Bringing home a new puppy is a great source of excitement for the entire family. The children especially will be very ecstatic anticipating a furry bundle of joy to play with. All these are well and good but now you have to shoulder the responsibility of keeping your puppy happy and healthy. You need to know about health care for puppies.

These are important facts to learn in the health care for puppies:

1. Habitat is the place or environment of your puppy. Consider three important factors:

Comfort is important for your puppy needs a cozy bed to sleep which is warm and snuggly. Remember that most puppies are used to sleeping beside their mother. Provide a blanket if it gets too cold.

Security is the importance of safety to your puppy. Remove anything in the surroundings which is harmful.

Play is necessary to keep your puppy from becoming bored. Provide some harmless toys to keep puppy entertained especially when you leave him alone.

2. Provide a balanced diet that is appropriate for the kind of puppy you have. There are many kinds of dog food available in the market. It is not necessary to buy authentic dog food for natural food is also good for puppies. Natural foods favorable to the health care for puppies are milk, chicken, chicken heart, oatmeal, vegetables, boiled rice, carrots and cheese. The recommended feeding schedule for puppies an d dogs is:

From 0 - 4 months: 4 meals a day;

from 4 + to 8 months: 3 meals a day;

from 8+ to 12 months: 2 meals a day.

Above one year, you can feed your dog once a day. Even older dogs can do better on 2 meals a day, however, because they may get hungry if only fed once a day.

3. Vaccinations are a necessity for puppies. Newly born pups have natural enzymes from mothers milk but after the 6th to 9th week, your puppy needs vaccination. Start with the initial vaccination followed by booster vaccination 3 weeks after. Vaccination is a must on health care for puppies. Follow the advice of your vet.

Puppies need immunization from diseases like parvovirus, paraflu, lyme disease, rabies and corona virus.

Rabies prevention - Rabies is a communicable disease that is transferred via the saliva from the bite of an infected animal. Puppies must be given a rabies shot. Many towns in areas of known rabies infestation require biannual rabies shots for the dogs entire life.

Worm prevention - Deworm puppies at 2 weeks and continue at stated intervals. Puppies have round worms which cause illness.

4. Physical activities are important for your puppies. Exercise the young ones at home and when they are older, walk around the neighborhood. Use balls to encourage your puppies to play and run. Exercise is an essential part of health care for puppies. Playtime is a good time to train your puppy

From the very first day, teach the puppy that you are the master. Your puppy will feel secure knowing his place in your family. Also learn that puppies are different based on their breed. Care for a Pomeranian puppy differs from a Great Dane.

The health and happiness of your puppy depends not only on you but also to your veterinarian. You need a vet to give you guidance about health care for puppies.