppy throughout their lives. 3. Puppies can be twins There are often many puppies in a litter, each genetically unique – but did you know that puppies can be twins? The first confirmed case of this was recorded in South Africa in 2016, with vet Kurt de Cramer delivering them via Caesarean section. Although it’s possible that there have been other unconfirmed cases of genetically identical canine twins, this was the first officially recorded instance of identical puppies being born. 4. They have baby teeth Another interesting puppy fact is that they lose their first set of teeth – meaning that these could (adorably) be called baby teeth. Your puppy’s baby teeth will be replaced with adult teeth at about 4 months of age. 5. Their coat colour may change as they grow A bit like humans, the colour of puppies’ coats may change as they get older. Patches of colour can shift and grow, and how they do so can depend on breed. Dalmatians, for instance, don’t develop their famous spots until they are two or three weeks old. If your pup is purebred, then you’ll be able to more or less predict their appearance through how their parents look, but for crossbred or mixed breed pups, it can prove more complicated.

Find out everything you need to know about puppies and their grooming needs.

Turn your new puppy into an excellent travel companion. You’ve got a new pup and you can’t wait to show them the world. We know the feeling! But before you start planning that amazing road trip together (or even getting ready to drive to the vet’s), you have to remember that a car can be a very strange thing to a puppy. The closed space, the car movement and even the engine sound can trigger alarm bells for a puppy not used to travelling. But there are a few things you can do to make car trips easier to bear for your pup. Who knows, maybe they will even start looking forward to them! Here are the basics of car travelling for puppies.

Bringing home a new puppy is such an exciting moment and one you’ll never forget! Although there’s a lot to learn, one thing you’ll want to teach them as soon as they step paws into your home is house training. You won’t have to wait long to discover that puppies pee a lot – sometimes up to 12 times a day! It’s your job to work out when they need to go outside, and teach them what to do once they get there. Keep reading to discover how to house train a puppy and learn how to notice the warning signs of when nature calls. How long does it take to toilet train a puppy? It will take between four to six months for your puppy to be fully house trained, but it will depend on their size, age and ability to learn. Some puppies can be toilet trained really quickly in a few weeks, whereas for some dogs it may take longer and could be up to a year. How to tell when your puppy needs to go to the toilet

There are only certain times during the development of your puppy’s brain when you can help them become a friendly and outgoing companion. This is how to manage their first encounters with adults, kids, dogs and anything else life throws at them. Puppy socialisation is just one of the many things to think about when you get your puppy. You suddenly find you have a huge shopping list, you have to ensure your house and garden are ‘puppy safe’, and of course you will be thinking about how to ensure your new arrival grows up to be a happy, healthy, well-behaved dog. Too often however people forget about helping their puppy learn the most important thing – how to fit into our crazy lives. This is where puppy socialisation comes in – and while most people know that puppies need to be socialised, few understand what that really means, when to do it and how to do it properly. However, with the state of the world at the moment, puppy owners are facing a new challenge when it comes to socialising their puppy – lockdown. Of course, despite the social distancing rules and limited exercise restrictions, we still want to ensure that our puppies emerge from the other side of this happy and ready for the world. That’s why at Purina, we’ve enlisted our in-house behaviourist to give us some essential tips on socialising your puppy during lockdown too. What is puppy socialisation? Puppy socialisation is a training process that helps puppies learn how to behave properly when they interact with humans, other dogs and other animals. Puppy socialisation can also help puppies have a better relationship with their owners and become used to being in a range of environments and scenarios. Puppy socialisation is one of the best tools we have to prevent future behaviour problems in dogs, and it’s also how we can ensure we have a dog who we can take everywhere with us and share the bond that we dream of having when we bring our puppy home. Puppy socialisation in lockdown Between the ages of 3 – 14 weeks puppies are at a critical stage in their development when they learn to get used to people, other animals and objects (socialisation and habituation). This is so they can be more at ease with the world around them. It means that we have be to creative for puppies under lockdown to ensure they are having as many opportunities as possible to experience new things.

Exercising isn't just about daily walks. Discover games and activities that provide mental stimulation for puppies and improve the bond between you. It’s easy to get into the habit of thinking that exercising our puppies is just about regular daily walks – and there is no doubt that our dogs need these to stay happy and healthy, but exercise time isn’t just about stimulating the body. As your puppy grows up, they are developing their mind as well as their body. The more chances they have to engage in puppy brain games and activities where they have to problem-solve and work with you to achieve success, the better developed their brains will become. Use it or lose it! The opportunity to exercise your puppy’s brain helps in their development and builds the bond between you. This is a fun and interactive way to have a positive impact on their behaviour and future learning – and will help with the rest of your training. Keep reading to discover some brain games for dogs you could try!

Getting a new puppy is incredibly exciting for all the family, but it is easy to forget that it can be stressful for your new pup. Find out how to deal with your puppy’s first day home with Purina. Bringing a puppy home is an exciting one for all the family! You are starting out your new life together with the canine best friend you have always dreamt of. Everything is ready to welcome your new puppy and help them settle in straight away. But there is something many new owners don’t realise. While everyone in the house may be bursting with excitement and desperate to play with the newest member of the family, your puppy’s first day home may look entirely different to them. After all, they’re on their own, away from the mum and their littermates for the first time in their life, in a totally strange place, with people they don’t know. It can be overwhelming for your pup and may be stressful or even frightening for them. Here’s how to help your puppy settle in and find their paws in their new home.

Dogs bring a lot of joy into our lives, but when they fall ill it’s all too easy to worry about the cost of treatment. That’s where dog and puppy insurance comes in! We’re here to help you find the right policy for you and your pet. Veterinary care is improving all the time, but unfortunately, these treatments can be expensive. When your dogs under the weather, the last thing you want to worry about is having enough money to make them well again, which is why dog or puppy insurance is a great idea. Taking out a dog insurance policy can bring you real peace of mind by taking the worry out of many stressful situations. Even so, you’ll need to be careful when choosing the company and policy for your pup, as there can be a wide difference between them – it’s not fun, but this time you really need to read the small print! Have a chat with your vet about pet insurance for dogs and the different types of insurance cover you could benefit from. In the meantime, we’ve put together some things to consider when you’re looking for your new policy to help you on the way.