Taking care of newborn puppies isn’t always an easy task, but it’s definitely one you’ll love if your heart melts when you see a baby dog. During the first few weeks without a mother, you’ll need to mimic everything she would do for them. This includes feeding, bathing and helping them eliminate. This is an around-the-clock job, as newborns need to be fed every two to three hours. Thus you may want to enlist the help of an assistant.

Feeding

1Heat up the puppy formula, often called “milk replacer,” to a lukewarm temperature by placing the formula in a container and then in a bowl of hot water. Boiling water will be too hot and microwaves can be uneven. You can also use a bottle warmer if you have one handy. Just as with checking formula for a human infant, test it on the inside of your wrist to make sure it’s not too hot.

2Put the formula in a specialized nursing bottle or an eyedropper. Before feeding her, make sure that the formula doesn’t run out of the nipple by turning it upside down — if it does it means the hole in the nipple is too big. This could result in drowning or other problems for your baby pups.

3Hold the pup with her belly on your hand or forearm and gently cradle her head. then put the nipple to her mouth. Do this every two to three hours throughout the day for the first week or two, then reduce it to every six to eight hours after the third week.

4Mix the formula with wet or dry puppy food when the pups reach 3 to 4 weeks old. Place the mixture on a flat saucer. The consistency should be similar to that of oatmeal. This will start the weaning process. Put some of this mixture on the tip of your finger and hold it to the puppy’s mouth then slowly move your finger to the saucer of food.

Warmth and Hygiene

1Place a heating pad or hot water bottle under a blanket or towel in the puppy’s nesting box. Mother dogs keep their babies warm by nuzzling them and keeping them close. The heating source mimics this. During the first week, the ideal temperature should be around 85 to 90 degrees. You can drop this to 80 degrees for the next month or so. Puppies over 6 weeks can handle 75 degrees.

2Dip a cotton ball in warm — not hot — water and gently rub their anal region and lower abdomen with it. This will help stimulate elimination, as puppies won’t do this on their own. Don’t rub too hard or for too long; a couple of minutes suffices.

3Wash the puppies’ bodies with warm water after elimination, either urination or defecation. Wash with a very soft washcloth to do this. Urine can cause skin burns similar to diaper rash, while feces may cause infection or invite parasites.

4Massage newborns gently all over their body with your fingertips or a soft, dry cloth to help stimulate them and mimic their mother’s love.

Keeping your dog’s paws, pads and nails in good condition contributes to its overall health and well-being. Routine grooming, which includes paw inspection, nail trimming and pad conditioning, takes little time and helps you bond with your dog. Follow a few simple steps to make paw grooming an enjoyable experience for you both.

1Inspect your dog’s paws weekly. Look for signs of dryness or cracking in the pads, torn or overgrown nails, and minor cuts anywhere in the paw. Check for small objects that might be lodged between pads. Use tweezers to remove anything you find. Praise your dog during an inspection to send the message that paw handling is a good thing.

2Trim the fur around the paws. When long paw fur becomes matted it can hide irritating objects such as small stones and soot. Matted fur itself becomes an irritant when it cakes and hardens. Remove this fur carefully with scissors, clipping in small snips rather than cutting large chunks of hair at a time.

3Examine nails and trim as needed. Clip after a bath, when nails will be softer, and use a trimmer designed for dog nails. Take care not to trim too short, as dog nails contain a small vein, called a quick, and clipping too close to the quick can cause bleeding and pain.

4Massage Vitamin E oil or paw wax into your dog’s pads to keep them soft and prevent drying and cracking, which can be very painful. If using Vitamin E, poke a hole in a few capsules and squeeze out as much oil as needed to massage into pads. Paw wax, which can be purchased online or at pet shops, protects pads from rock salt in winter and hot pavement in summer by forming a protective barrier.

5Watch for paw licking or chewing, which can be triggered by allergies or irritants. Keep your dog away from lawn chemicals and any known allergens, including ragweed or plants in your yard, to help maintain paw health. If a dog’s paw licking becomes obsessive, seek veterinary care to determine the cause and develop a treatment.

