New Puppy

Once you have finished your research on the Doberman Pinscher, and have decided that a Doberman is the breed for you, you then have to find yourself a responsible breeder.

After you have found yourself a breeder that you are comfortable with, happy with, and has answered all your questions, you will probably have to wait till your puppy is ready to come to live with you. This wait will seem to be worse than waiting for Christmas, but in the end it is well worth it. Buying from a responsible breeder will make a big difference in the health, temperament and quality of your new family member.

Now that you have your new puppy, things are going to be different. You have a lot of responsibility to this little guy/gal, and will have to start taking them into consideration, when you make most decisions. You choose to bring this puppy into your life, so it is your responsibility to make sure that he/she is well taken care of. Proper feeding, annual vaccinations spay/neutering, proper dental care as well as training and socialization. Choose your new vet carefully.

Before you bring your new puppy home, you should do some research into what you should be feeding, most will tell you to feed Adult food as opposed to Puppy Food. Most breeders will send home with you a list of Do's and Don'ts on the care of your new puppy, feeding tips, ear taping tips, house training tips 1 & 2 etc. You should have also received a written health guarantee, as well, pedigree for sire and dam of your puppy

Before you even bring your puppy home, you should scout out the whole house for potential dangers, small articles that can be swallowed, electrical cords are very inviting to a puppy, and poison house cleaners, or house plants that they can get into.

Always remember that you should be cheerful and encouraging with your new pup, this is a whole new life for them, and it can be frightening. Give lots of affectionate attention, and allow your pup to explore it's new home. Lots of loud noises, screaming children or crowds of people can be overwhelming.

When naming your new puppy, you should choose a word that has two syllables, as well one that ends with "a" or "o" it is easiest for a dog to remember these type names and they aren't as likely to confuse them with commands. When you do come up with a name, use it consistently, and he will pick up his new name quickly.

A crate, while lots of people think that this is cruel, it is something that dogs really learn to like. They find comfort in the crate, and have somewhere to go when they are scared, or just want to be alone. As well a crate helps when house training the new pup, and you have somewhere to put him when you are too busy to watch him every second, or can't have him around dangerous objects, maybe if you are painting the house etc. Puppies and paint aren't a good mixture at all. You should start getting him used to the crate by feeding him in there. Once he is comfortable in the crate, you can close the door for a minute or two while he is eating. You should make sure that the crate is large enough that your dobe can stand, turn around and lay down comfortably. You should NEVER use the crate as punishment, it will lose it's charm as a safe place if he has been sent to his crate for bad behaviour. Although some may disagree with me, the first thing I think you should teach your new puppy, is the 'Come' command. This is an invaluable command, that may save his life one day in the future. I also recommend professional trainers when it comes time for obedience training, lots of people and their dogs do better in a classroom setting.

