Raising dogs, in particular providing care for the bergamasco shepherd, is a specialty of humans across the globe. Historians postulate that dogs were first domesticated between 12,000 and 25,000 years ago—and that canines evolved from wolves. Since then, people have selectively bred more than four hundred breeds, which range in size from four-pound teacup poodles all the way up to Irish wolfhounds, who have earned the title of the tallest dog. However, the most preferred canines are the non-pedigree dogs—the one-of-a-kind dogs known as mutts. The bergamasco shepherd is also a favorite choice with dog owners. Many owners are oblivious, however, of many of the most common bergamasco shepherd care tips.
Typical cost of care for the bergamasco shepherd
The annual budget for rearing your bergamasco shepherd—to include nutrition and treats, veterinary care, toys and license—can range between four hundred twenty and seven hundred eighty dollars. This doesn’t even consider capital costs for sterilization procedures, a collar and leash, carrier and dog crate. Tip: Be sure you have all your items before you get your bergamasco shepherd home.
General bergamasco shepherd Care
Feeding the bergamasco shepherd
- bergamasco shepherd pups between eight and 12 weeks need 4 bowls of food in a day.
- bergamasco shepherd pups 3 to 6 months old should be fed 3 meals in a 24 hour period.
- Feed pups six months old to one year two times every twenty-four hours.
- By the time your bergamasco shepherd reaches her 1st birthday, 1 bowl in a twenty-four hour period is typically all that’s required.
- Many times adult bergamasco shepherds might eat 2 smaller meals. It is your job to learn your bergamasco shepherd’s eating tendencies.
Premium-quality dry dogfood provides a balanced diet for adult bergamasco shepherds and may be mixed with broth, water, or canned food. Your bergamasco shepherd may dig fruits and vegetables, cooked eggs, and cottage cheese, but these should be less than 10 pct of his or her daily food allowance. bergamasco shepherd puppies should probably be fed high-quality, name brand puppy food. You should try to limit “table food”, however, because it can result in mineral and vitamin deficiencies, bone and teeth issues, and might result in extremely picky food choices as well as obesity. Give clean, fresh water always, and make certain to wash water and food dishes very regularly.
bergamasco shepherd Care Tips: Your bergamasco shepherd needs exercise daily
bergamasco shepherds must have daily exercise in order to burn calories, stimulate their brains, and stay healthy. Exercise also really helps bergamasco shepherds avoid boredom, which can lead to destructive behavior. Exercise would quench most of your bergamasco shepherd’s instinctual urges to retrieve, dig, chew, chase and herd. Activity needs depend on your bergamasco shepherd’s level of health and his age—but 10 minutes outside and just a walk down the street every day probably will not be enough. If your bergamasco shepherd is a 6 to eighteen month adolescent, his requirements will be relatively higher.
Grooming tips for bergamasco shepherds
You can help keep your bergamasco shepherd clean and reduce shedding with brushing. Inspect for fleas and ticks daily during the summer or other warm weather. Most bergamasco shepherds don’t need to be bathed more than a few times a year. Before giving him a bath, cut out or comb any mats from the bergamasco shepherd’s coat. Carefully rinse all soap out of the coat, or dirt will stick to the soap residue.
bergamasco shepherd Handling
Pups are obviously the easiest to handle. To carry your bergamasco shepherd puppy, put one hand under the dog’s chest, either with the forearm or your other hand supporting his back legs and rear. Never attempt to grab or lift your pup by her forelegs, back of the neck or tail. When you have to pick up a larger, full-grown bergamasco shepherd, lift from underneath, supporting her chest with one of your arms and rear end with your other arm.
How to House your bergamasco shepherd
Your bergamasco shepherd needs a comfortable peaceful spot in order to sleep away from all drafts and off the ground. You may wish to think about buying a doggie bed, or think about making one from a wooden box. Place a clean comforter, sheet, blanket, or pillow inside the bed as cushioning. Wash your bergamasco shepherd’s bedding often. If the bergamasco shepherd will be outdoors often, make certain he has covering and plenty of cool water in hot weather, and a dry, covered, warm area in the cold.