6Handle your dog’s paws while playing or petting so the animal becomes accustomed to you touching the paws when you’re not grooming. This should be easy to do with puppies, but older dogs that are not used to being paw handled may protest. Work gently to convince an uncomfortable dog that your handling of its paws can be a time of bonding.

If your elderly dog is “off his feed” and doesn’t attack his bowl of kibble like he used to, try some home cooking. Homemade meals can be a healthy alternative to store-bought kibble if they’re prepared with your dog’s needs in mind. And he’ll be thrilled you made it yourself.

Seniors’ Nutritional Needs

In general all dogs need the same basic essentials in their diets. Protein, fats and carbohydrates are all necessary to keep your dog healthy. You’ll need to do some adjusting for your geriatric pooch, though. As your dog ages his protein needs stay the same, but his metabolism slows down. That means he’ll need to get the same amount of protein but do it while taking in less calories. Increase the fiber, cut the carbs and use sources of lean protein like poultry, fish, lamb or extremely lean beef to accomplish this.

Supplements

To assure that your older dog is getting all of the vitamins and minerals he needs, you might consider adding some human grade bonemeal and a few drops of a vitamin supplement to the food you make for him. Omega-3’s are another supplement that you can add that will help keep your dog’s joints and heart healthy as well as keep his coat shiny and soft.

Talk To Your Vet

Once you have a plan and know what you want to put into your elderly dog’s homemade meals, talk to your vet to get advice on foods and nutrients that your dog might need based on his health. Certain medical issues like kidney disease, heart disease or diabetes may affect what ingredients you can use in your dog’s food and how much of it you can put in. Show your vet the recipe you intend to use and get his thoughts. He’ll also be the best person to ask about vitamin supplements. Just because your dog is older doesn’t mean that he has a vitamin deficiency. Instead of OD’ing your dog on vitamins, make sure your vet recommends adding them — or any supplement — to his meals.

Basic Senior Recipe

A basic dog food recipe that will be tasty and healthy for your senior citizen canine is easily made by crumbling 1 pound of ground turkey into a large pot containing six cups of water and one teaspoon of dried rosemary. Stir to distribute the turkey and rosemary evenly and bring it to a boil over high heat. Once the mixture boils, reduce the heat to low and allow it to simmer for 20 minutes. Add 8 ounces of frozen vegetables, like carrots, broccoli and cauliflower — thawed and cut into small pieces — and cook for five minutes more. Remove the pot from the heat and allow it to cool to room temperature before you feed it to your dog. Store the leftovers in the fridge in a covered container.

Once called the “lesser” or “St. John’s” Newfoundland, the dog we know today as the Labrador retriever was originally bred for water retrieving. It still excels at this task today, but it has also soared in popularity as a family dog. According to the American Kennel Club, it is the most commonly owned dog in America. The AKC recognizes three different colors for Labradors; black, yellow and chocolate. These intelligent, friendly, easygoing and energetic dogs have come to be known as “labs.”

Use a Crate

Using a crate is not cruel. Your chocolate lab can come to enjoy a nap or some time away from young children inside its crate. Labs dislike going potty and sleeping in the same place, so a crate can help you potty train your lab by eliminating messes while you aren’t home. To save money, purchase a crate that will be large enough for your adult Labrador (which can weigh up to 80 pounds) to stand up and turn around. If your lab is still a puppy, purchase a divider to shrink the space down so that your puppy won’t have room to use a corner as a bathroom area. Tuck treats into your dog’s bedding inside the crate to encourage it to explore the crate on its own. Give it time to get used to the crate before locking it inside.

Frequent Potty Trips

Your chocolate lab should be able to hold its bladder about one hour for every month of age. This means that a four-month-old lab can reasonably be expected to hold it for four hours, but you should give your lab opportunities to relieve itself more frequently than that. Walk it outside on a leash every two to three hours. Go to the same spot every time. Encourage your chocolate lab to go potty. When it does, reward it with treats and praise. Your affectionate lab will love the attention it is getting from you. You can also play a quick game of fetch as a reward. This type of positive attention will teach your lab that it is going potty in an appropriate place.

