Owning dogs, especially providing care for the boykin spaniel, is nothing new for people across the world. Historians believe that dogs were domesticated between 12,000 and 25,000 years ago—and that dogs evolved from the wolf. Since then, humans have selectively bred more than four hundred breeds, varying in size from four-pound teacup poodles all the way up to Irish wolfhounds, who have earned the title of tallest pooch. However, the most popular pooches are the non-pedigree dogs—the one-of-a-kind dogs known as mixed-breeds. The boykin spaniel is also a popular pick among dog owners. Some owners are unaware, however, of some important boykin spaniel care tips.
Typical cost of care for your boykin spaniel
The annual budget for caring for the boykin spaniel—which includes meals, to doctor bills, toys and license—can vary between $420 and $780. This does not even consider capital expenses for spay/neuter surgery, collar and leash, carrier and a dog crate. Tip: Make sure you have obtained all your supplies before getting your boykin spaniel home for the first time.
Basic boykin spaniel Care
boykin spaniel Feeding Routine
- boykin spaniel pups between 8 and twelve weeks need 4 bowls of food every twenty-four hours.
- Feed boykin spaniel puppies 3 to 6 months old three meals a day.
- Feed pups six months old to one year 2 times in a twenty-four hour period.
- When the boykin spaniel reaches his first birthday, one bowl every twenty-four hours is typically all that’s necessary.
- Some boykin spaniels might do better with 2 lighter servings. It’s your responsibility to adapt to your boykin spaniel’s eating tendencies.
High-quality dry dog food provides balanced nutrition to adult boykin spaniels and can mix with canned food, broth, or water. Your boykin spaniel may also love cottage cheese, fruits and vegetables, and cooked eggs, but these foods should be less than 10 pct of his or her daily allowance. boykin spaniel pups must be fed a high-quality, name brand puppy food. Try to limit “people food”, though, since it can result in vitamin and mineral imbalances, tooth and bone concerns, and might create some extremely picky food choices and obesity. Give fresh, potable water always, and be sure to clean water and food dishes very frequently.
boykin spaniel Care Tips: Your boykin spaniel needs physical activity daily
boykin spaniels must have exercise so they can stay in shape, recharge their brains, and remain in good health. Daily physical activity also tends to help boykin spaniels fight boredom, which would often lead to difficult behavior. A little fun and games will curb most of your boykin spaniel’s instinctual urges to chase, retrieve, chew, dig and herd. Exercise needs can depend on your boykin spaniel’s level of health and his age—but ten minutes in back of the house and just a walk around the block every day probably won’t cut it. If your boykin spaniel is a six to 18 month adolescent, his requirements will probably be relatively more.
boykin spaniel Grooming
You can help reduce shedding and keep your boykin spaniel clean with brushing. Check for fleas and ticks daily during warm weather. Most boykin spaniels don’t need to be bathed more than a few times during the year. Prior to a bath, cut out or comb any mats from the boykin spaniel’s hair. Carefully rinse all soap out of the coat, or dirt will stick to soap residue.
How to Handle Your boykin spaniel
Puppies are clearly the easiest to manage. When carrying your boykin spaniel puppy, put 1 hand beneath your dog’s chest, either with your forearm or other hand supporting his or her hind legs and rear. Don’t ever attempt to grab or lift your puppy by his or her front legs, tail or back of the neck. When you must lift a larger, adult boykin spaniel, pick it up from the underside, bracing his or her chest with one arm and rear end with the other.
How to House the boykin spaniel
Your boykin spaniel needs a comfortable peaceful spot in order to rest apart from all breezes and away from the ground or floor. You may wish to purchase a dog bed, or make one from a wooden box. Place a clean sheet or pillow in the bed. Wash your boykin spaniel’s bedding frequently. If your boykin spaniel will be outdoors frequently, be sure he has access to covering and plenty of cool water in the summer, and a warm, dry, covered area in winter.
boykin spaniel Identification
There are licensing rules to heed in your town. You should connect the license to the boykin spaniel’s collar. This, together with an ID tattoo, can possibly help you recover your boykin spaniel should she go missing.
Info on boykin spaniel Behavior
Thoughts on boykin spaniel Training
Well-mannered, companion boykin spaniels are a blessing. But when left untrained, your boykin spaniel can easily be a big pain. Teaching your boykin spaniel the basics—”Down”, “Heel”, “Off”, “Sit”, “Stay”, “Come”, and “Leave it”—strengthens your relationship with both your dog and the neighbors. If you own a pup, start training him on the right responses as soon as possible! Doggie snacks can be used as incentive and recognition. Puppies should enroll in obedience courses when they have been adequately vaccinated. Contact the community humane society or SPCA for details on training course recommendations. You should always walk your boykin spaniel on a leash in public, even as a pup. Be positive your doggie will come to you every time you call her. An aggressive or disobedient boykin spaniel can’t be allowed to play with children.
Knowing Your boykin spaniel’s Health
Your boykin spaniel should visit the vet for a complete screening, innoculations and a heartworm assessment annualy, and ASAP if he is ill or injured.
About your boykin spaniel’s Oral Health
Although we might object to our boykin spaniel’s halitosis, it’s important to be aware of what it may mean. Bad breath is a symptom that your boykin spaniel should have a dental screening. Dental plaque brought on by unhealthy bacteria brings a foul odor that can only be eliminated by professional treatment. Once your boykin spaniel has had a professional oral cleaning, the gums and teeth can be maintained in a healthy state by feeding a special diet focused on dental health, eliminating table food, and regular brushing. The vet can supply you with more data on mitigating dental disease and bad breath. You can easily clean your boykin spaniel’s teeth with a dog toothpaste or a baking-soda-and-water paste twice weekly. Use a child’s soft toothbrush, a gauze pad or a piece of nylon stocking stretched over your finger. Sometimes, boykin spaniels are prone to periodontal disease, also known as an infection between the teeth and gums. Often, tooth loss happens because of gum infection. Disease can sometimes also spread to the rest of your boykin spaniel’s body. Veterinarians will sometimes clean the teeth as a regular part of your boykin spaniel’s health appointment.
boykin spaniel Breath Gone Wild!
