The pups will go in to the vets for their first vet check and shots at about six weeks. That should be the week of May 14. (My vet, Dr. Ashley Reynolds, isn't there every day so I'll go when she's working. The pups will also need a health certificate for traveling by plane which they will get about ten days before they leave.
The puppies will be eight weeks old on May 28. Unfortunately for us, that is also Memorial Day in the US so that could complicate shipping for those pups that are going to travel to their new homes via planes.
Therefore, I am planning to ship them the next day, Tuesday, May 29 from DTW (Detroit/Wayne County) here in Michigan. I ship C.O.D. so the new owners will have to pay for the puppies' air fare on arrival.
If I do not have your home address, email, and phone number, I REALLY need that for the airlines so they can contact you. Please send it to me.
I plan on shipping in the morning so the puppies will arrive in daylight - hopefully.
Please let me know via email when your puppy has arrived and tell me how it's doing. Take a leash with you to the airport.
The pups will be traveling in a number 100 size crate which I would like back if possible. If you separate the top half from the bottom half and ZIP-tie them together, they are easier to ship. (My address and contact information is below after my name.) You can keep the crate until your puppy outgrows it and you need a larger size.
Crates are important when traveling in the car. It prevents the puppy/dog from getting thrown around in case there's an accident and, it also prevents the puppy from escaping from the car if the driver is rendered unconscious as a result of an accident and a rescuer opens the door to help. Some pups survive the accident only to run out into traffic when help arrives and enters the car.
Please take your puppy to your vet as soon after arrival as possible, within 24-36 hours is preferred. The pups will leave with a health certificate from my vet; airlines require one for pets that travel with them. However, the pup may be close to another traveling pet on the plane and could possibly pick up something from that animal so it's smart, just to be sure, to get a vet check asap.
The pups will have had their first set of shots and that record will arrive with them. Show it to your vet and follow his/her recommendations for future inoculations. This should NOT be a problem for these puppies, but some puppies in other breeds sometimes have a reaction to inoculations because their immune systems are not well developed yet. Watch your puppy after shots. Benadryl will relieve those symptoms if they develop - I don't think they will have a reaction but forewarned is forearmed. None of my pups have ever had an issue with shots. In fact I don't know of any Icelandic puppy that has had a problem but it does sometimes happen in some puppies.
I always advise against taking dogs, especially young dogs and puppies, to dog parks. There are just too many things that could go wrong. Someone may have an unprotected (against diseases) dog, there could be an aggressive dog, some owners just let their dogs run wild, etc. Play dates are another more acceptable alternative, in my opinion. However, until your vet tells you that your puppy has enough protection through inoculations, I would minimize exposure to older dogs.
Once your puppy is safe, start taking it to obedience classes as soon as possible. They need socialization with other puppies and other humans too. Icelandic Sheepdogs are extremely smart. Classes give them structure so that their intelligence is channeled to doing positive things. In other words, if you don't find appropriate things for your puppy to do, your puppy will find something interesting to do.
I prefer taking classes in all-volunteer dog obedience schools. The instructors there are involved in training dogs because they love them; they do not get paid. (That does not mean that dog training businesses love dogs any less.)
Icelandics do extremely well in agility. Until their bones have finished growing, they should not have agility classes though. Usually they have stopped growing (in height, anyway) by the time they are about ten or eleven months old. By that time they could have had a couple of obedience classes and would be ready for the beginning level agility classes.
Someone has asked about treats used for training dogs. Get a good bait bag. You can find them at chain pet supply stores. I also like the mom & pop dog stores. (An alternative to a bait bag is a cloth worker's apron like you can buy for about $1.00 at Home Depot or Lowe's. They're nice because you can wash them when they get grungy.) I keep my treats in the freezer when I'm not training so they don't spoil. After class, I put them back in the freezer until the next time. I have used pea-sized pieces of low-fat string cheese or low fat hot dogs. Lately I've been using Cheerios - healthy and the right size especially for a puppy, and even Captain Crunch (peanut butter) - not as healthy but the dogs love them and if I only use them for training, they're OK.
Do not be afraid to use lots of treats. People sometimes ask when to stop using treats for training. Never. If you worked and your boss stopped paying you, would you continue to work? You can taper off as you and your dog gain skill but please don't stop.
I have addressed the neutering issue before but it's definitely worthwhile to do so again. First, the term "neutering" technically refers to either sex. However, we often say spaying for neutering a female and neutering for a male.
The question is "when" should it be done. There is lots of information out there because of the internet. All you have to do is use your search engine and you'll find more information than you can easily digest. So, here's a short version and it makes sense, at least to me.
Normally an animal stops growing when it starts to produce its adult hormones. Many, probably most, Icelandic Sheepdogs start to produce their adult hormones when they are about ten months (+/-) old. When adult hormones are produced, the bones stop growing and what used to be the soft ends of the bones, turn hard; they calcify. That's when it's safe to begin to do agility.
If you remove the sex organs (ovaries or testes), then the dog cannot produce the necessary adult hormones to stop growth completely. Waiting until growth has really stopped makes for a healthier adult. (Even with the reproductive organs removed, the body does produce some adult hormones, just not a normal amount.)
So some animals may continue to grow a bit after neutering if it's done too early. (They may put on weight if neutering is done too early.) Some vets like to neuter early in order to prevent pregnancies or marking by males. If you are going to neuter your dog, and that's always, in my opinion, your choice, then I think you should wait until your dog has begun to produce adult hormones and the bones have stopped growing.
People have often said to me that they wished they had waited to neuter their dog until later because Icelandics changed the way they think about dogs. Icelandics are so friendly, indeed, maybe too friendly, and so smart, and so endearing that they think they would have liked to have had a litter. Our breed is rare and saving some diversity for the future in order to maintain good genetic health is the goal of many breeders.
Regardless, that choice is yours. Please don't neuter too soon though for the future health of your dog. Google it.
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