•   When puppies are first born, they’re dependent on their Mother for everything, and handling by humans should be limited. During the first three weeks of life, a puppy is almost devoid of senses.   During this period, the puppies will be  squirming around litter mates, nursing, and sleeping most of the time. Around three weeks, the puppy’s eyes and ears will be open. By four weeks, puppies will be walking and starts to explore the house. Third and fourth weeks are the crucial part of puppies life, during this period, puppies will be exploring their living areas,  and starts learning everything from their mom

During the fifth to sixth weeks, puppies starts playing with their litter mates,  starts exploring and this is when the socialization starts. 

 During 7 to 8 weeks, the Mom begins weaning the pups and starts teaching discipline.

If you plan to bring a puppy home, always take it from a reputable breeder. I have shared how to choose puppy from a reputable breeder in the above section.

Never bring a puppy home which are not older than 45 days, because the first 45 days are crucial stage of puppy life. During this period the puppy should drink only mothers milk which contains all the nutrients for the pups and improves its immune system. 

If you get a orphan puppy under 45 days old,  please consult an vet and take his advise on feeding alternative milk.

Young puppies may be born with worms, and are still developing their immune system.

 Worms are an inevitable part of a puppy’s life, so knowing the symptoms to look out for and establishing a puppy worming schedule is important. 

Puppies should be dewormed early in their life, most often at 2, 4, 6, 8 and 12 weeks of age. Once your puppy reaches 12 weeks, you can continue to treat your puppy every three months for life with an effective de-wormer.

Mothers may also pass worms on to their puppies, so it is important they are treated during mating, and before the birth of their puppies.

 Dog vaccinations play a critical role in protecting your dog from many dangerous and even fatal disease.Vaccines help prepare a dog's immune system to defend itself from any invasion of disease-causing organisms. Vaccines contain antigens, which mimic disease-causing organisms in a dog's immune system, but don't actually cause disease. 

The Core Dog Vaccinations

• Canine Parvovirus
• Canine Distemper
• Hepatitis
• Rabies
• Leptospirosis

Non core - Vaccines

• Bordetella
• Canine Influenza 
• Lyme vaccine

Puppy Vaccination Schedule

6-7 weeks: DHPP*, Bordetella

9-10 weeks: DHPP, Bordetella, Leptospirosis

12-13 weeks: DHPP, Leptospirosis, Canine Influenza**, Lyme Disease

15-17 weeks: DHPP, Rabies, Canine Influenza, Lyme Disease

Canine influenza and Lyme vaccinations are given depending on the lifestyle of the dog

*DHPP - distemper, hepatitis, parvovirus, parainfluenza.

• Third to sixth month are the crucial period of puppy's life. At this stage, the puppy would have been completely weaned and they are into new homes, missing their mom and siblings. 
• At this stage, the puppies starts to chew everything they see, chewing is an exploratory behavior, so need not to worry about it. 
• To control extreme chewing, provide them enough stimulation, toys.
• From third to sixth month, puppies need proper nutrition and balanced food for their bone and brain development. A well balanced diet makes a healthy and happy puppy. Never give human food to dogs as their digestive system is entirely different from ours.
• Always consult a vet before you choose any dog food.
• Always give puppy starters for puppies till they reach adolescence

• At this stage when you can enroll your puppy in its first training class, like a puppy socialization class. 

• This is also a good time to have exposure to people again in a controlled way. 
• Observe your puppy a lot. 
• Start to pick up his body language.
•  Start to understand when he’s feeling uncomfortable in a situation.

• This is also a very important time for house-training. 

• Take them out when you anticipate that they are going to go potty, usually every two to three hours, definitely after meals and when they’re excited or when they wake up.

• Crate training can also start during this stage and can help with potty training and separation anxiety.