Licensing and Identification for bergamasco shepherds
Your city has licensing regulations to heed. Make certain to attach the license to your bergamasco shepherd’s collar. The license, together with an ID tattoo, may help you recover your bergamasco shepherd if she happens to go missing.
bergamasco shepherd Temperament Information
About Training your bergamasco shepherd
A well-behaved, companion bergamasco shepherd is truly a pleasure to raise. However, left untrained, your dog could be a headache. Training your bergamasco shepherd on the fundamentals—”Sit”, “Stay”, “Come”, “Down”, “Heel”, “Off”, and “Leave it”—strengthens your relationship with both your dog as well as the friends. If you own a pup, begin training him on the right responses as fast as you can! Use a treat as an incentive and a reward. Puppies should enroll in obedience courses when they have been sufficiently vaccinated. Contact the community humane society or SPCA for details about obedience classes. You should always keep your bergamasco shepherd leashed in public, even as a puppy. Be sure your dog will come back to you at all times whenever you tell her. A disobedient or aggressive bergamasco shepherd should not play with people.
About your bergamasco shepherd’s Health
bergamasco shepherds should visit the veterinarian for a complete screening, shots and heartworm assessment annualy, and immediately when he is sick or injured.
bergamasco shepherd Dental Health
While many of us may object to our bergamasco shepherd’s halitosis, we should pay attention to what it might be a sign of. Halitosis is a symptom that your bergamasco shepherd should have a dental screening. Plaque caused by unhealthy bacteria causes a terrible stench that requires treatment by a professional. Once you have given your bergamasco shepherd a professional cleaning, the gums and teeth may be maintained in a healthy state by feeding a special diet focused on dental health, eliminating table food, and regular brushing. The vet can provide you with more info for mitigating periodontal problems as well as bad breath. You can use a baking soda and water paste or a dog toothpaste once or twice per week to brush your bergamasco shepherd’s teeth. Use a child’s soft toothbrush, a gauze pad or a piece of nylon stocking stretched over your finger. Periodontal disease,which is an infection between the gum and tooth, sometimes affects bergamasco shepherds. Sometimes, tooth loss takes place due to periodontal disease. Diseases will sometimes also spread to other areas of your bergamasco shepherd’s body. The doctor will sometimes clean your bergamasco shepherd’s teeth during his routine health analysis.
Breeds with Halitosis (bad breath)
If your bergamasco shepherd has bad breath, gum disease may not necessarily be the only disease, as other more serious problems also have that symptom. Liver or intestinal diseases sometimes cause stinky breath, while a sweet, even pleasant smell may frequently be a sign of diabetes. Kidney disease may be the reason if your bergamasco shepherd’s breath smells like urine or ammonia. Set an appointment with a veterinarian whenever your bergamasco shepherd has halitosis along with other signs of disease like excessive urinating or drinking, depression or lethargy, weight loss, nausea, or decreased appetite.
bergamasco shepherd Flea and Tick Issues
Daily checks of your bergamasco shepherd for ticks and fleas throughout the warm seasons are vital. Use a flea comb to find fleas. There are numerous new techniques of flea management. Talk to your veterinarian about these and other options.
Heartworm problems in bergamasco shepherds
Your bergamasco shepherd is at risk of contracting heartworms if he is exposed to lots of mosquitoes. The insect transports heartworms from dog to dog. Several bergamasco shepherds die each year as a result of heartworm infections. Your bergamasco shepherd should have a blood test for heartworms each spring—this is vital to catch infections from the previous year. It is recommended that you give your bergamasco shepherd a once-a-month pill in the warm, wet time of the year to be able to protect her from heartworms. Should you vacation in a warmer-than-usual climate with your bergamasco shepherd in winter, he must be on the preventive medicine during the trip. In some milder locations, vets advise preemptive heartworm medication be taken continuously.
