Saturday, July 19, 2008

Emma the Puppy Update

Emma is so cute and so big! On her second visit to the vet 2 weeks ago she was up to 29lbs, from 19lbs when we got her. Emma is by no means overweight, just a big puppy. I am sure she has put on a few pounds since then. We can tell how big she is getting by her height. When she first got here she couldn’t see over the coffee tables and her head was about the same height as the seat cushion on the couch. Emma now towers over both!

The puppy pads never worked out for us. The vet was right, it’s all about schedule. Keeping a strict schedule of feeding, walks and exercise did work. We have adjusted the schedule now that she knows to go outside. Meaning, we don’t have to take her out as often. I can say she is potty trained for sure!

On this last visit to the vet we found out we were bathing her too often. Emma was getting a weekly bath. The vet said this is not necessary and is actually bad for them. He said by giving the puppy baths so often the skin glands get overworked and they only have so much to give, I guess it is like moisturizer. So, if you bathe the puppy too much you will basically wear out these glands and set your puppy up for a life of skin problems. Wow! I had no idea. The vet said no more than four baths a year, which is about every three months. He also said that bathing too often actually makes the doggy smell worse. Therefore meaning, Emma gets no more baths till the fall. I did buy some puppy wipes that are used between baths that are working out rather well.

My biggest worry of less baths was, and then what do we do for flea and tick prevention? My vet recommended Frontline. Which I know works because I use it on my cat, but I didn’t know that it was enough alone. It is. Of course I did not buy it from him, though I think my vet is great I know certain things you just don’t get from the vet. Went online and bought the Frontline for a lot less. See the links to my affiliate 1-800-Petmeds.

Please don’t forget to check out my Favorite Causes on the left hand navigation bar for free ways to donate to animal shelters and a link for pet adoption. You can save a life today!

Thanks for reading!

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2 comments:

Rachel said...

he looks very cute but the whole idea of ticks and fleas puts me off having any pets I am afraid!

Barbara said...

Yeah I knnow what you mean! We have been fighting that exact issue. The vet swears by Frontline. He even said not to bother with any home spray, just wait for the frontline to take effect and they will drop dead. So far it seems to be working. I did find a tick and it was dead. Don't let that stop you it can be controlled, now the vet bills! That's a whole different issue!