HITMONCHAN

CANINE DEVELOPMENT SCHEDULE

PERIOD: First to Third     AGE: Birth to Seven Weeks         

CHARACTERISTICS: Puppy needs food, sleep and warmth, and responds to simple and gentle touching. Needs mother for security and disciplining. Needs littermates for learning and interacting with other dogs. Pup learns to function within a pack and learns pack order of  dominance. Begin socialising with adults and children for short periods. Begins to become aware of its environment.

PERIOD: Fourth        AGE: Eight to Twelve Weeks

CHARACTERISTICS:  Brain is fully developed. Needs socialising with outside world. remove from mother and littermates. Needs to change from canine pack to human pack. Human dominance necessary. Fear period occurs between 8 and 16 weeks. Avoid fright and pain.

PERIOD: Fifth      AGE: Thirteen to Sixteen Weeks

CHARACTERISTICS: Training and formal obedience should begin. Less association with other dogs, more with people, places, situations. Period will easily pass easily if you remember this is pup's change-to-adolescence. Permissiveness and over-disciplining can do permanent damage. Praise for good behaviour.

PERIOD: Juvenile        AGE: Four to Eight Months

CHARACTERISTICS: Another fear period about 7-8 months of age. It passes quickly, but be cautious of fright and pain. Sexual maturity reached. Dominant traits established. Dog should understand sit,down,come and stay.

DISEASE REFERENCE

LEPTOSPIROSIS: A severe disease that affects the internal organs; can be spread to people.  CAUSE: A bacterium which is often carried by rodents, that enters through mucous membranes and spreads  quickly throughout the body.  SYMPTONS: Range from fever, vomitting and loss of appetite in less severe cases to shock, irreversible kidney damage and possibly death in most sever cases.

RABIES: A potentially deadly virus that infects warm-blooded mammals. Not seen in the UK.  CAUSE: Bite from the carrier of the virus, mainly wild animnals.  SYMPTONS: 1st stage:dog exhibits change in behaviour,fear. 2nd stage:dogs behaviour becomes more aggressive. 3rd stage: loss of coordination, trouble with bodily functions.

PARVOVIRUS: Highly contagious virus, potentially deadly. CAUSE: Ingestion of the virus, which is usually spread through the faeces of infected dogs. SYMPTONS: Most common, severe diarrhoea. Also vomiting, fatigue, lack of appetite.

KENNEL COUGH: Contagious respiratory infection.  CAUSE: Combination of types of bacteria and virus. Most common :Bordetella bronchiseptica bacteria and parainfuenza virus. SYMPTONS: Chronic Cough.

DISTEMPER: Disease primarily affecting respiratory and nervous system.  CAUSE: Virus that is related to the human measles.  SYMPTONS: Mild  symptons such as fever, lack of appetite and mucous secretion progress to evidence of brain damage,'hard pad'.

HEPATITIS: Virus primarily affecting the liver.  CAUSE: Canine adenovirus type1 (CAV-!). Enters system when dog breathes in particles.  SYMPTONS: Lesser symptons include listlessness, diarrhoes, vomiting. More severe symptons include 'blue-eye'(clumps of virus in eye).

CORONAVIRUS: Virus resulting in digestive problems.  CAUSE: Virus is spread through infected dogs faeces. SYMPTONS: Stomach upset evidenced by lack of appetite, vomiting, diarrhoea.

TRAINING TIPS

Never train your dog,puppy or adult, when you are angry or in a sour mood. Dogs are very sensitive to human feelings, especially anger, and if your dog senses that you are angry or upset, he will connect your anger with his training and learn to resent or fear his training sessions.

Stand up straight and authoritavely when giving your dog commands. Do not issue commands when lying on the floor or lying on your back on the sofa. If you are on your hands and knees when you give a command, your dog will think you are positioning yourself to play.

Have training lessons with your dog every day in several short segments - three to five times a day for a few minutes at a time is ideal. Do not have long practice sessions. The dog will become easily bored. Never practice when you are tired, ill, worried or in an otherwise negative mood. This will transmit to the dog and may have an adverse effect on its performance.  Think fun, short and above all POSITIVE! End each session on a high note, rather than a failed exercise, and make sure to give a lot of praise. Enjoy the training and help your dog enjoy it too.