Poisions and Medicines
If you’re contemplating giving your bergamasco shepherd tablets that was not prescribed for him by his vet, don’t. Just one ibuprofen tablet is known to create stomach ulcers in bergamasco shepherds. Make sure your bergamasco shepherd is never exposed to rat poison and other rodenticides. When you think your pooch has ingested a poisonous substance, immediately call your veterinarian or the American Society for the Prevention of Cruelty to Animals Poison Control Center at (888) 426-4435 for twenty-four-hour animal poison help.
bergamasco shepherds: Spaying and Neutering
It is recommended that male bergamasco shepherds should be neutered – the removal of the testicles – and females spayed – the removal of the ovaries and uterus – by 6 months old. You usually will greatly diminish your female’s breast cancer risk by spaying before adulthood. The possibility of a sick uterus, which is another serious condition that affects more mature females, can be removed by spaying before six months. Neutering males helps prevent testicular diseases, certain aggressive behavior and some hernias.
bergamasco shepherd Vaccinations
- The combination vaccine (also known as the “5-in-one shot”) ought to be given to your bergamasco shepherd at two, three, and 4 months of age and again once yearly. This immunization immunizes your pup from distemper, hepatitis, leptospirosis, parvovirus, and parainfluenza. The bergamasco shepherd puppy’s innoculation regimen cannot be completed before four months of age.
- If you have the rare bergamasco shepherd who has not been innoculated and is older than four or 5 months, he must have a series of two immunizations 2 or three weeks apart, followed by a yearly vaccination.
- bergamasco shepherd puppy socialization and immunization should coincide. Most doctors advise that new owners bring their bergamasco shepherd puppies to socialization classes, beginning at 8 to nine weeks of age. At this point, they should have received at least their first series of vaccines.
Statutes are so varied between different areas, the best thing is to contact your neighborhood veterinarian for rabies vaccination information. In NYC, for instance, the rule requires all pets older than 3 months of age to be vaccinated for rabies. The initial rabies vaccine must be followed by a subsequent vaccination a year later, and then every 3 years. There are many innoculations that could be effective for your bergamasco shepherd. Ask your bergamasco shepherd’s vet for her opinion. By the way, if your bergamasco shepherd gets sick because she is not innoculated, do not give the innoculation until the dog has made a full recovery.
Roundworms in bergamasco shepherds
bergamasco shepherds are commonly exposed to worms—even in urban areas. Microscopic eggs produced by roundworms and hookworms are transmitted through an infested bergamasco shepherd’s stool. Most puppies, from all environments, even those with healthy mothers, carry roundworms or hookworms. The secret to effective treatment is early diagnosis. This will make certain that the treatment is effective against the parasite your bergamasco shepherd has. A dewormer that eliminates hookworms, for example, won’t kill tapeworms. Your doctor can best identify the culprit—and assign the right treatment.
bergamasco shepherd Care Tips: Additional Information
Checklist of bergamasco shepherd Supplies
- Excellent-quality dog food and snacks specifically for bergamasco shepherds and similarly-sized dogs
- Food dish
- Water dish
- Toys, toys and more toys, including safe chew toys
- Brush and comb for grooming, including flea comb
- Collar with identification tag and license
- Leash
- Carrier (for puppies)
- Crate for training
- Dog bed or box with blanket or towel
- Doggie toothbrush
Warnings to be Heeded
Do not feed your bergamasco shepherd the following:
- Alcoholic beverages
- Chocoloate or any food with caffeine
- Grapes and raisins
- Moldy or spoiled food of any kind
- Onions, chives & garlic
- Poultry bones
- Salt & salty foods
- Tomato leaves, stems & unripe fruit
- Yeast dough
Final Thoughts
Unless you are at home, or in a secured, fenced-in space, always keep your bergamasco shepherd on a leash. And please, when your bergamasco shepherd defecates on your neighbor’s yard, dispose of it! Don’t forget to check out these other articles about bergamasco shepherds
Was this post helpful? If so, please take a minute to Tweet and Share below on Facebook. I would also love to know your thoughts so leave me a comment 🙂
Follow