Correcting Mistakes

Unless a health problem is causing your lab to make messes in the house, it probably doesn’t know where it is allowed to go and where it isn’t. Your job is to teach it. Using positive reinforcement when your dog potties in the yard will help. In addition, teaching it not to go inside the house is simpler than you might think. Interrupt your lab with a noise whenever you catch it making a mess in the house. Take it outside, encourage it to potty and reward it when it does. Labs are affectionate dogs and don’t respond well to punishment or negative reinforcement. These methods can create fear and further complicate house training.

Teach Your Lab to Ask

As your lab learns where it is supposed to potty, you can start to teach it to ask when it needs to go out. Tie a bell to your doorknob. Show it to your chocolate lab and encourage it to “touch” the bell with its nose. Reward it with praise and a treat when it does this. After your dog learns to touch the bell, start requiring it to touch the bell before taking it outside. Don’t open the door until it does ring the bell. When it does, let it out immediately. After your lab goes potty, praise it and reward it with treats. Eventually you can start withholding the treats, but your chocolate lab should always be rewarded with a trip outside when it rings the bell.

Bringing home a rescue dog changes that pup’s entire life in a profound way, but that also means a few changes in your life. Because of the horrible past experiences many rescue dogs go through, they sometimes bring along a few problematic behaviors and tendencies with them. But with enough time and training, you can correct even the worst behaviors.

Trust and Anxiety Issues

There are some cases where rescue dogs immediately warm up to their new owners, giving lots of kisses and love. But many pups who are rescued have moderate to severe trust and anxiety issues, and it’s no wonder. Some of these dogs have been tossed out in the cold, others dealt with long-term abuse and some lived in horrible conditions, surrounded by their own waste. They’ve been dealt a pretty bad hand in life, and they haven’t had a good reason to trust anyone or anything. They’re worried about how their new owners will treat them and what they will encounter. How they act depends largely on their past experiences. If a pup suffered abuse at the hand of a man, she may be more trusting of women and flee to her secure spot if a guy comes within five feet of her. And sometimes the dog may not trust anyone, shying away from all interaction.

Irrational Fears

A lot of times, rescue dogs haven’t experienced anything aside from neglect. The first time you brighten one’s life and bring her home, she’s seeing and hearing things that can be really scary at first. You would think every dog loves squeakers, or at least tolerates them, but dogs who’ve never had toys before may freak out when they hear that first squeak. On the flip side, there are certain stimuli that a rescue dog may have associated with negative experiences. A classic example is a newspaper. It’s harmless in your hand, but your new furry friend may have been smacked with newspapers before, so when you lift one up, she cowers.

Aggression

It’s not uncommon to bring your little rescue girl home and hear a deep growl when you walk past her food bowl, struggle to keep her from lunging and sinking her teeth into another dog or otherwise witness aggression. Something usually triggers the aggressive episodes. If she grew up in a hoarding situation, she may have had to compete for food, which would explain possession aggression. If she was neglected, she may act aggressively out of fear. Even though you removed her from her awful situation, her aggressive tendencies still remain. She doesn’t know that another dog won’t steal her food or that she doesn’t need to fight for her life upon encountering another canine.

Bad Habits

Some rescue dogs may not have any trust issues, few irrational fears and not an ounce of aggression, but you can almost guarantee they’ll all have bad habits. The first few weeks, months or even years with your new rescue will probably result in you trying to break some of those nasty habits. She may jump on people, rip up the couch, destroy things when you leave, relieve herself on your floor and may act like she’s deaf when you try to stop her.

Fixing All the Issues

Remember that no matter what problems your rescue comes with, she can be trained and counterconditioned so that all those bad habits, aggressive tendencies, fears and trust issues will go by the wayside. Showing her lots of love and teaching her basic obedience with positive reinforcement will help her warm up to you and mold her into a better behaved canine. As for deep-seated fears, aggression and severe behavior problems, talk to a certified dog trainer, especially if she’s aggressive.

