Puppy to Dog: Your Pet's Life Stages

 

As your dog grows from puppy to senior, you'll need to adjust how you take care of them. Here's what to expect as they move through six stages of life.

Puppies and How to Take Care of Them

Life Stage No. 1: Puppy. Your dog is a puppy from the time it's a newborn until it's able to reproduce.

This happens at different ages, depending on the breed of your dog. Small breeds tend to reach sexual maturity earlier than larger breeds.

Weaning. Puppies slowly switch from their mother's milk to eating other foods when they're 3 or 4 weeks old. They should be fully switched over from milk to food by the time they're 7 or 8 weeks old.

Feeding. The number of feedings per day changes as your puppy gets older:

• 2 to 3 months old: 4 times a day
• 3 to 6 months old: 3 times a day
• 6 months old to 1 year old (up to 24 months in larger breeds): 2 times a day

After age 1, feed your dog once or twice a day.

Dental Care. Dogs may show signs of gum disease by age 4 -- or even as early as age 1 in some small-breed dogs -- if you don't take proper care of their teeth. So the right time to begin proper dental care is when your dog is still a puppy. To clean your puppy's teeth, use a special toothbrush made for dogs or else use a clean piece of gauze wrapped around your finger. You can make your own toothpaste out of baking soda and water or buy one that is specially formulated for dogs. Never use toothpaste that's meant for people.

House training. You can introduce the idea of house training as soon as your puppy is weaned. They are still developing, though, so don't expect them to learn quickly. By the time they are 4 to 6 months old, they can usually go without having accidents.

Spaying and neutering. You may want to have your puppy spayed (removing females' ovaries and uterus) or neutered (removing males' testicles). These operations keep dogs from reproducing and having more puppies. They are usually done when your puppy is around 6 months old.

Spaying and neutering while they are puppies rather than as adults can help prevent problems like breast cancer and testicular disease when they get older.

Vaccines. Dogs need several rounds of vaccinations or shots during their first year. Talk to your veterinarian about which ones your dog needs and when to get them.