New puppies and what to do next.

Albundy30

Hi, ok so i took on a Jack russell female dog awhile ago as it was gonna be left on the street by another family moving out of Ireland. Its not a full breed. She fell pregnant after she got out and gave birth to 5 pups 4 days ago. All went well as i prepared as best i could and since then i have made sure all her pups are safe and fed and the usual stuff.
I am just wondering what to do next. i know i have between 8 - 12 weeks with them and want to make sure i follow all the steps. When i google info i seem to get page after page of random info that is explained in great detail but never seems to answer specific questions i have.
When do i bring them for their shots?
How much will it cost for each pup?
Do i bring the mother to vet for a checkup even if she seems fine?
Can the Blue cross look after all the pups if i just bring them all down at once and do i pay them for the shots? (I know i make a donation).
Do i get them microchipped?
Do i register the pups to me? (i havent registered the mother yet as i wasn't sure we could keep her as we have 3 small children).

Is there anything else i need to do? I know im coming off as clueless but honestly the dog and her pups are well cared for, i just want to make sure i don't miss anything.
Thanks for any help given?
BTW im in clondalkin

PandaPoo

My jack Russell had pups in January, I was equally clueless!

From what I remember, we had them wormed and got their first shots at around 4 weeks. The price of things depends on their weight too. For 5 puppies to have flea and worm treatment, it was €70.

The shots were the expensive ones, I think they cost around €50/€60 per puppy. We didn't get them chipped, we left that to the new owners.

That's all I remember!

Knine

Well done on taking them in. You need to worm them at 2 weeks & continue on every 2 weeks. A wormer like parazole can be gotten from the vet. It is about a tenner.

You can try the DSPCA etc for good prices on vaccinations or Brian Jones in Coldwinters may do a good deal on both microchips & vaccinations & each puppy will be provided with a Fido Pack. Explain to him the mother was a stray. He is a brilliant vet & does not charge crazy prices either. Then the new owners can be registered to their chip before they even leave.

The puppies will need lots of socialisation. If you could get a loan of a puppy pen it would be very handy. You start them on solids at about 3 weeks old - soaked puppy food, ground mince etc. Once the puppies start eating solids the bitch no longer cleans after them so be prepared for lots of cleaning. This is where the puppy pen & lots of newspapers comes in handy.

The mother will need huge quantities of a decent quality food. At this stage I feed mine puppy food. I also weigh each puppy to make sure they are gaining. Be very careful giving puppies away for free. Good luck it is hard work but very rewarding. Be very careful as the bitch will be back in heat when they turn 4 mths old.

aonb

Wow, that was really good of you to take on this little family.
Phone the Blue Cross, and explain your situation, they will schedule an appointment when its time for their shots etc. You can ask them about charges etc. then. If you are short on cash, you could always leave the chipping to the new owners. They will have to continue with the vaccinations in any case. Pop the puppies in a box, with lots of ventilation holes in, put some newspaper/old blanket in the box, when you are going to the vet. The vet will check each one & give them the first shot. (Lots of squeaks!)

As said earlier, they will need worming in a week & a half. The parazole is an easy liquid wormer to administer. Has the bitch been wormed?

If the bitch is looking well, alert, eating & drinking and going to toilet, she should not need to be brought to the vet. Ask the vet if he knows anyone looking for puppies - put an ad in his surgery too.

Start looking NOW for owners for the puppies. I would definately try to get owners who will PAY for the puppies - if money has to be paid, it would hopefully mean that the new owners are serious about the puppies. Will help to defray your costs as well which is good. Handling and gentle care of the puppies will mean that they are socialized well from the start. When they are mobile, get as many people to "talk" to them and handle them as you can - visitors to the house I mean. Keep an eye on the bitch when this is going on in case she is worried about her babies. Ditto keep an eye on your own children around the puppies in case the bitch gets worried.

Keeping them warm, and contained is your job for now - and taking good care of the bitch. The fun and games will start when the puppies start to move about. An old childs playpen or travel cot is great for keeping them contained - if no one has one to give you, they can be picked up in charity shops very cheaply.

Good luck - let us know how you get on

DBB

Have the Blue Cross said they'd help out OP? If so, I'm sure they could answer a fair few of your questions that can't be answered here

Also, I'll add my bit in from the behavioural development perspective: have a really good read of the puppy bits of http://www.dogstardaily.com... you won't get better advice on how to start socialising your puppies and getting them well used to all sorts of things before you rehome them... the more you do now, the better pets they will make.
Whilst the socialisation period starts proper at 3 weeks of age, it has been shown that gentle daily handling of newborn pups, starting with very short sessions and building them in duration, really helps to promote confidence and initiative as they develop into older pups and adults.
When they're a little older, you can carry them outside to see traffic and outside things, and you can have as many people as you can come to visit you: many pups develop problems later in life due to not having met enough strangers, particularly men and children, early in their social development. This particularly goes with strangers/visitors coming into your home.
Exciting times ahead op, lots of poop, pee and puke too

Albundy30

Thank you so much for advice. Helped a lot. Looking forward to having them as we plan on keeping them as we've a large garden and a spate room downstairs just for them to call their own. Thanks again

Ashbx

Wow, you'll have your hands full keeping 5 JRTs!! Enjoy!

Knine

Albundy30 wrote: »

Thank you so much for advice. Helped a lot. Looking forward to having them as we plan on keeping them as we've a large garden and a spate room downstairs just for them to call their own. Thanks again

I would be very wary keeping 5 Jack Russell type Siblings. It is very likely some or all of them may not get on so well at maturity. The very best of luck with them whatever you decide.