If you are buying a small breed puppy you need to know about the risk of Hypoglycemia. It is always easier to prevent than treat it. Hypoglycemia is a condition where the blood sugar drops to an abnormally low level. This usually occurs when the puppy uses up all its stored energy by playing for extended periods of time without resting and having time for it to replenish. Small puppies and puppies less than 4 months are more prone to this. They have tiny digestive system and can only store a little bit of food ( which is energy) in their bodies at a single time. Always make sure your puppy is eating, even if only small amounts, around ever 3- 5 hours.

Too much playing for a long period of timeisnt good for smaller puppies. They tend to lose their energy very fast, possibly causing low blood sugar. Small puppies must replenish their energy more frequently than larger puppies. Play with your puppy for short period of time, and then let them rest. They need it just like babies. Tiny puppies tire more easily.

Sometimes a puppy may play so much that it gets too tired to even eat . Your puppy must be eating well. If your puppy is not eating his dry puppy food give him can food, cooked liver, baby food with meat. Your puppy can not go hours without eating. Its your responsibility to see that your puppy is getting enough rest and eating several times a day.

It is not a good idea to show your new baby off too much and let him/her be handled a lot during travel for long periods with them until they get older. These are babies and must be treated as such. Puppies can sometimes get stressed from leaving their pitter mates and the only home they know so don’t be startled if they will not eat right away. Symptoms of hypoglycemia ( will vary depending on how low and how fast the puppy’s blood sugar) Lethargy weakened, head tilting, restlessness, trembling, disorientation, slow breathing, convulsions or seizures. Be prepared always have something on hand like Nutri-Cal, Corn syrup, Honey

If your puppy is acting strangely, you should assume it is due to hypoglycemia and treat it accordingly…no damage can be done by treating possible Hypoglycemia. If your puppy is not hypo, your treatment may raise the blood sugar for a few hours, but if your puppy is hypoglycemic, you just saved its life.

Here you will find essential information and resources which will help you to provide the very best in health and nutrition for your perfect puppy. Remember, the best care doesn’t always have to be the most expensive. We use our experience to help our puppies live a perfect life.

Did you know that house soiling ranks as one of the top reasons dogs end up in a animal shelters?

The main emphasis of housetraining is to teach a puppy where TO GO, not where not to go!

It is strongly recommended that you be home with your puppy during the first two weeks following arrival. When you can spend the majority of the daylight hours with him/her, you will begin to see positive results twice as fast as someone who isn’t available as much and therefore cannot give as much supervision. Please remember that puppies do have accidents and that each puppy learns on an individual basis. Just be patient!

Toy breed puppies have smaller stomachs, and after the first few days, they seem to eat in a browsing fashion due to the many distractions and smells of their new environment. They become particularly sidetracked if there is another pet in the home. If your puppy knows he/she has continuous access to food for the first week, then he/she will not overeat. Start them on a feeding schedule the second week, generally two or three times a day depending on the individual puppy. Remove the meal after 30 minutes: this will help your puppy to better develop a regular eliminating schedule.

INDOOR TRAINING: We further recommend using a small confined area (such as a half bathroom or small utility room) that can be closed off with a baby gate. (I have had great success with the “Super yard”, a portable, floorless playpen, which can be arranged several ways. (see photo above). It can be purchased at Wal-Mart. Pet stores offer something similar made from a gold metal-like material. It is usually called a “pet exercise pen”.

Generally, 30-40 minutes after eating or drinking, your puppy will need to go to the bathroom. Pick up your puppy, place him/her inside the confined area (with 1-2 puppy pads covering an area large enough so the puppy won’t miss), tell your puppy to “go potty”, and give him/her up to 10 minutes. When puppy does his/her business, praise him/her and give a treat. (This is the only time I give treats to a young puppy. Bil-Jac brand liver treats in a carton work well, but any small, chewable treat will do.) At night, if the puppy is in your bedroom — whether on the bed or in a crate next to your bed — when you hear him whine or whimper in the middle of the night, take him and place him in your bathtub (where you have previously place two puppy pads)! This will help, and as the puppy gets older this night potty time can be eliminated. Remember that though you are doing most of the work in the beginning, your puppy will begin to catch on and go by himself/herself. After a couple of weeks, or when you feel your puppy is comfortable with the routine, remove the gate or open the exercise pen to allow your puppy to enter/exit the potty area alone.

