WHAT TO EXPECT WITH A NEWLY ADOPTED PUPPY
Each of our puppies had an examination and a fecal test this past week to ensure that they went home healthy and with any medications they may have needed. However, the transition that puppies experience when they leave their littermates and enter a new home can be very stressful. Many puppies will experience diarrhea and/or lethargy, this is normal and it is safe to give them a few days to adjust to their new surroundings.
EMERGENCY MEDICAL CONCERNS
If your puppy refuses to eat or drink and/or has vomited more than three times in a 12 hour period, this would be considered an emergency. Please follow the instructions below for emergencies.
Diarrhea is not an emergency if the puppy is still eating and drinking normally.
TESTING A PUPPY WHO REFUSES TO EAT
If you are concerned your new puppy isn’t eating, try giving them lunch meat, boiled chicken, or cheese. If the puppy eats any of these foods, it is not an emergency and the puppy is not truly refusing to eat, they are simply being picky, probably because of the transition. If the puppy has eaten small amounts in the past 12 hours, the puppy is still eating and this is not an emergency.
It is an emergency when a puppy has not eaten ANYTHING in 12 hours and will not accept any irresistible human food.
A VOMITING PUPPY
If your puppy vomits food one time and does not vomit again, this is not an emergency. If your puppy vomits clear or foamy liquid and it vomits more than three times in a 12 hour period this is considered an emergency.
If your puppy is refusing to eat or drink AND has vomited, this is also considered an emergency.
EMERGENCY PROTOCOL
If you adopted a puppy this past weekend and they are experiencing a MEDICAL EMERGENCY and you need to get in touch with someone immediately, send an email with the subject line “urgent” to info@mamcorescue.org and include your phone number. One of us will call you shortly.
WHAT NOT TO DO…
Please do not rush your puppy to an emergency veterinarian and spend a small fortune. If your puppy is ill and it is prior to the first Wednesday following the adoption (you should have your insurance activated before this day) or if you went home with an Infectious Disease Waiver for a pre-existing condition, we are happy to have your dog seen at one of our partner veterinarians at our cost.
If it is after the first Wednesday following the adoption, and your puppy did not go home with an Infectious Disease Waiver, you are expected to have your insurance activated and the costs of their care will be your responsibility; however, we would appreciate it if you would please contact us anyway so we can alert the other people who adopted dogs from that litter. We are also able to direct you to affordable veterinary options in your area, so you don’t spend a lot of money.