PREPARING
FOR ARRIVAL
COLLECTION
WELCOMING
HOME
FEEDING
HEALTH
GROWTH STAGES
SOCIALISATION
TRAINING AND
PLAY
GROOMING
BEHAVIOUR
Puppyhood is a stage of massive physical and behavioral changes. Nutrition tailored to their specific developmental needs can help them grow from fragile young puppies to strong, healthy dogs.
During the first months of life your puppy will go through an amazing transformation. Royal Canin diets offer nutrition tailored to their unique needs at this vital time.
A puppy’s eyes stay shut until the end of the second week. Their hearing isn’t fully developed until they are eight weeks old. When mature a dog can hear frequencies up to two and a half times higher than human ears.
In their first six months their immature immune system must help protect them from millions of germs.
In the first year of life your puppy's bones must grow to become four times stronger than concrete.
A puppy normally gains 5-10% of its body weight every day for the first two weeks.
Puppyhood is a hugely rewarding time for pet owners, but it's also a time of huge challenges and steep learning curves, for you and your pet. The information and advice in the following pages has been collected from Royal Canin vets, nutritionalist and partners worldwide, and should help you and your puppy have a healthy start to life together.
When you bring your puppy home for the first time, it's a huge change for both of you. You can make the process much easier by making a few simple preparations ahead of the big day.
Get all the puppy essentials
Puppy-proof your home and garden
Find a local vet
Choose a nutritionally complete puppy food
Make sure everyone in the home is prepared
Your puppy's first few days and weeks in their new home are key in building a strong relationship with your pet. Make sure your puppy settles in, introduce them to family and friends calmly, and establish a routine to ensure as little disruption as possible for your new arrival.
A puppy's diet plays a key role in their physical and cognitive development. The right mix of nutrients in their food will help that development and lay the foundations for a healthy life.
Understanding the growth stages your puppy goes through will help you recognize the challenges they face, and how to take care of them. Ensuring they get the right balance of nutrients in their food is key for healthy development into adult life.
The majority of a puppy's life in this first stage of growth is spent feeding and sleeping. Puppies' eyes and ears gradually begin to function. Both senses are weak at first, but will improve into the third week of life.
At this stage, puppies begin to play fight with their siblings. Towards the end of this period they may start to communicate with each other through vocal communications and body language, such as tail-wagging.
Structure, socialisation and training are vital, because they can help your puppy develop into a confident, well behaved adult. Specialist puppy food is vital up until they reach adulthood to support their continued growth.
Socialisation is one of the most important steps in ensuring your puppy grows into a well-balanced, confident adult. It's never too early to start gently introducing your pet to new experiences, people and animals.
Learning and play are vital to puppy development and provide them with an understanding of the rules of life. Training should start as early as possible whilst your puppy naturally has an excellent capacity for learning.
Ensuring your puppy is used to being handled from a young age will make grooming easier for the rest of their life. Each dog breed has unique grooming needs and understanding that is key to maintaining your dog's healthy coat
It's important to understand your dog's routines and behaviour so you can quickly recognise the signs if something isn't right. It's also important to understand a few key milestones, such as vaccinations and booster injections.
Puppies communicate with you in a number of ways. Reading body language and behaviours, and listening to the sounds they make can tell you a lot about how they're feeling and what they need from you.