OUTDOOR TRAINING: First, show your puppy where you want him/her to eliminate. Use a harness and leash to take her to the same place each time, generally near the front or back door. Stand there for about 5 minutes (It might take longer the first few days because your puppy is doing more exploring things such as new smells, surroundings, etc). If she/he does not go, try again every hour. When she/he does go, PRAISE them and give reward (Cooked chicken or Bil-Jac liver treats are good, too). If you have the puppy eliminate in the same area, he will smell his own scent and note that it his his/her territory, therefore he/she will be more comfortable and find it easier to be successful.

In your times of frustration, as you are cleaning up messes, remember that this is only a season in your puppy’s life and that, this too, shall pass! After all, if a child never made mistakes, they wouldn’t need parents! Good luck!

Before each puppy leaves our home, bound for their new home, they are given a through grooming — or shall we say — a day at the “beauty shop”. We first bath your puppy using Pet Silk pet shampoo. I have chosen this product because it works. I have seen the quick results in the condition of a puppy’s hair in just minutes. I use their Pet Silk conditioner on those puppies needing that extra moisture for their coat and skin.

We remove any excess hair from the ears to prevent dirt getting embedded in the ears and in the canal itself and thus providing a home for unwanted ear_mites (reference our Perfect Puppy Health tab on this page for more info). Then ears are flushed with ear cleansing solution made by “VETS Solutions”, and finally each ear is swabbed out with a cotton swab to further remove any dirt that was loosened during flushing.

Nails are trimmed to desired length. Every puppy parent needs to keep an eye on their puppy’s nail growth. You will be surprised on how fast they will grow! For small puppies, I use a large toenail clipper. If you cut them too short, the nail will begin to bleed: Don’t panic! ALWAYS have on hand a product called “Kwik Stop” styptic powder. You can find it at any PETsMART or pet shop. Place a small amount on tip of nail and bleeding will stop immediately.

If necessary, trim excess hair on paw pads. Also, but only if necessary, trim excess hair around rectal area to prevent any waste matter from building up and creating a “poop ball”, and which can lead to full rectal blockage.

When it comes to your family pet it is always better to have your pet fixed. It really is what is best for them. Remember that when you decide to breed your pet you are placing them at risk. Please read the following info and then click on the link below to give you more info on why our pets should be spayed or neuter. Also We breed only for F1 hybrid ,so we dont hold back first generation hybrids to breed for F2 . For more info on why F1 are the best hybrids to get click here.

http://www.answers.com/topic/dog-hybrids-and-crossbreeds

Uncover five common myths and facts about spaying and neutering:

Myth: Dogs become fat and lazy after being spayed or neutered.

Fact: Fat animals are usually overfed and under-exercised. While some dogs put on weight after the operation, adjusting their diet and increasing their exercise will take care of it.

Myth: A pet’s behavior changes dramatically after surgery.

Fact: Neutered male dogs fight less and wander less since they aren’t interested in pursuing females in heat. Studies show spayed or neutered animals live longer, healthier lives.

Myth: A neutered dog isn’t a good watchdog.

Fact: The best time to spay your female dog is before her first heat cycle. It prevents uterine infections, such as pyometra, which can be fatal, and reduces the incidence of breast cancer. It also keeps unwanted males from harassing your pet.

Myth: Preventing dogs from having litters is unnatural.

Fact: Dogs were never “naturally” pets in the first place. They were domesticated 15,000 years ago. It’s more unnatural, one could argue, to kill so many dogs in shelters each year.

Myth: Neutering a male dog will make him feel like less of a dog.

Fact: Pets don’t have any concept of sexual identity or ego. Neutering will not change a pet’s basic personality. He doesn’t suffer any kind of emotional reaction or identity crisis when neutered.

SOURCE: The Humane Society of the United States.

For more info: http://www.petorphans.com/earlyneut.html

Wednesday October 24, 2001
Luxating Patella
Race Foster, DVM
Marty Smith, DVM
Drs. Foster & Smith, Inc.

