AKC Chihuahua puppies in Missouri
AKC Chihuahua puppies in Missouri
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Health
Hypoglycemia (low blood sugar)
Is my Chihuahua a healthy weight?
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Hypoglycemia is a life threatening condition that Chihuahuas are at a higher risk for due to their small size. All Chihuahua owners must know the symptoms and be prepared to deal with it. Here is one article to get you started in your research.
You must educate yourself about this before bringing your puppy home. Be on the lookout for symptoms, especially the first 24-48 hours after bringing your new puppy home. If your puppy does not eat – you should be concerned and do whatever you can to encourage him to eat and/or give him supplemental nutrition such as Nutri-Cal. As a Chihuahua owner, you should always have Karo/corn syrup on hand and also Nutri-Cal or an equivalent product, for hypoglycemia emergencies. The best way to avoid hypoglycemia is to ensure your puppy never misses a meal. However, as he/she gets older, some might decide they only want to eat once per day. You will get to know your puppy and be able to recognize their normal eating pattern. Some of our adults only like to eat once per day. They do not experience hypoglycemia. The problem mostly occurs when a puppy/adult who normally gobbles up their food, suddenly refuses to eat. If this happens once, try offering the food a few hours later. If s/he still refuses to eat, give him Nutri-Cal and/or Karo syrup. Other foods to try are: boiled chicken, baby food (meat), or Royal Canine Puppy Starter Mousse. Try serving them anything to make them eat, even if you need to force it by spreading it on the back of their upper teeth (this is how I serve Nutri-Cal).
Vaccinations and Microchips
We encourage minimal core vaccinations for deadly diseases including Parvo and Distemper. We use the protocol of Dr. Jean Dodds as our guide. We encourage you to do your own research about vaccinations, specifically over-vaccinating. Puppies will have at least one set of vaccinations before leaving our home.
Vaccination decisions should be made between you and your vet. Please discuss the risks vs. benefits of the Leptospirosis vaccine, as it has been known to cause severe reactions including death, especially in small dogs such as Chihuahuas. Many vets will administer this vaccine routinely, along with other non-core vaccines, unless you request that they don’t. If you choose to use non-core vaccinations, you may request that the vaccines are administered separately instead of the combo shots.
Rabies: We recommend waiting until your puppy is at least 6 months old before vaccinating for rabies, and preferably on a different day as surgery.
General vaccination info:
Lepto Vaccine:Microchipping
If you choose to microchip your puppy, a good time is during their spay/neuter surgery. We personally do not use microchips. Please make an informed decision:
Natural products for health
Dog Food: There is no one answer to "What should I feed my dog?" What is good for one dog might not be as good for another. The best food choice is the one that your dog is healthy on. My best recommendation is to raw feed, if you are able. Here are some links to research different brands of food and also raw feeding.
We prefer to feed food that doesn't contain corn: The Truth About Corn in Dog Food
Foods we normally feed:
Treats: We prefer to make our own treats out of beef liver or boiled chicken breasts. Our dogs also love to get veggie pieces and always come running when we get out the cutting board and start chopping vegetables. They know a little piece is bound to jump off the counter just for them! Mozzarella cheese sticks also come in handy for training treats. One thing is always the same though, each treat serving size is TINY. A puppy might get the size of a pea. Too much and they could spoil their appetite for dinner.
Tooth care: We clean our dog's teeth by serving them raw bones. Our dogs love teeth cleaning time! We have had good experiences serving raw chicken necks weekly, in addition to other bones. There is a lot of information online about myths and benefits of raw feeding so please do your own research to make an informed decision. I recommend reading more than one website to get differing opinions. In our experience, the dogs who have grown up eating/chewing raw bones have the cleanest teeth without the need for scaling. They also have the best breath.
Hard weight wearing bones are not recommended, since they can damage or break teeth. Raw bones are especially helpful during teething, to get those stubborn baby teeth out.
- Dog Dental Health: Raw Meaty Bones Will Keep Your Dog’s Teeth Clean And Healthy
- Raw Meaty Bones For Dogs: How To Feed & Where To Get Them
- Raw Meaty Bones (RMB)
Natural products we like to use with our dogs and our family too. We encourage you to do your own research and consider also using these. (Sorry for the messed up editing below-the program is not cooperating!) Click on the links below to read the benefits.
