Raising dogs, especially taking care of the swedish lapphund, is a specialty of people across the world. Some historians say dogs were domesticated sometime between 12,000 and twenty five thousand years ago—and that all canines evolved from wolves. Since then, people have selectively bred more than four hundred breeds, varying in size from 4-pound teacup poodles to Irish wolfhounds, who have earned the title of the tallest canine. But the most popular dogs are the non-pedigree dogs—the one-of-a-kind dogs known as mutts. The swedish lapphund is also a favorite choice with canine owners. Many owners are uninformed, however, of some important swedish lapphund care tips.
Typical cost of care for your swedish lapphund
The yearly budget for taking care of the swedish lapphund—which includes everything from food, veterinary care, toys and license—can vary between four hundred twenty and $780. This figure doesn’t include capital expenses for spay/neuter operations, collar and leash, dog carrier and a crate. Tip: Be positive you have all of your supplies before you get your swedish lapphund home for the first time.
Basic swedish lapphund Care
swedish lapphund Feeding Plan
- swedish lapphund puppies between eight and twelve weeks old need four bowls of food in a twenty-four hour period.
- Feed swedish lapphund puppies three to 6 months old 3 meals in a 24 hour period.
- Feed puppies 6 months to one year 2 bowls of food each day.
- By the time your swedish lapphund reaches his or her 1st birthday, one bowl in a 24 hour period is typically sufficient.
- Some adult swedish lapphunds might prefer 2 smaller helpings. It’s your duty to learn your swedish lapphund’s eating schedule.
Top-quality dry food ensures balanced nutrition to adult swedish lapphunds and can mix with canned food, water, or broth. Your swedish lapphund may also be fond of cooked eggs, cottage cheese, and fruits and vegetables, but these additions shouldn’t total more than ten percent of his daily food allowance. swedish lapphund puppies must be fed top-quality, name brand puppy food. Try to cut down on “people food”, though, because it can result in mineral and vitamin imbalances, bone and teeth issues, and may result in very picky eating habits as well as obesity. Clean, fresh water should be made always, and be certain to clean water and food dishes frequently.
swedish lapphund Care Tips: Your swedish lapphund needs exercise daily
swedish lapphunds must get some exercise to stay healthy, recharge their minds, and remain in good health. Physical activity also really helps swedish lapphunds fight boredom, which has the potential to lead to difficult behavior. Getting out and about would quench most of your swedish lapphund’s desires to dig, chase, herd, chew and retrieve. Individual exercise needs are dependent on your swedish lapphund’s age and her level of health—but ten minutes outside and just a walk around the block every day probably will not be sufficient. If your swedish lapphund is a 6 to eighteen month adolescent, his requirements will be much greater.
swedish lapphund Grooming Tips
Regular brushing will help keep your swedish lapphund clean and reduce shedding. Check for fleas and ticks every day during the summer or other warm weather. Many swedish lapphunds don’t need to be bathed more than a few times per year. Prior to giving her a bath, comb or cut out all mats from the swedish lapphund’s coat. Carefully rinse all soap out of the coat, or dirt will stick to the soap residue.
How to Handle Your swedish lapphund
Pups, as opposed to adults, are obviously the easiest to manage. To carry your swedish lapphund puppy, take 1 hand and put it under the dog’s chest, with either your forearm or your other hand supporting his or her back legs and rear. Never attempt to grab or lift your puppy by his front legs, tail or nape. If you need to pick up a larger, adult swedish lapphund, pick it up from the underside, supporting his or her chest with one of your arms and rump with your other.
swedish lapphund housing
Your swedish lapphund needs a warm peaceful location to be able to relax away from all breezes and off the ground. You may want to buy a doggie bed, or think about making one from a wood box. Place a clean comforter, blanket, sheet, or pillow in the bed. Wash the swedish lapphund’s bedding often. If the swedish lapphund will be outdoors frequently, make certain he has access to covering and plenty of cool water in the summer, and a covered, dry, warm shelter in winter.
swedish lapphund Licensing
There are licensing regulations to follow in your town. You should affix the license to your swedish lapphund’s collar. The license, along with an identification tag or tattoo, will most likely help secure your swedish lapphund’s return should he go missing.
Information on swedish lapphund Behavior
Training the swedish lapphund
A well-mannered, companion swedish lapphund is a blessing. But untrained, your swedish lapphund will most likely be a headache. Teaching your swedish lapphund the basics—”Stay”, “Come”, “Down”, “Heel”, “Off”, “Sit”, and “Leave it”—bolsters your relationship both with your dog as well as the friends. If you have a pup, start teaching her the appropriate behavior as fast as you can! Use little bits of food as incentive and recognition. Puppies can begin obedience class when they are adequately immunized. Call your local humane society or SPCA for obedience school recommendations. It is wise to keep your swedish lapphund on a leash when, even as a pup. Be sure your dog will come back to you whenever you call him. A disobedient or aggressive swedish lapphund cannot play with children.
Knowing Your swedish lapphund’s Health
Your swedish lapphund should visit the veterinarian for a complete screening, shots and heartworm exam annualy, and ASAP if she is hurt or ill.
The Dental Health of Your swedish lapphund
While many of us might simply dislike our swedish lapphund’s foul breath, it’s important to be aware of what it might mean. Foul-smelling breath usually means that your swedish lapphund should have a dental examination. Dental plaque caused by germs creates a terrible smell that can only be freshened with professional treatment. After you give your swedish lapphund a professional oral cleaning, his gums and teeth can be kept up by brushing the teeth regularly, feeding a specially formulated dental diet and treats, and avoiding table scraps. The veterinarian can give you more advice for eradicating periodontal disease as well as halitosis. You should clean the swedish lapphund’s teeth using a dog paste or a paste made of baking soda and water a couple of times per week. You can clean them with a piece of nylon pantyhose stretched across the finger, a gauze pad, or a child’s soft toothbrush. Periodontal disease, also known as gum disease, sometimes affects swedish lapphunds. This troublesome affliction can result in loss of your swedish lapphund’s teeth as well as spread infection throughout the body. The doctor will sometimes clean the swedish lapphund’s teeth as part of his routine health evaluation.
