A list of things you'll need.

2009-10-29T01:47:00.000-07:00

Having a puppy is really a joyous thing.. but most first time puppy owners tend to overspend on things they don't need and will never ever need!!!

Here is a list of things that you'll need:

The list:

A play pen
Feeding bowls
A towel/shirt/ pillow for a bed.
Pee Pen and LOTS AND LOTS OF NEWSPAPERS!
Food
Chew bones
Toys
Treats

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A play pen

There's no need to get a first hand play pen. One gate ( 1 side) costs almost S$12 - S$15 per gate.( depending on the type.. black or chrome etc..) Thats a total of S$ 48 for a play pen! OMG!

Get a second hand one coz after 1 month, you'll probably never need it again.
A second hand one will probably only cost S$20 of less!

DO NOT BUY THOSE WITH A GATE UNDERNEATH to put the pee pen!

It will hurt the puppies' legs and from my own experience usually these pups cannot walk very well.

Use of play pen:
To toilet train your new puppy.

Feeding bowls

There are plastic and then there are metal.. I recommend buying the metal ones.
They may be more expensive but more economical in the long run.
Plastics tend to disintegrate and get scratched. The scratches harbour alot of bacteria.

Sleeping place

When you first get your puppy, PLEASE DO NOT BUY A DOG BED!
you'll regret it.
Get a towel, shirt or a pillow that you'll never want again.

Sometimes puppies have accidents in their play pen. and there goes your expensive dog bed.
Get a dog bed only when the puppy is toilet trained.

Pee pen

Get a plastic cheap pee pen from any pet shops.
Do not just lay newspaper on the floor.
This plastic pee pen will trap the smell of the pee in it. and thus, the puppy will be able to remember and smell the pee and pee there correctly.

It costs only about S$12 for one.
You don't need the fancy ones( like yogi pee pen).. it makes no sense. I had it, i paid alot for it, end up, the poo gets stuck there.

Food

After searching for the best food for the puppies, i have decided to put my puppies on Wellness Puppy food. It received a 5 star rating on the dog food list.
More information on it can be found here.
The websites contains alot of good food there.

PLEASE NO RICE OR BREAD! unless you want your new puppy to start to stink and have tooth decay.

Try to stick to this brand until you decide to change their diet to another brand.

If you change a different brand immediately, chances are 90% she'll get diarrhea.

If you want to change the food, you have to change it slowly. 75% old food and 25% new. And decrease this amount daily.

Milk

Most dogs are lactose intolerant which means, they cannot drink our human milk.
Here is a good brand of puppy milk re commanded by the vet: Animalac.
It's in powder form. Its not really necessary to feed them milk unless you really want to.

Bones

This is one of the most important things you will need.

Your pup will most likely be teething. you'll need bones for her to chew on. Get those cheap 4 in a plastic bag type at any pet shop. I usually get BARF! rawhide, milk flavour. Cost about S$ 4 tops.

Toys

Get one toy. ONE.

get a toy that has no buttons or button eyes or anything that she can swallow. a toy that has small arms or legs that she can bite to bring to you.

a towel as a toy also can suffice. They don't care as long as it can move and you are playing with them.

Treats

Get soft treats. Ask your favourite pet shop which treat is the best. These treats are your best friend to teach your new pup her name and new tricks!

GOOD LUCK!

How to pick a puppy

2009-10-25T21:31:00.000-07:00

Hi all,

We want everyone to have a healthy puppy!

Here's a video about how to choose a healthy puppy.

In short, you have to check their:

Nose
It must not be too wet when you touch it as if it was having a cold.
Or have any funny coloured discharge.
The nose must be moist and not too dry.

Eyes
It should be clear.
It should not have any tears or discharge. ( doesn't apply for white coloured dogs. )

Ears
It should not smell funny.. ( like dirty socks)
It should not have black coloured wax(ear mites) , in fact, the dog's ears should not have any VISIBLE wax.

Skin
If the dog is long haired, part the hair. It should be a pink or pale colour without any dandruff like looking skin.
If the dog is short haired, then the skin irritatations are easier to spot. It should not have dandruff looking skin or patches on the fur. If the dog has patches of hairless spots on the fur, look closely.. sometimes, the patches are fur loss or it might be a swirl. (like our head has one or two patches of no hair. ) =DD

Another tip is to lightly choke the dog. the dog should NOT cough..

Body
Some people prefer smaller dogs. To fuel this group of people, some sellers have resorted to STARVING the puppies to make them look smaller!! You can be certain that after bringing the puppies home and feeding the puppy regularly, the puppy will slowly grow to its supposed size.

Look carefully at the dog. Feel the ribs and the backbone. You should feel ABIT of the ribs with fats around the ribs. You should not even be able to see nor feel the backbone when you lightly touch the puppy.

The dog's stomach should not be bloated. The puppy can be FAT, but NOT BLOATED. if the seller tells you that the puppy just ate thats why its bloated, come back another time when the puppy has not eaten.

Poo
I know, its very gross. But look at the poo of the dog.

If its watery as in shapless poo, do NOT buy the puppy.. watery poo with blood, coupled with vomitting might be the fearful parvo virus!

The poo of the dog should have at least a shape. It should not be pooing water nor blood.

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There is a 7 day guarrentee by ALL legal petshops in Singapore. Get your puppy to a vet check immediately after buying your puppy. =)

Tiny & Jackie Puppies

A list of things you'll need.

How to pick a puppy