1. Grapefruit seed extract (GSE): http://www.natural-dog-health-remedies.com/gse-for-dogs.html
2. Apple cider vinegar (AVC), preferably Bragg's or one with "the mother"
1o http://www.whole-dog-journal.com/issues/15_01/features/Pet-Uses-Of-Apple-Cider-Vinegar_20435-1.html
2o http://www.natural-dog-health-remedies.com/apple-cider-vinegar-for-dogs.html
3. Diatomaceous earth (DE) FOOD GRADE ONLY:
1o http://www.dogsnaturallymagazine.com/benefits-diatomaceous-earth/
2o https://www.diatomaceousearth.com/dog-use/
4· Coconut oil: http://www.natural-dog-health-remedies.com/coconut-oil-benefits.html
5· Raw goat’s milk and Kefir:
1o http://www.dogsnaturallymagazine.com/goat-milk-for-dogs/
2o http://www.dogsnaturallymagazine.com/so-long-yeast-hello-kefir/
3o https://www.foodiepooch.com.au/dogs/what-is-kefir-and-why-do-we-love-it/
6· Colloidal silver:
1o http://www.dogsnaturallymagazine.com/five-immune-boosting-uses-of-colloidal-silver/
2o https://holisticpetcareproducts.com/colloidal-silver-uses-treating-pet-diseases/
http://www.nutritionpets.com/cs-history-uses/
- Raw, fresh garlic:
- Fresh raw eggs: we like to feed our dogs whole raw chicken eggs (shell too!) from our flock of chickens. We crack the egg, crumble the shell and mix it all together with their kibble a few times a week.
- Pumpkin: it's a good idea to keep canned pumpkin (NOT pumpkin pie mix) on hand, in case your dog has digestive issues. For most Chihuahuas, 1/2 teaspoon mixed in his/her food for a few days may help clear up loose stools or constipation. Too much may cause problems. It has a lot of other health benefits you can read about:
For mopping we like to use natural products, so when puppies chase the mop and bite it, or lick the floor there is nothing harmful to worry about:
- White distilled vinegar (I don't really measure but maybe 1/2C vinegar to 1-2 gallons of water)
- A few drops of essential oils: tea tree, eucalyptus, lavender, lemon, Thieves Oil blend (optional)
- Flea & tick prevention:
- Wondercide with essential oils when going on walks (we use this on ourselves regularly)
- Vet's Best plant based spray when going on walks
- Grapefruit seed extract served in the water or food seems to deter ticks
Health testing
It is important to have healthy dogs in our breeding program. Most of our breeding dogs or their parents have been OFA health checked for patellas, heart and CERF or CAER for eyes. All are checked by a vet.
We hope that all our puppies turn out healthy, but whether they do or not, we want to know about it. This is why we conduct follow up studies on our puppies. Not everyone responds to our surveys, but we appreciate those who do, so we can continue to track our bloodlines. Please let us know if you have a new email address, so we can stay in contact and send you the survey.
Is my Chihuahua a healthy weight?
Obesity is a common problem with dogs and especially with Chihuahuas. An overweight dog is not cute! If you spoil them by giving them lots of treats or feeding them as much as they want, you are potentially hurting them. It is your responsibility as a dog owner to manage their weight, so they can live a long healthy life. We recommend feeding puppies as much puppy food as they want for the first year, as long as they are not overweight. At the one year mark, change to an "adult" food and start by feeding the recommended amount usually written on the bag. However, if s/he starts gaining too much weight, it is important for you to reduce that amount or change to a lower calorie food. Each dog is different and metabolized food differently. It is our job to manage their weight by carefully monitoring their body condition and making changes as needed.
Learning to monitor your dog's weight by watching his body condition rather than the scale. Read about healthy weights here: http://www.peteducation.com/article.cfm?c=2+1659&aid=661
Here is another link that has several charts to see what the body conditions are and what healthy weight looks like: http://dogbreedspicture.net/dog/dog-body-condition-score-chart.html
Articles & Helpful Links
Introducing a puppy to your older dog
http://www.clickertraining.com/what-to-expect-introducing-a-puppy-to-your-adult-dogs
http://dogtime.com/dog-health/general/712-bringing-home-a-second-dog-aspca
http://www.fidosavvy.com/introducing-a-new-puppy.html
How to Potty Train Puppies: A Comprehensive Guide for Success
Dog Separation Anxiety: Causes, Prevention, and How to Stop
Barking We use a water spray bottle to teach puppies at an early age not to bark unnecessarily. Please read more about our method on this page.