When you have a medium-sized dog as part of the family, one of the first things you need to do is care for their health. A dog of this size can be hard to keep in good shape if you aren’t careful, as they can be quite demanding from a health and exercise perspective. To help you get used to these kinds of dogs, here are some tips for things to think about and look into as your dog grows in age and maturity.
Dogs need a lot of care and protection, so try and focus on the following factors for dogs of the following age groups.
Younger dogs
For a dog in its first 12 months of life, you will need to try and do as much as you can to give them the mother dog’s milk or a puppy milk replacement. They need this to get a thorough look into their diet, ensuring they can start to handle a proper diet from around 4 weeks of age up until about 8 weeks of age.
From there on in, you want to try and feed them 3 servings a day until their 10th week of age, breaking it down to two servings a day from there.
You’ll also want to look to get your dog inoculated from various illnesses, with vaccinations starting in week 6 and ending in week 16 or so. key vaccines include ones like distemper, adenovirus, and parainfluenza – rabies, too, is very important.
You might also wish to look to get your dog plenty of exercise at this point, with regular walks outside and some mental stimulation via more challenging toys than the norm. Get them used to spending time with other dogs and people from a young age.
Older dogs
Life with a dog can be quite a consistent thing until about age eight, when most dogs can begin to have some issues. However, by really focusing on their health at this stage you can prolong their life and their living quality by a fair margin. Start off by appreciating that your dog will have less natural energy than it used to, and will be less likely to engage in long hours of playing and walking.
Also, you might notice small issues with their sight and hearing. You might want to try and do all that you can to start helping them have to work less to get things done. If your dog starts to have problems with the toilet, too, including incontinence, don’t get aggressive with them or scold them; it’s not intentional.
In later life, focus on giving them food and supplements with ample glucosamine sulfate present. Try and give them some chondroitin, too, as this can help to retain joint health over a longer period of time. Good fatty acids, like omega-3 fatty acids, can really improve their skin and their joint health over time.
Regular exercise (albeit limited in scope) and regular trips to the vet for check-ups on a medium-sized dog are essential once they reach age 8. At this point, a dog is unfortunately more disposed to illness, issues with their health, and general loss of form. Remember this and treat your dog with the love, care, and respect it needs.