We advise our the new owners of our Basswood puppiesWhen you take your puppy for its first check-up and vaccination, ask your vet's advise about worming.  Here are brief guidelines: 

• Worming your puppy should be done for roundworms every two weeks until they are twelve weeks old. This can be done using syrup or tablets.
• The pup should then be wormed for gastro-intestinal worms again at sixteen weeks of age, then every three months throughout their adult lives with a complete wormer.

Always follow your vets advise about the vaccination and healthcare of your puppy, but here are some basic guidelines. 

The first vaccination, given between 8 and 10 weeks of age, is usually for Distemper, Hepatitis and Parvovirus. Distemper is a neurological disease which is almost always fatal when contracted. Hepatitis is a viral disease that attacks the liver and again can be fatal. Parvovirus attacks the lining of the stomach and intestines and causes severe diarrhoea and vomitting and is sometimes fatal.  Please, protect your puppy by making sure it has its vaccinations. 

The second vaccination is due at twelve weeks of age. This vaccination includes Distemper, Hepatitis and Parvovirus as well as Parainfluenza which is one of the components of a disease in dogs known as "kennel cough". If your dog is at particular risk of kennel cough, a Bordetella component can be added to your dogs vaccination program - ask your vet.  Kennel cough is a highly contagious cough that dogs may pick up from other dogs, either in kennels or at the park. It is caused by bacteria as well as viruses and often needs treatment with antibiotics to prevent it from becoming more serious. 

At sixteen weeks, a final vaccination is given for Parvovirus and Parainfluenza. It is safe to take your puppy out two weeks after the twelve week vaccination - re-confirm this with the vet.