How exciting! You have your super cute Yorkshire puppy and you are taking him/her home. You go directly to the pet shop to get all kinds of toys, bed, treats, shampoos, collar, leash, puppy pads, bowls, food, etc… “What are we going to name her?” “Can she sleep in my bed, mom, please?” “Can we take her to the park?”

    I don’t want to be the one ruining your party, but you have to slow down and think about the welfare of the little one first. There are very important steps to take into account to make your puppy’s transition to a new home is easy and safe.

    When a puppy is taken away from their home, they are losing everything that they know. All of a sudden, they are taken from their litter siblings, mom, humans, bed, toys, etc. It is always a big shock for them, and it’s your job to make this transition as easy as possible, minimizing the stress that could cause the puppy to stop eating or even make them ill.

    Here is a list of some important things to take into account:

• Do not change the kind of food your puppy eats immediately.   Any responsible breeder will give you a small amount of the food your puppy has been eating.  If you want to change it, you should transition gradually, adding just a little bit of the new food each day. We feed our puppies high-quality food that they love, so we encourage the new owners to continue with it.
• Get everything you need in advance and set up a place for your puppy before picking him up.
• Refrain yourself from taking your puppy with you everywhere the first few days. Let him stay relaxed and comfortable while adapting to the new environment.
• Yorkie puppies are very small and don’t have a lot of energy reserves. If your puppy stops eating you should give him a small amount of Karo syrup or Nutri-Cal every two hours.  But don’t overdo it, if you give them too much, their appetite can be suppressed even more. If your puppy doesn’t eat or eats very little,  for 24 hours take him to the vet as he may get hypoglycemia.

To be continued…