There is so much to learn in how to care for your new puppy. Here are some basics. 😀

What is NORMAL things my puppy might do?
 
 Throwing up- Puppies may eat to much, drink to much to quick, play to hard after eating, or eat something like lint that they shouldn’t have that will cause them to throw up. As long as they throw up, then continue to act normal, playing, alert, eating, drinking, and paying attention to you, that can be normal.
 
Loose Stools– Puppies may stress from going to a new home, a new trip, trip the the vet, Vaccinations, having new company ect. Anything out of the norm can stress out your puppy. A stressful puppy can get stomach upset and it can cause loose stools. Just like people. As long as they are playing, active, acting normal, eating and drinking ect, this can be normal and should clear up in a day or so.
 
Napping- Puppies are little. They exert themselves at 110 miles per hour while playing! They play hard, and may sleep harder! Your puppy will take LOTS of Naps. As long as you can wake them up easy, do not worry if the sleep most of the day off/and on between playing.They may play for an hour, and sleep for three. This is ok, as long as they are easy to wake, and acting normal once awake.
 
Being a picky eater– Pomeranians usually Graze throughout the day. They don’t usually eat all their food in one sitting. They also stess easy when going to a new home. So they may not eat like they should and it may seem like they are picky. It is important to keep food and water out for them at all times and pay attention to be sure they eat often throughout the day. Treats such as fresh chicken are not a bad idea to help encourage puppies to eat the first week or so. Your puppy needs to eat frequently or they can go hypo. Beef baby food, Stella and chewies meat patties, cooked chicken are all things to help encourage them if they are stressed to eat. 
 
Biting, Growling, crying-Your puppy will bite and growl while playing. Very normal! Get them lots of toys and things to chew! Bully Bones and busy bones are the best. Pig ears and pig snouts are good to. Do not give greenies or such as they are huge choking hazard! Your puppy may cry for the first few days as they are adjusting to their new home. This is normal. They will miss their Mother, siblings, and familiar smells and surroundings. Give lots of attention and reassurance and be very patient. It will get better! Three days is usually the worst of it if that. 
 
CAUSES FOR CONCERN-When to call a VET
 
Throwing up-IF Your puppy is throwing up often, has blood in throw up, is lethargic, low energy, not eating or playing, this is NOT NORMAL. This usually needs VET attention!
 
Loose Stools- If the puppy has watery bad diarrhea, Blood in stools, is quiet, lethargic, or just not playing, eating ect, this could be giardia, or Coccidia or other illnesses that needs vet attention and medication to help them get better. STRESS can cause Coccidia or Giardia to become a problem. Almost all puppies carry this in their digestive tract, but the good bacteria usually keep things in balance. When stressed the gut gets out of balance and the bad things like giardia or cocci can take over and cause your puppy to become sick. If this is the case, do not wait, get a stool sample run at your vet, and see what is going on, so you can get the correct medicine. It is easy to clear up with the right medicine. 
 
Sleeping-if your puppy will not wake up, or is not rousing when you call their name, seems shaky, walk  like they are drunk, or are lethargic This is an emergency situation. Get VET attention. This is most likely Hypoglycemia. Give you puppy Dyne, honey, syrup, nutrical, FIRST THING to help sugars go back to normal and then get your puppy to a vet.
NOT EATING-Pay attention- and encourage him to eat something. IF they go off food for longer than a day, get vet attention.
 
IF IN DOUBT ABOUT ANYTHING CONTACT US
 
Some important quick tips

FOOD- Food and water 24/7. If you change food do it slowly and mix it with another food so they do not get the runs. 

HYPOGLYCEMIA-Make sure you puppy eats and drinks. Watch for signs of hypo. Sings include walking drunk, shaking, to quiet, not playing, acting “OFF” being lethargic, in extreme cases Seizures. Give your puppy Dyne, Honey, Syrup, Nutrical if you see ANY of these signs. If the puppy does not improve, get to a vet. Due to t his being caused by the puppy not eating we do not cover Hypo in our contract. So be sure to watch carefully and be sure your baby eats! 
 
Shots- Your puppy has had ONE shot. But your puppy is NOT PROTECTED YET! Do NOT TAKE THEM OUT YET! Your puppy needs three more vaccinations to be protected and safe to take out. Each shot is 3 weeks apart. Talk to your vet about their puppy packages. NEVER let your vet give LEPTO or CORONA in the vaccinations. These can be FATAL to small breed puppies. At 6 months to a year you can consider these two, but only if your area has many wild animals like skunk, Possum, Raccoons ect. 
 
Worming– ALL puppies and dogs will be exposed to and possible have worms at sometimes in their lives. This is because it is in the dirt and puppies put EVERYTHING in their mouth. So if a puppy, or its mom, has ever been outside it has been exposed. This is why worming schedules are important. We have wormed your babies, be sure to keep them on schedule and talk to your vet about this! We have wormed with Strongid and Pancur.
 