Using morsels of food is a surefire way to get your puppy to do just about anything you want. If he has allergies, the typical selection of doggie treats isn’t going to do you any good. You still have plenty of things you can feed your young pooch to encourage good behavior. From fresh meat to certain processed dog treats, find something that fits the special needs of your puppy.

Fresh Meat

Some of the most common meat allergens are beef, chicken, lamb and fish. While these are some of the primary types of protein available at the market, you still have plenty of other options available. Pick up pork loin, duck, turkey or venison — the leanest cuts possible. Boil the meat until it’s fully cooked. This cooking method keeps it moist, giving it the ultimate meaty aroma. Dice up the cooked meat into small bite-size pieces and store it in your refrigerator. When it comes time for some hard-core training, take out those meaty morsels and make your pint-size canine work for them.

Pieces of Kibble

When your vet determines which types of allergies your four-legged comrade has, he can write you an allergen-friendly prescription for food. These prescription dog foods are only sold at veterinarian offices or pet stores with an on-site veterinarian. Rather than pouring a bowl of kibble at meal times, make your puppy work for his food. For instance, if you have puppy training in the evenings, pack up his supper in a plastic bag and take it to school with you. He’ll be famished at that point and likely will do whatever you say, just to get a piece of kibble.

Canned Food

Most prescription dog foods have corresponding wet canned foods. Don’t worry, you don’t have to feed your pup handfuls of wet food. Instead, scoop it out onto a baking sheet lined with wax paper. Each scoop should only be about the size of a piece of kibble. Freeze the wet food overnight and use it for the next day’s training session. Frozen wet allergen-friendly dog treats are super smelly, making them highly desirable for even the pickiest of puppies. These frozen treats soften quickly though. Use them only for short training sessions, so they don’t thaw and make a mess.

Hypoallergenic Treats

Processed dog treats often have fillers such as soy, wheat or corn. While these ingredients generally are safe for a healthy canine, they’re not safe if your fur ball is allergic to any of them. Once your vet narrows down the allergy, pick out a treat that’s made specifically for dogs with allergies that doesn’t contain the problem ingredient — a prescription isn’t always required. These types of treats are made with meats and carbohydrate-containing ingredients that aren’t usually the culprit of allergies, such as duck and potatoes.

When your sweet pregnant dog goes into labor, it’s extremely important for you to be available to help her, should she need you to notify a veterinarian for any reason. Although many canine deliveries go smoothly and successfully, some complications can occasionally arise. The easier you can recognize a tough whelping experience, or “dystocia,” the better.

Discharge

Your pregnant dog might be experiencing birthing difficulties if you notice any conspicuous genital discharge prior to any of the youngsters emerging. If her body is giving off a substance that is black, green or brown, contact a veterinarian immediately. Extended vaginal bleeding during birthing also points to a problem, so do the same in that situation, too.

Lack of Moving Forward

A lack of development and moving forward in labor also usually signifies a problem. If a mama-to-be has been trying hard to birth her puppies for around 40 minutes with no sign of any of them, there could be an issue. Excessively long amounts of time between puppies also often indicates a problem. If her previous newborn came out between two and three hours ago and she’s still making a serious effort to get the rest out, immediately contact your veterinarian.

Relaxation Time

If your dog decides to take a break between birthing her puppies, pay close attention to the amount of time she spends taking it easy. If you observe that she’s been relaxing for more than four hours, it’s time to get a helping hand and let your veterinarian know what’s going on. If it’s clear to you that your dog is suffering with discomfort in any way, don’t ignore it.

Unusual Signs

Any unusual physical signs also can denote whelping issues. If the pregnant doggie is breathing with her mouth hanging open, there could be a problem. Shivering is another key sign of a problem. Be alert to any and all indications of malaise.

Dystocia

Any female dog can undergo complications during pregnancy, whether younger or older, small breed or large breed. However, canines of certain breeds are often more susceptible to dystocia and its associated dilemmas. These breeds include shih tzus, Boston terriers and French bulldogs. Brachycephalic pooches such as these are particularly vulnerable. Brachycephalic dogs are those with somewhat wide and “flattened”-looking visages.