Congratulations on your new family member! Dogs are a great addition to every family and provide years of unconditional love & companionship. The following is a bit of advice to help get your new best friend off to a great start.

Puppies generally go to their new homes at 8 – 12 weeks old. Here at Glasslyn we advise that you start vaccinating your new pet at 8 weeks old. This vaccine (known as a 7 in 1) covers your pet against distemper, hepatitis, parvovirus, parainfluenza & leptospirosis. After their initial vaccine they get a booster 4 weeks later (at 12 weeks old) they get another booster once they turn 9 months old. After this they get a vaccine every 12 months to help protect them for the rest of their lives. We also advise your dog gets a kennel cough vaccine, this is required for all kennels, puppy day care etc. Once your pet has had their initial course of vaccines (at 13 weeks) they are safe to get out and begin socialising with other puppies & people. It is important to start socialising your pet at a young age to help prevent behavioural problems when they are older.

It is also important to ensure that your pet is up to date with their parasite treatments. You must be especially vigilant with younger animals who need to be treated more often than adult pets. Puppies should be wormed every 2 weeks until they are 12 weeks old, every month until they are 6 months old & every 3 months after this. Flea treatments can be given monthly or every three months depending on the product used.

Neutering your pet is another important part of owning a dog. Neutering helps prevent unwanted litters, mammary/prostate cancers, womb infections, wandering & behavioural issues. Dogs can be neutered from 6 months onwards depending on the breed of the dog:

• Small breeds can be neutered from 6 months
• Medium – Large breeds, we advise to wait until they are 1 year old
• Giant breeds, we advise to wait until they are 2 years old

*This can vary with certain breeds

Female dogs cannot be neutered while they are coming into or already in season. We advise that you wait 8 weeks once their season has ended to get them neutered. It is important to ensure that they are kept away from any unneutered male dogs both in your own household and outside while they are in season.

We stock a variety of breed & age specific foods for your dog at our clinics. It is vital to feed your pet an appropriate diet throughout their lives and we can advise you more about this when your puppy comes in for their vaccinations & neutering appointments.

Our pet health plan starting at €15 a month includes all your dog’s vaccines, parasite treatments, an annual check-up and 15% off neutering & food. You can sign up for it at any stage either online or in person.

Firstly when looking for a puppy, prospective owners should research what dog breed would suit their family circumstances. Certain breeds require a lot of exercise, particularly working dogs ie collies, huskies etc. Owners need to make sure that they can offer the time and commitment to exercise and spend time with them, as often they can become frustrated and develop behavioural problems if their needs aren’t being met. We also need to consider some health issues which may arise in some dog breeds ie. respiratory, skin and orthopaedic issues.

When viewing the puppy, owners should ideally see both parents of the pup and the house itself, to ensure both parents are healthy and the pup is coming from a good home. It is not recommended to collect pups at the side of the road or shopping centres etc. Legally all pups should be microchipped and registered when being sold or rehomed. Puppies should be at least 8 weeks old before being rehomed and ideally have the first vaccine given of DHPPi and L4.

A 2^nd vaccine of the same is normally given 4 weeks after the first injection. This is to protect your pup against infectious diseases such as parvo virus and leptospirosis (Weil’s disease). It is important for everyone at home including the puppy, that they are vaccinated.