Watch for soft stools. It is a sign of stress and illness
 
NEVER give you puppies treats form China and do not use puppy pads made in China. Many have LEAD in them.

The First 24 Hours/days/weeks

The first 24 hours is a very stressful time for your little puppy. Please be sure to do the following as soon as you get home:
 
  • Show the puppy where his/her food and water area is first thing! Be sure both bowls are clean and full! Preferably NOT from China!
  • Leave food and Water out in an easy reach area 24/7 at ALL times.
  • Be sure to monitor your puppy and be sure he/she eats and drinks during the day/eve. They tend to be Grazers, and will eat a little here, a little there. They typically do not eat all their food at once. That is why it is not recommended for them to be put on a timed schedule for feeding, until they are over 6 months old. Encourage eating to avoid hypoglycemia. If they are not eating or drinking, call me.
  • Watch for signs of Hypoglycemia. If the puppy is slow to respond, listless or doesn’t wake up or rouse easy they could be hypoglycemic. Give honey, Nutra cal, or Karo Syrup immediately! And call me! If this doesn’t get puppy back to normal, get to a vet!
  • Show the puppy where his “POTTY” area is. This is VERY important! We use puppy pads, but make sure they are not made in China!
  • Do not put the puppy down on the ground outside, in a store, vet, petsmart ect. The puppy has had one or two shots at the most. They need a series of  FOUR shots to be fully protected against many things like parvo. If taking the puppy out to the store, DO NOT PUT THEM DOWN! If going to the vet, bring a blanket or puppy pads to put them on. Do not let the puppy touch any surfaces at the vet. Also disinfect your shoes before going back into your home. 
  • Be sure your house is puppy proofed. At the very least check for choking hazards and poisons. Watch your puppy carefully if they are left loose to run around the house.
  • Put a bell collar on your puppy to keep track of them. They are tiny and can get lost in your home easy!
  • WATCH YOUR STEP!!!! They are so easy to step on they are so tiny and LOVE your feet!
  • Have a bed or crate/exorcise pen ready for your puppy for sleeping and as a safe secure place for them.
  • The puppy will most likely cry for up to three nights when put in a crate/exercise pen. This is normal. Putting them next to your bed, in a crate or playpen can help. Be patient. Remember all they have known their whole lives, is now different. They need time, love, and your kindness to adjust and learn to trust you, your family, and grow confident in their new home. 
 
     The first few days your puppy will be getting used to you and your family. Some puppies THRIVE as the new center of attention. Some can be shy and take a bit longer to adjust to a new environment. Some my cry, some might not. Crying is normal and usually is worse at night or when the puppy is confined for long periods of time, it usually only lasts about 3 days. Be sure to watch for loose stools during this time as that can occur due to high stress. If the puppy gets this call me. 
    It is important to spend a lot of time with the puppy the first few days. Play with them, soothe them, and care for them. Give them lots of treats for doing things right! A good one to start with is calling their name, and reward them with a treat and lots of praise when they do! This is setp one to building communication with your baby! Remember all you do in the first few days will establish a routine for your puppy. Be sure what you do is helping them learn the RIGHT way to do things to meet your long term goals. Things you should NOT do:
 
  • Do not Hit, Strike or Spank your puppy. Doing so can start behavior problems and make the puppy afraid of you.
  • Do not YELL at your puppy.  Using a deep FIRM voice is all that is needed. Clapping your hands and saying NO, is a great way to correct your puppy. Yelling will only teach them NOT to trust you and will make them very insecure and scared of you.
  • NEVER leave your puppy unsupervised while roaming your entire house.
  • NEVER leave your puppy in a crate for longer then 2 hours.
  • Do not feed table scraps. This can make them very ill. Even many dog treats can make them ill.
  • NEVER leave your puppy in the car alone. just 10 minutes in a hot car can be fatal.
  • Be careful when taking a puppy in a doggy purse/carrier. Be sure the weather is not to hot, and be sure the carrier is well vented. Dogs can get heat stroke if they get to hot in the carrier/purse.
 
 
During the first few weeks it is important to establish a routine with your puppy.  Be sure to set limits on things your puppy is or is NOT allowed to do. Such as be on furniture, sleep in bed with you, chewing unwanted things ect. There are a TON TON TON of videos on training on Youtube. Its ALL FREE! I will include a few of my favs at the bottom of the page! 

Things to have ready for your new puppy

First things first
You will need a SECURE place for your puppy. Somewhere he/she can be when you can not keep an eagles eye on them. They will chew it, pee on it, poop on it. So give them a safe place to go, to relax, so you can to!
Some people use a baby gate to section off a room. Maybe they use it to section off a bathroom or a kitchen for their puppy. This is a great option for many.

What we use is a playpen. I have two that I LOVE and highly recommend!
The first one here is a nice hard sided playpen. This is the one we use. It is so easy to take apart and put back together. You can use all 6 panels and make it many shapes, or just use 4 panels to make it a smaller square. It depends on how much space you have. I like using all 6 panels. But you may want to use only four?