TABLE OF CONTENTS

PART 1: So You Want A Puppy?
1- Are You Ready for a Puppy?
2- Big or Small, Longhaired or Short?
3- In the Beginning: A Puppy

PART 2: Bringing Home Your New Best Friend
4- Before You Bring Your Puppy Home
5- The First 24 Hours
6- Setting Household Rules
8- New people, New Things

PART 3: Your Puppy's Health
9- The First Visit to the Vet
10- Maintaining Your Puppy's Health
11- Routine Care From Tip to Tail
12- Let's Eat!
13- Health Concerns
14- What To Do In an Emergency

PART 4: How to Train Your Puppy
15- How To Be Your Puppy's Teacher
16- Basic Training
17-There's More You Can Teach
18- Using Training To Avoid Trouble

PART 5: More To Do...and Learn
19- The Best Games and Toys
20 Why Does My Puppy Do That?

APPENDICES
More Resources
Dogs in Cyberspace
A simple Glossary
Index
Acknowledgement

INTRODUCTION

By Liz Palika

I have been teaching dog training classes for over 20 years., and throughout that time people have asked me the same questions over and over. Many of these questions are directly related to puppy behavior:

• Why does my puppy nip me?
• Why is he digging up my backyard?
• My neighbors say he barks when I’m not home. What can I do?

Other questions have to do with training:

• Why does my puppy fight the leash?
• Why doesn’t she come when I call her?
• How can I stop her from dashing through every open door?

Many puppy owners also have questions about how to care for their puppy:

• Which vaccinations should my puppy get and when?
• Can I feed her generic puppy food?
• How can I clean her ears? How often should I bathe her?

In The KISS Guide To Raising A Puppy, I have compiled all the answers to the thousands of questions that puppy owners have asked me throughout the years. I am a firm believer in the adage, “There is no such thing as a stupid question.” If it was important enough for you to ask, then the answer is just as important.

I really want you to enjoy your puppy. And that means understanding him, training him, taking good care of him, and doing things with him. I know puppies can be a handful, but when you understand why they do things, and know how to teach them what the limits are, you’ll have a much happier time together.

Since this book is for everyone that loves dogs, it is written so everyone can understand it. If you are an experienced dog owner, don’t take offense at the basic material you may think everyone knows. Everyone doesn’t! But keep reading, because there is information here for everyone...