Bad Breath in swedish lapphunds
If your swedish lapphund has bad breath, periodontal disease might not necessarily be the only disease, as other more serious problems have that symptom. Intestinal or liver diseases may cause unpleasant breath, and a sweet, even pleasant smell may sometimes be a sign of diabetes. When your swedish lapphund’s breath smells like urine or ammonia, kidney disease might be the reason. Set an appointment with a veterinarian whenever your swedish lapphund has halitosis along with other signs of disease like excessive urinating or drinking, depression or lethargy, weight loss, nausea, or decreased appetite.
swedish lapphund Tick and Flea Issues
Regular, daily checks of your swedish lapphund for fleas and ticks throughout the summer are critical. Use a flea comb to find and remove fleas. There are several new technologies of tick reduction. Get advice from your swedish lapphund’s doctor about these and other options.
swedish lapphunds With Heartworm Issues
Your swedish lapphund is at risk of heartworms if she is exposed to mosquitoes often. Mosquitoes carry this parasite from dog to dog. Heartworm infections are potentially fatal. It is wise to make sure your swedish lapphund takes a heartworm screen every single spring—this is important to detect infections from the earlier year. A monthly tablet taken throughout the warm, wet time of the year can protect your swedish lapphund. When you travel south with your swedish lapphund in winter, she ought to be on the preventive medicine during the trip. In some more moderate climates, vets recommend preemptive heartworm medication be taken continuously.
Poisions and Medicines
Please don’t give your swedish lapphund medicine that has not been prescribed by a vet. For example, are you aware that just one regular-strength ibuprofen pill can possibly cause stomach ulcers in swedish lapphunds? Make sure your swedish lapphund is never exposed to rat poison and other rodenticides. Be sure to call your dog’s doctor when you have cause to believe your swedish lapphund has been exposed to a poisonous substance. You should also contact the ASPCA Poison Control Center at (888) 426-4435 for twenty-four hour help.
swedish lapphund Reproductive Surgery
It is recommended that male swedish lapphunds should be neutered – the extraction of the testes – and females spayed – the extraction of the ovaries and uterus – by six months of age. You can significantly reduce your female swedish lapphund’s risk of breast cancer by spaying before adulthood. The risk of a diseased uterus, which is also a serious condition that impacts older females, can be removed by spaying when young. Neutering males prevents testicular and prostate diseases, certain aggressive behavior and some hernias.
swedish lapphund Innoculations
- Your swedish lapphund pup should be immunized with a combo shot (called the “five-in-1”) at 2, 3 and 4 months old, and again once per year. This immunization protects your pup from parainfluenza, parvovirus, leptospirosis, hepatitis, and distemper. Your swedish lapphund must be vaccinated for at least the first 4 months of her life.
- If your swedish lapphund has not been immunized and is older than four months, she will need two vaccinations as soon as possible, two or three weeks apart. Then you must vaccinate every year.
- swedish lapphund pup immunization and socialization should go together. You may bring your swedish lapphund puppy to socialization courses as early as eight to 9 weeks of age, according to many vets. At this age, they should have received at least their first innoculations.
Statutes are so different between different areas, that it’s best to contact your community vet for rabies innoculation info. For example, NYC rules declare that pets older than three months must be innoculated for rabies. The initial rabies shot must be followed by a subsequent shot the next year, and then every three years after that. There are several immunizations, many of which are right for your swedish lapphund. There are others that are not, however. Your vet can give you his recommendation. By the way, if your swedish lapphund gets sick because she is not vaccinated, do not administer the innoculation until the dog has made a full recovery.
Intestinal Worms in swedish lapphunds
swedish lapphunds are commonly exposed to worms—in all areas, both urban and rural. Eggs that carry hookworms are transmitted through a swedish lapphund’s feces. Most puppies, even from healthy mothers in good homes, carry roundworms or hookworms. An accurate, early diagnosis is the secret to effective treatment. Early, accurate diagnosis maximizes the possibility that prescribed medication will be highly effective against your swedish lapphund’s worms. A dewormer that eradicates roundworms, for example, cannot kill tapeworms. Your vet can best determine the culprit—and prescribe the right medicine.
Additional swedish lapphund Care Tips
swedish lapphund Supply Checklist
- High-quality dog food and treats designed for swedish lapphunds and similarly-sized dogs
- Food bowl
- Water bowl
- As many safe toys as you can provide, especially chewable
- Comb & brush for grooming, including flea comb
- Collar with license and identification tag
- Leash
- Carrier (for puppies)
- Training crate
- Dog box or bed with sheet or towel
- Doggie toothbrush
The no-no list
The following items should never be fed to swedish lapphunds:
- Alcoholic beverages
- Chocolate, coffee, or tea
- Grapes and raisins
- Moldy or spoiled food of any kind
- Onions, garlic & chives
- Bones of chicken, turkey, or any other animal (choking hazard)
- Salt or salty foods
- Tomato leaves, stems and unripe fruit
- Dough
Final Thoughts
Keep your swedish lapphund on a leash whenever you are outdoors, unless you are in a secured, fenced-in location. And please, when your swedish lapphund defecates on your neighbor’s grass, dispose of it! Don’t forget to check out these other articles about swedish lapphunds
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