How To Take Care Of A 6 Week Old Puppy?

Dogs, when they are still young are cute and need proper care. But then, most dog owners may begin to slip. They may start to take for granted, the health of the dog, seeing that it is past its vulnerable stage (or so they think).

But the truth is, these puppies still need all the protection and nutrition a one-day-old puppy requires. The reason being that they are still in their formative days. Thus, there is a need to work on their diet.

6-week old puppy care is not an easy task I must say. But it is fun to have a playful and fun-filled dog around (perks of proper hygiene). Which is why you need to clean and care and train your pups. At this stage, the chances of teaching them some tricks are high; when they get older, not so much.

So, How To Care For A 6 Week Old Puppy?

You might be wondering what it means to care for a six-week-old puppy, I mean, it shouldn’t be a tedious task?

Yes, you might indeed be right about that fact. But because it is still in its developing days, thus the caring and grooming have to be top-notch.

Some of the ways you can care for your pup is to give it good, dietary, and hygienic meals, regular baths. A visit to the vet every once in a while, and some other things you’ll get to know later.

So, I’ll share some tips on how to care for six-week-old pups

Vets Are The Best

The first thing you’ll need to do is to go for regular checkups. Going to the vet reduces your chances of having a sick dog. Routine checkups do some good things for the dog. For instance, it checks and prevents any inherent defects or diseases the dog might have, or may have been delivered with.

Routine checkups also help your young pup to be familiar with vets and checkups. So that when it gets there, it doesn’t act up, or try to be defensive.

And you find yourself in a vet clinic for the first time with your young pup. It should be a good time for you to make the most of your vet experience.

Some of the basic things you’ll need to do for your young pups are;

Take advantage of the vaccination package, if there isn’t one, discuss with your vet on how to set one up. Seeing that this dog is a month old, a good vaccination plan (which most vet clinic offers), will help to prevent some hereditary and unforeseeable diseases.
Dogs this age tend to play in the dirt, which may lead to contact with some external parasite, (and sometimes internal too). So you would also need to set up a control mechanism for these parasites.
There are some kinds of ailments and illnesses that your dog would have during this age. always know of the type of disease (depending on the kind of dog), so that you can treat it when you notice symptoms of this ailment.
Spraying your pup with bug spray shouldn’t be an everyday thing because then they might get allergic to the spray.

Good Dog Foods Could Define The Lifespan Of The Dog

So the reason why I coined the heading this way, is because you have to understand that getting the right puppy meal for your dog is essential. Which is why you have to go through all the necessary research before you get the right dog food.

How much should a 6-week old puppy eat? How often should a6-week old puppy eat? And what to feed a 6-week old puppy are the common questions dog owner has.

Luckily you won’t have to go through the rigor. As I will be laying down some essential pup dog food that is good for this critical formative year of your pups.

The right kind of dog food will help the pup build a robust immune system. A good body buildup, not to mention strong bones, healthy memory, and cognitive ability, amongst other things.

Quick warning: You don’t get the first thing you see on the internet, always ensure to do backup research. Your pup’s health is at stake. And you wouldn’t want to be spending later on for the treatment of the dog, because you got inferior dog food.

So the first thing you will look for is a statement from the Association of American Feed Control Officials (AAFCO). Stating that the dog food is good for consumption, and you can find this statement on the label of the dog food.

For dogs under this age (12 months and below), you would also need to give the dog food that is kibble-shaped. This way the dog can eat and play as well.

Some pup food you can get for your pup include;

Clean Furs Keep The Bugs Away

Did you know that bathing a dog regularly is good for its health? It is a sort of water therapy; then again, you already know that. Your dog needs a regular bath to stay healthy and have a healthy heart.

You have to understand that unlike a kid, they don’t wear diapers, so they can’t clean themselves when they take a dump. When they go (you know what I mean), you will need to be vigilant so you can clean up after them, so they don’t roll over their poop.

So, a routine for bathing your dog should be on your schedule. Because you don’t want the dirt to add up, making it harder to bath.

Bathroom Routines Should Do The Trick

The best way to clean up after your pup is to train it to poop when you want it to. So you start by teaching your dog to poop, imagine that.

But sometimes it can be frustrating when your pup takes a dump without you being around to clean up. Or even worse when you are not ready to clean up your puppy.

When you want to potty-train your dog, you have to have a level of patience, positive reinforcement, and most importantly, planning. To be safe, a carpet cleaning plan will have to come in handy when you are caring for a six-week-old puppy.

A plan that could work is to ensure you have an outdoor dumping ground, where your pup can take his poop. This way the chances of spreading diseases and viruses from the stool, will be minimized.

Here’s how you know when you should take your pup for a poop;

When it wakes up in the morning
When the dog eats a lot of food or drinks much water
When your dog wants to sleep
When your dog is on a physical activity
When your dog wakes from a nap

Signs Of Sickness Should Alert You

If you want to care for your dog, you would have to look out for symptoms of illness common to this age of dogs (six-week-old puppies).

At this young age, the pups are prone to getting sick fast. So you would have to ensure that you are conversant with all the ailments that could plague the dog.

Some of the usual signs for sicknesses dogs of this age would manifest are:

Vomiting
Lack of appetite
Breathing difficulty
Coughing and sneezing (wheezing as well)
Weight loss
Tiredness (lethargy)
Diarrhea and watery stooling
Nasal discharge
Gums become pale
Difficulty in passing stool and urine
Red eyes or eye discharge

The moment you begin to notice these symptoms you have to take action immediately and visit a vet to check your dog for possible ailments.

Obedience Works A Charm On You

There is nothing better than having an obedient dog, who listens to your every command. That is one of the greatest gifts the dog can offer.

They are at the stage that you can teach your dog to obey the instruction. It is not when they are all grown up (even though there you can still train them, no matter how hard). It is when they are still impressionable and trained.

Teaching your pup obedience creates a strong bond between owner and dog. Plus you build a friendlier life for your pup (more on that later).

Obedience does not only command the respect of your friends (tricks like seating and rolling over). It also keeps your dog safe and in control of roaming around.

Finally, you need your dog to be friendly and sociable

You need a pup to be close from infancy to when it grows to become an adult dog (despite the breed of dogs). You don’t want a pet that is hostile. It will even affect your social life, as also your friends would not want to hang around this kind of dog.

In other to make your pup-friendly, take your dogs on walks regularly. Introduce them to new places, and to your friends as well. So, when your dog becomes conversant with these conditions, then it becomes more sociable.

Conclusion

The care and hygiene of pups are sacrosanct. Which is why you would need a good hygiene plan, one that would involve all the guidelines listed above.

The best way to show your dog that you love them is if you take proper care of it. In a way, taking good care of pups will show that you can care for babies, (for those that are considering having a baby). And it will confirm your conviction that you can care for vulnerable animals and kids.

For more on how to care for six-week-old dogs, you could follow the links below;

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Afton Jackson says:

July 1, 2020 at 2:52 am

My sister recently thought of getting a puppy to help keep her company in her new house and I want to give her some tips on how to raise one. It really helped when you stated that most vets can offer vaccination plans that can make the health-care steps of owning a pet much easier because my sister is a very busy person who talks to clients all day and may not have time to figure out which vaccine she should get for her pet for specific diseases. I’ll be sure to show her this article so she has a good idea of what to look for in a veterinarian when she finally takes in her first puppy. Thank you!