PUPPY  ADVICE

Below is the regime I recommend when a puppy is going to his new home, but every breeder should have their own advice sheets, and you should always consult your breeder before trying a new regime.

DIET

At eight weeks of age your puppy is being fed four times daily, this is basically two meat based meals and two milk based meals as follows: If you puppy has an intolerance for milk, i.e. gets diarrhoea, I will advise you, and you should then cut out the milk meals, and mix the dry food only with water.

1. Breakfast (approx. 7.30 am) Butcher's Puppy Food (tinned) mixed with a small amount of Bob & Lush Puppy,  or Arden Grange Puppy or Gilpa Pup, or Pedigree Chum Puppy Complete, or soaked to moisten it (1/4 lb).

2. Lunch (approx. 12.30 pm) Milk plus Weetabix or Butcher's Puppy or scrambled egg (1/4 pint).

3. Tea (approx. 6 pm) repeat of breakfast (1/4 lb).

4. Supper (approx. 10.30 pm) As lunch or 1/4 tin rice pudding in milk (1/4 pint).

This is the routine that the puppy is used to, and we recommend that you try to keep to a similar routine until puppy is settled into your lifestyle. At eight weeks each puppy eats about 100 grams of food at each meal (4 ozs of meat, 1/4 pint of milk) but do not be too surprised if your puppy does not eat this amount to begin with, because the element of competition with littermates no longer exists. Some pups go off their food - this seems to be quite a normal Tibetan Terrier trait, giving their owners much cause for concern. If you wish to change the diet do so fairly gradually. Tit bits such as small biscuits can be given in a supervised situation. Between three to four months, puppy may not want to eat so frequently, so you can reduce the number meals by first cutting out lunch, at nine months reduce to two meals - breakfast (milk) and tea (meat), and by twelve months one meal a day to suit you - usually at tea-time, but a little drink of milk in the morning won’t harm! When reducing the number of meals try to maintain the same total amount eaten per day. We recommend that a calcium supplement e.g. "Collo-Cal D" available from your Vet, or "Stress" available from pet shop / chemist is given once daily to ensure good bone growth, though if you use the complete puppy foods a supplement should not be necessary.

In adulthood, for maintenance some bitches may require as little as four ounces a day, whereas some very active dogs may want a pound a day. Monitor whether the feeding is about right by the dog’s condition - not fat, not thin, just nicely covered over the ribs. Do not allow yourself to provide roast beef and Yorkshire pudding unless you want to do this forever - Tibetan Terriers will remember such luxury - but should you wish your TT to eat the same as you this is perfectly acceptable, they love vegetables. When adult I recommend Bob & Lush, Arden Grange, Red Mills Supreme or Gilpa Trinkets. Low protein, high on oil, is always preferred.

WORMING

Your Siddhartha puppy was wormed at the following ages TWO, FOUR, SIX, EIGHT, TEN, and TWELVE WEEKS, with DRONTAL PLUS. Further worming is recommended at SIX MONTHS, NINE MONTHS and ANNUALLY under the supervision of your veterinary surgeon.

Your puppy has been crate trained and I cannot recommend strongly enough the benefits of continuing to use a crate. It keeps him safe when you cannot watch him.

VACCINATIONS

Most Siddhartha puppies leave here fully vaccinated, but if not your puppy should have been vaccinated against PARVOVIRUS at EIGHT weeks, and my advice would be to have him vaccinated against DISTEMPER, HEPATITIS, ADENOVIRVS, PARAINFLUENZA, and both forms of LEPTO VIRUS at TEN weeks. Then the BOOSTER (LEPTO) vaccination at TWELVE or FOURTEEN WEEKS.

You must consult your vet for advice as to the regime they follow, please wait for a day or two to allow pup to settle and feel confident with you before continuing vaccinations. PLEASE keep your puppy in, and away from other dogs or cats until two weeks after vaccinations have been completed (approximately 16 weeks of age). We are always available to give help and advice. Please contact us if you have any concerns. If the worst happens and you are unable to keep him, please contact us so that we may help you in re-homing.

I reiterate this is the advice I recommend when a puppy is going to his new home, but every breeder will have their own advice sheets, and you should always consult your breeder before trying a new regime.

We hope that our puppy will give you many years of happiness and companionship.

There are no laws in place governing the health tests that breeders carry out. However, I would encourage you to purchase puppies from adults that have had all appropriate health testing i.e. AHT Genetic Test for PLL, OFA Genetic Test for NCL, Yearly BVA(KC) Certified Eye Examinations, and Certified Hip-Scoring under the BVA(KC) Scheme. DNA profiles are also available to breeders through the KC.