A dog's early life... in the womb and as a puppy, is extremely important in determining its overall health and therefore its final adult weight.
A healthier puppy means an overall healthier dog later on in life as an adult.
How do we determine a puppy's adult weight and how can we be so accurate?
- We control his early life... from conception until at least its first 8 weeks of age, (sometimes until 10- 12 weeks of age).
- First of all, a puppy's PAW is generally defined primarily by the breed, parents and gender.
- Secondly, from birth, daily puppy weights are logged and an algebraic algorithm is applied and calculated at weekly intervals: adjusted and charted for PAW until 12 weeks of age.
- This can all change dramatically after you receive the puppy into your home... depending upon the type of food, amount of exercise, number and kinds of treats, etc., that you continue to give your puppy.
Some key factors that ONE GOOD HOME can control while in our care
and to aid and influence your puppy's future healthy life are:
- Nutrition of the dam (mom) during pregnancy and nursing. Supplement her diet, starting as soon as she is fertilized, until her puppies are weaned.
- Nutrition of the puppy during the critical first 8 weeks- the period of rapid physical, mental and psychological growth and development. (This will continue to a lesser degree through about the puppy's first year of age). Supplemental food and nutrition with high protein, fat and DHA.
- Prevention of Illness/disease... Restriction of puppy to external environment, provide a clean whelping and nursery area, and administer timely vaccination shots (6, 9 and 12 weeks). Veterinarian checkup and treatment as required.
- Prevention of excessive parasite load... either internal (eg. Worms- all types), administration of two different medications at 2, 4, 6, 8, 10, 12 and 16 weeks (monthly or PRN thereafter), AND/OR external (eg. fleas, ticks, lice, etc.)- topical treatment with chemical-free, all-natural pesticides.