While halitosis caused by periodontal disease may not be too serious if detected early, some those odors may also be indicative of more serious, chronic problems. Diseases of the intestines or liver also cause foul breath, and a pleasant, even sweet smell may usually be indicative of diabetes. Kidney disease might be the reason if your boykin spaniel’s breath smells like urine or ammonia. Set an appointment with a veterinarian whenever your boykin spaniel has halitosis along with other signs of disease like excessive urinating or drinking, depression or lethargy, weight loss, nausea, or decreased appetite.
boykin spaniel Flea and Tick Issues
Daily, regular inspections of your boykin spaniel for ticks and fleas during the summer are of utmost importance. Use a flea comb to remove fleas. There are several new methods of flea and tick elimination. Talk with your veterinarian about his recommendations.
Heartworm problems in boykin spaniels
Your boykin spaniel is at risk of developing heartworms if he is exposed to mosquitoes often. Mosquitoes carry heartworms from dog to dog. Heartworm infestations are fatal. It’s extremely important you make sure your boykin spaniel submits to a blood screening for this parasite annually each spring. It’s also wise to give your boykin spaniel a monthly pill in mosquito season in order to protect her from heartworms. If you ever vacation in warmer regions with your boykin spaniel in the winter, she must be on the preventive medicine during the trip. In some of the milder areas, veterinarians advise preventive heartworm medication be taken all year.
Toxins and Medicines
Remember to never give your boykin spaniel medicine that hasn’t been prescribed by her vet. As little as one ibuprofen tablet is known to initiate stomach ulcers in boykin spaniels. Keep rat poison and other rodenticides away from your boykin spaniel. Be sure you notify your boykin spaniel’s doctor if you have cause to think your boykin spaniel has eaten a poisonous substance. You can also contact the ASPCA Poison Control Center at (888) 426-4435 for 24 hour help.
boykin spaniels: Neutering and Spaying
Male boykin spaniels should be neutered – the extraction of the testes – and females spayed – the extraction of the uterus and ovaries – by 6 months old. You will usually greatly reduce your female boykin spaniel’s breast cancer risk by spaying before maturity. Spaying also eliminates the risk of a sick uterus, a very serious problem in older females that requires surgery. Testicular cancer, prostate diseases, certain aggressive behavior and some hernias can be prevented by neutering males.
Innoculating your boykin spaniel
- The combo vaccine (also called the “5-in-one shot”) must be given to your boykin spaniel at two, three, and four months old and again once annually. This vaccine immunizes your pup from distemper, hepatitis, leptospirosis, parvovirus, and parainfluenza. Your boykin spaniel puppy’s innoculation regimen cannot be finished before 4 months of age.
- If your boykin spaniel has not been innoculated and is older than 4 months, she will need 2 immunizations promptly, 2 to 3 weeks apart. After that you must vaccinate yearly.
- boykin spaniel puppy immunization and socialization should go hand in hand. You can take your boykin spaniel pup to socialization classes as early as 8 to 9 weeks of age, as recommended by many vets. At this age, they should have received at least their first innoculations.
Regulations are so varied between different areas, that it’s best to call your neighborhood doctor for rabies innoculation information. In NYC, for example, the statute requires all pets older than 3 months of age to be vaccinated for rabies. The first rabies shot must be followed by another immunization a year later, and then every three years. There are many vaccines that may effective for your boykin spaniel. Ask your boykin spaniel’s vet for his opinion. Please be aware, if your boykin spaniel gets sick because he is not properly innoculated, the vaccination must be taken once your dog fully recovers.
Intestinal Worms in boykin spaniels
boykin spaniels are commonly exposed to worms—especially in rural areas. Eggs that carry hookworms and roundworms are transmitted through a boykin spaniel’s feces. Most pups, from all environments, even those with healthy mothers, carry roundworms or hookworms. An accurate, early detection is the key to effective treatment. Early, accurate diagnosis maximizes the possibility that prescribed treatment will be effective against your dog’s worms. A dewormer that eliminates roundworms, for example, won’t kill tapeworms. Your vet can best define the culprit—and assign the most effective treatment.
boykin spaniel: Miscellaneous Care Tips
Checklist of boykin spaniel Supplies
- Top-quality dog food and snacks specifically designed for boykin spaniels and similarly-sized dogs
- Food dish
- Water dish
- As many safe toys as you can provide, especially chewable
- Brush & comb for grooming, including flea comb
- Collar with identification tag and license
- Quality leash
- Carrier (for pups)
- Crate for training
- Dog bed or box with warm comforter or towel
- Doggie or child’s toothbrush
Warnings to be Heeded
Never feed your boykin spaniel the following:
- Alcohol, beer, wine or liquor
- Chocolate, tea, coffee, or any other caffeinated foods
- Grapes and raisins
- Moldy or spoiled food of any kind
- Onions, garlic & chives
- Bones of chicken, turkey, or any other animal (choking hazard)
- Salt & salty foods
- Tomato leaves, unripe fruit and stems
- Dough
Final Thoughts
Retain your boykin spaniel on a leash whenever you are outside, unless you are in a fenced-in, secured spot. Whenever your boykin spaniel defecates on your neighbor’s grass, his sidewalk or any other public location, please remove and dispose of it! Don’t forget to check out these other articles about boykin spaniels
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