When you get your puppy, you will also be given a vaccination schedule from your breeder. You have to finish the vaccinations, it is very important as there are many diseases out there that he should be vaccinated against. Your vet will know which vaccinations are specific to your area. To list a few that your pet should be vaccinated against,Canine Distemper, Canine Hepatitis, Parvovirus,Leptospirosis, Coronavirus, Canine Cough and Rabies. If you spend the money now for vaccinations, while it might seem like a lot of $$$$, you will be better off going the preventative way, then paying the vet bills later if/when he does pick something up.NSAID Toxicity You should also have him checked for intestinal parasites yearly. Walking in the park going to classes, anywhere that other dogs hangout, he is able to pick up worms or other internal and external parasites. They can have worms and you will never know, so it is best to take a stool sample into the vet, where he can properly test for worms. Elimination of intestinal parasites early on will help with growth and development of the puppy.
While at the vet, you will also want to discuss spaying/neutering of your pet, if you aren't a breeder, or aren't going to show your pup, you should have him neutered. There are many good reasons to have your pet spayed/neutered, you can find some here. You will want to avoid allowing the puppy to jump off of high places, bed, stairs, truck beds etc. Letting them jump down stairs, or off of high places, is very stressful on their front shoulders. You will want to also avoid aggressive training, such as agility, bite work any thing that involved jumping or a lot of physical ability. They are still growing and developing, you have to let them finish building muscles before you put strain and pressure on them. You should also not leave your puppy on slippery surfaces for long periods they can't get a good grip, and this is also hard on muscles and joints. You could be setting yourself up for hip problems in the future.
There isn't too much in the way of grooming when it comes to Dobes, regular brushing, keeping the toenails clipped short, brushing his teeth, cleaning of ears. It is best not to bath a Dobe very often, as you will dry out their coat and end up with a bad case of the 'flakies'. You will want a good collar, and leash, Dobes love exercise, prefer to be running free in the yard or the park, but for safety sake, you should have them leash trained, and kept on their leash when you leave the safety of your fenced yard. Puppies love to chew, and will start to teeth between 3 and 6 months of age. Nothing is off limits to them in their minds, so you need to provide them with something that is acceptable to chew. When you catch your pup chewing something that is inappropriate take it away and replace it with something that you feel is appropriate. Avoid things that can be torn up or shredded, balls that are small, or toys that have small pieces that can be broken or chewed off. They are no different than human children in that ' if it can go in the mouth, that is where you will find it ' I like to give ours rawhide, (not everyone does) but I give the the brown rawhide as the white rawhide has apparently been stripped with arsenic. I also like to give mine frozen blueberries, carrots, and other healthy snacks when they are teething, or just want something to chew on. In the summer they love to chew ice cubes.

Socialization is very important, you will want to take this puppy everywhere, introduce him to many different people, places and things. You want him to be very well rounded and accept new situations easily, and the time to teach them about new things is when they are young and more open to suggestion. Never force a puppy to accept a person or situation that he isn't comfortable with, but at the same time, never pet and baby talk him if he is feeling nervous, you will reinforce the nervousness and essentially be telling him " Yup your right to be afraid you poor little guy " Same goes for thunderstorms vacuums, fear of car rides, etc. Never coddle the puppy, you are encouraging bad behaviour, ignore the fear, and leave his crate door open so he can go there for the comforting that he is looking for.

You will want to feed your puppy on a schedule, if you work, it is best you know when he is going to need to go outside. Normally they will need to go out 20 minutes to an hour after eating, more quickly than that after having a drink of water. Always provide fresh water for your puppy. And always remember " what goes is, is going to come back out " So by putting him on a schedule, you can work things out so his business is done by the time you are ready to leave for work. You shouldn't give table scraps to your pup, unless you don't mind him begging for food. If he doesn't ever have scraps, he doesn't miss them. As well you do not want your dog to become overweight it can be very uncomfortable for them, as well hard on their bones and joints. You should avoid canned dog foods, as they are very fattening, and have high lead content.

When trying to teach your puppy something, always remember to Praise him for anything that he does right. Make him realize that his attention from you will come when he is a good boy, instead of only when he is bad. Timing for Praise and corrections is very important, this is how your dog will come to realize what it is your trying to tell him. A correction or praise given at the wrong time will reinforce or encourage bad behavior. 

You should NEVER EVER leave your dog in a hot car unattended. They can develop heat stroke very quickly. Remember their body temperature is naturally higher than ours, and with them wearing a coat, they are likely to overheat when we maybe don't think it is all that warm out. 

You should never tie your dog out in the yard and leave him while you go and do other things. This not only encourages bad and destructive behavior, but it builds aggression in dogs. When they can see people and other animals off having fun and they have no way to get to them, they get frustrated, thru the frustration, they become aggressive, when they finally do get off that chain, they are out to get whatever they missed out on earlier by being tied out.

  

****And remember, you chose your dog, so it is up to you to make his
life happy, comfortable and safe. Looking for a new puppy?