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There are a couple of important issues to address when getting a puppy.
Before bringing home your new baby, please consider the
following.
Weaning
Make sure the puppy is no less than 8 weeks old when he or she is separated from their mother.
Actually the longer the puppy stays with its brothers, sisters and mother, the better. 10 weeks is
better and 12 weeks is ideal. This has implications for socialization for the rest of their lives.
The longer they are with their birth family, the better adjusted they are to getting along with other
dogs. They will be less aggressive and learn faster. The couple of extra weeks of Mamma teaching
them makes a huge difference. You can potty train a 12 week old in a few days whereas an 8 week old
can take several weeks. Some of the top breeders in Canada and the US generally do not give the
puppies away under 12 weeks. So if you can somehow arrange this, it is really worth it.
Immunity
The time between the puppy leaves Mamma and is fully immunized at 15 weeks, after 2nd set of shots,
is the most vulnerable health wise. Make sure the puppy is not sniffed or licked by other dogs. They
can easily pick up a bug from another dog and sometimes it is fatal even when the dogs they are around
are perfectly healthy. Also, don't let your puppy run around in areas where other dogs frequent.
They will sniff and lick and can get sick. Don't let the puppy lick grass in areas where there are
birds and bird droppings as they will lick something and get sick. This is also the time they can
get worms. So best advice is to keep them mostly indoors, going outdoors for potty training and to
play in their own yard. Avoid public parks and play with other dogs until they are fully immunized.
It takes about a week for their immunity to build up after they've had their 2nd set of shots.
Electrical Hazards
Before bringing your puppy home, check all the electrical chords in your house that are easily
accessible for chewing. Tuck them away or put books or something on them to cover them up. Every
time you see them attempting to play with the chords, wag your index finger and say firmly "no".
This will teach them to keep away from anything that can be dangerous for them.
Chemicals
Before bringing your puppy home, check all the cupboards you have at floor level that can be opened.
Remove all harsh and toxic cleaning products, chemicals, soap, anything that is harmful if licked and
move those products into cupboards that are not at floor level. Eskies are very clever at opening
cupboards, doors, gates and windows.
Where To Go Potty
Puppy bladders are small so most puppies will not be able to hold it overnight until they are close
to a year old. You can either put your puppy in a room overnight with a puppy bed and newspapers or
puppy pads on the floor. Or if you allow your puppy to sleep with you, they will quickly learn to
wake you up when they have to go and you can take them out at 3:00 AM. It helps if you put a bowl of
food down in areas where they tend to have an accident. An Eskie will not tinkle anywhere where there
is food, 5 or 6 foot radius. So you can help potty training by putting down lots of bowls of food
around the house. Eskies do not overeat so no worries there.
For detailed instructions on potty training, read our section
on potty training.
Teething
Teething is a constant battle. Put your socks, shoes and underwear away unless you want them to
get chewed. Eskies will want to chew anything that smells of you. Buy beef natural chew sticks
and always have several on supply at once. When you see your puppy wanting to chew, give them a
natural beef stick to chew on. Never give raw hide chews. It can get stuck in their throats or
intestines calling for emergency life saving surgery. Can also cause infections.
Me And My Shadow
An Eskie's mission is to be your shadow, watching over you and wanting to follow you everywhere you go.
Make sure there is no way your puppy can escape out of the house or yard to follow you when you leave the house.
Your Eskie, young and old will put up a fuss if you want to leave him behind and go somewhere without him. If you have to leave
him behind, make sure he gets his exercise before you leave. This will reduce the anxiety.
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