Puppy Information
Puppy Consults
Puppy visits are not just about vaccines.
At each puppy visit, the veterinarian will do a full physical exam to ensure your puppy is healthy and developing normally, including proper weight gain, tooth development, and behaviour.
The veterinarian will also discuss important topics such as proper diet, socialization, bite inhibition, house training, safety (toxic plants, common ingestions, puppy-proofing), appropriate toys, dental care, and breed-specific considerations.
Initial puppy visits are about $250, and follow up visits are about $175. These visits include the consult and exam, recommended vaccines, and parasite screening and control.
Vaccines
When puppies are nursing, they receive antibodies (protection) from their mother’s milk. These antibodies slowly wear off as the puppy gets older, and are usually gone by 14-20 weeks of age. As this protection wears off, vaccines are given intermittently (every 3-4 weeks) to provide continued protection.
In BC, core vaccines that are recommended for every dog are the distemper combo (distemper, adenovirus, parvovirus) and rabies. These diseases can be very contagious, and deadly.
We also recommend all puppies receive their first series of vaccines against bordetella and leptospirosis. Bordetella is also known as kennel cough, and is extremely contagious. Leptospirosis is a disease passed from infected animals through urine, and can live in contaminated soil and water for months. It can cause kidney, liver, and lung disease and bleeding disorders.
Example of a healthy puppy vaccine schedule:
8 weeks: Distemper combo (1 of 3)
12 weeks: Distemper combo (2 of 3), bordetella (1 yr)
16 weeks: Distemper combo (3 of 3, 1 yr), leptospirosis (1 of 2)
18 weeks: Leptospirosis (2 of 2, 1 yr), rabies (1 yr)
Most often, puppies receive their first distemper combo vaccine with the breeder, before being adopted.
All vaccines need to be given again 1 year later. In adults, rabies and distemper combo vaccines are given every 3 years. Leptospirosis and bordetella are lifestyle vaccines, meaning not all dogs will need annual revaccination. The veterinarian will discuss your dog’s individual risk and vaccination needs with you.
For more information on which vaccines your dog should receive, click here.
Parasite Screening and Control
Many parasites that your puppy can carry are zoonotic, meaning they can be transferred to you, a child or senior, or an immune-compromised family member.
At each visit, you will be asked to bring along a stool sample (click here for tips). We screen puppy stools every 3 months for parasites. Puppies can get some parasites through their mother’s milk, and because their immune systems are not fully developed, from the environment.
We also provide treatment for fleas, ticks, and internal parasites at each visit. These medications need to be given monthly until puppies are 6 months old. The frequency of treatment will then depend on your puppy’s lifestyle and risk, and the humans your puppy interacts with.
Why do stool screening and regular deworming? Stool screening only screens for a few of the most common parasites, and the deworming we use is broad-spectrum, but not 100% effective against all parasites. By doing both, we do our best to ensure your puppy is not carrying parasites that could cause disease in either them, or you!
We follow the Canadian Parasitology Expert Panel Guidelines.
Spaying and Neutering
A spay surgery is the operation done on female pets, removing both the ovaries and the uterus, to make sure they cannot have babies. Spaying your pet reduces their risk of breast cancer, and prevents infection of the uterus.
A neuter surgery removes the testes of the male so that they do not have any sperm and have reduced testosterone. This operation reduces male behaviours like roaming, fighting, mounting, and territorial marking.
While this is often considered a “routine” surgery, it is still surgery, and we do everything we can to ensure the anesthesia and surgery is safe. We do a pre-anesthetic screen and consult prior to the procedure to confirm the health of your pet and answer all your questions. We include IV fluids and pain relief in our surgical plans, and a nurse monitors your pet throughout the surgery. For more information on our spays and neuters, click here.
For more information on when your pup should be spayed or neutered, click here.