A dog from one of the smaller breeds runs across the yard chasing a tossed ball. In mid-stride, it yelps in pain and pulls its left hind leg off of the ground. After a second, he continues limping on in three-legged fashion. After ten minutes, the rear leg drops back down to the ground and he uses it normally. This episode occurs maybe once a week. It never really seems to bother him that much – a yip of pain, a short period of lameness, and in a few minutes he is back to his old self. Typically, he is a small or toy breed such as a Lhasa Apso, Pekingese, Pomeranian, Poodle, or Boston Bull.

A luxating patella may affect some animals much more severely, They may hold the leg up for several days and show considerable discomfort. Dogs who have a luxating patella on both hind legs may change their entire posture, dropping their hindquarters and holding the rear legs farther out from the body as they walk. Those most severely affected may not even use their rear legs, walking by balancing themselves on their front legs like a circus act, holding their hindquarters completely off the ground.

Normal knee anatomy The patella is the bone we know as the knee cap. A groove in the end of the femur allows the patella to glide up and down when the knee joint is bent back and forth. In so doing the patella guides the action of the quadriceps muscle in the lower leg. The patella also protects the knee joint. Looking at the lower front portion of the femur (the thigh bone) in a normal dog, you will notice two bony ridges that form a fairly deep groove in which the patella is supposed to slide up and down. These structures limit the patella’s movement to one restricted place and, in so doing, control the activity of the quadriceps muscle. The entire system is constantly lubricated by joint fluid. It works so that there is total freedom of motion between the structures.

What occurs when the patella is luxated? In some dogs, because of malformation or trauma, the ridges forming the patellar groove are not prominent, and a too-shallow groove is created. In a dog with shallow grooves, the patella will luxate (jump out of the groove) sideways, especially toward the inside. This causes the leg to ‘lock up’ with the foot held off the ground. When the patella luxates from the groove of the femur, it usually cannot return to its normal position until the quadriceps muscle relaxes and increases in length. This explains why the affected dog may be forced to hold its leg up for a few minutes or so after the initial incident. While the muscles are contracted and the patella is luxated from its correct position, the joint is held in the flexed or bent position. The yip is from the pain caused by the knee cap sliding across the bony ridges of the femur. Once out of position, the animal feels no discomfort and continues its activity.

Which dogs are at risk of having a luxated patella? Smaller breeds of dogs, especially Miniature and Toy Poodles, have the highest incidence of patella luxation. Genetics can play a role. In certain breeds that have extremely short legs such as the Basset or Dachshund, patellar luxation is thought to be secondary to the abnormal shape of the femur and tibia. The curvatures of the bones in these breeds work in conjunction with the forces of the quadriceps muscles to displace the patella to the inside. Please do not misunderstand – not all members of these breeds are affected with patellar luxation, only a small portion.

What are the symptoms? Most dogs are middle-aged, with a history of intermittent (on-again-off-again) lameness in the affected rear leg(s). An affected dog commonly stops and cries out in pain as he is running. The affected leg will be extended rearward, and for a while the dog is unable to flex it back into the normal position.

What are the risks? Uncorrected, the patellar ridges will wear, the groove will become even shallower and the dog will become progressively more lame. Arthritis will prematurely affect the joint, causing a permanently swollen knee with poor mobility. Therefore, a good evaluation needs to be done by your veterinarian early in the condition to prevent long-term arthritic crippling.

Treatment for Luxating Patellas As would be expected, medical therapy has little corrective ability in this disorder and surgery is therefore required and is the treatment of choice. A surgical treatment is not necessary in every individual with this condition. Surgery can alter both the affected structures and the movement of the patella. The groove at the base of the femur may be surgically deepened to better contain the knee cap. The knee cap itself may be “tied down” laterally (on the outside) to prevent it from deviating medially (toward the inside). The bony protuberance at the site of the attachment of the quadriceps tendon on the tibia may be cut off and then re-attached in a more lateral position. All of these procedures work well and the type performed depends on the individual case and the clinician. The animal should respond quickly after surgery and is usually completely recovered within thirty days, using its legs in normal fashion.

Breeding Considerations Because of the strong genetic relationships, we really feel that animals with this disorder should not be used for breeding. They can still be excellent pets – and those that do require surgery will usually lead perfectly normal lives without any restrictions on activity.