How to keep my 1-year-old dog healthy and prevent common issues?

Yearly vet checks, keeping up with vaccines, take Dakota into the vet whenever he isn't feeling well, keeping up with deworming and flea treatments, administering heart worm medication, and feed a good quality dog food. Also keeping the weight healthy, and regular exercise.

Hi, thanks for using PetCoach! Congratulations!! Bruno is adorable! Bruno needs to start his puppy vaccines. He should receive a DHPP (distemper, hepatitis, parvo and parainfluenza) vaccine every 3-4 weeks starting around 7-8 weeks of age until he receives two past 12 weeks. He should get his rabies vaccine between 12-16 weeks. He can start being dewormed as well. Having him dewormed and Rabies vaccination will protect your family. Keep up with his vaccinations into adulthood as they do have expiration dates. Deworm yearly. I recommend puppy food until 1 year of age. I like Purina proplan, hills science diet and Royal Canin. As a puppy his energy level is like a new born. Play for a bit then sleep. Around 4 months they are awake more. So playing with him when awake and 2-3 walks a day are appropriate. Distance can increase with age and endurance. See below for links on training. I wish you and Bruno the best! https://www.petcoach.co/article/basic-dog-puppy-training-rules/ https://www.petcoach.co/article/rewards-are-necessary-when-training-dogs-and-puppies/ https://www.petcoach.co/article/training-fitness-for-sporting-dogs/ https://www.petcoach.co/article/interacting-with-your-pet/ https://www.petcoach.co/article/5-obedience-commands-every-dog-should-know/

Dogs do not develop arthrosclerosis and therefore cannot have heart attacks like people do. However, that can develop a number of heart conditions including Congestive Heart Failure especially as they get older. Regular veterinary visits will help with early identification of heart murmurs and x-rays could help identify if there are changes in the size and shape of the heart. Keeping Bruno at an ideal weight and on a high-quality pet food as well as exercising him regularly will help him stay as healthy as possible. Omega 3 fatty acids are a great nutritional supplement as well.

Jack is PRECIOUS!! Choosing a reputable, quality food is a great step. They will have all the vitamins and minerals he needs. But in both people and dogs, one of the biggest factors in longevity is keeping a slim body condition. Keeping Jack slim and fit throughout his life will improve the quality and quantity of life. Routine dental care. Whether you brush several times weekly or have a dental cleaning with your vet every 6-12 months, dental disease is associated with other diseases and shorter life in both people and animals. Routine veterinary care. We don’t just recommend vaccines and senior bloodowork to empty your pocket. An ounce of prevention and early detection of organ dysfunction and other diseases can extend quality and quantity of life significantly. For example, if a senior blood screen shows mild liver or kidney elevations, I can often keep things at that stage with diet changes and supplements. If we wait till the Pet is sick, prognosis is not as good and treatment more costly. As your pet ages and developes any medical conditions, we can help recommend supplements and vitamins at that point. Hope this helps and best of luck to you and Jack.

You may be feeding Bruno more calories than he can feasibly burn. I would suggest either working with your vet to figure out how many calories your pet should consume daily, or you can use this website link to figure it out yourself. https://vet.osu.edu/vmc/companion/our-services/nutrition-support-service/basic-calorie-calculator Also, at this age Bruno is possibly still growing, so his weight may be in flux until he has reached 2 years of age. You should however be feeding him adult food twice daily. And to answer your other question, yes walking does help keep a pets heart and body healthy. Best wishes in your weight management goals for Bruno moving forward. Take care.

Great question! One thing I would strongly recommend is having Coco spayed. Dog who are intact are prone to developing a pyometra, which is an infection of the uterus that is fatal without treatment. It makes dogs very sick. Unfortunately spaying her now won't lower her risk of mammary tumors, but at least it takes away the risk of the pyometra. Feed her a healthy diet, don't give her human foods, and plenty of exercise daily. Keep her up to date on her vaccines, heartworm treatment, flea and tick treatments, and deworming treatments. Finally, have her seen by a vet yearly for a health check, taking her in sooner whenever she is sick. I hope this helps!

Make sure she has vaccines including DHPPi (distemper, hepatitis, parvo, parainfluenza) and rabies. Depending on her age, the vet the can tell you her vaccination schedule. Spay her before she goes into her first heat (around six months of age) to significant reduce the risk of her developing mammary tumors and eliminate the chance of her developing a pyometra later in life. Put her on a good flea and tick prevention program, make sure to deworm her, and give her heartworm protection. I would have your pup seen by a vet this week to start all of these things to keep her healthy :-)