Healthy dogs are a pleasure to be around, vibrant and full of life. They tend to be more alert and responsive to whatever is happening in their surroundings. Happy, healthy animals are calmer and better behaved, reducing nuisance barking and other annoying behaviors exhibited by under exercised canines. These features make them the pride of their owners. Making your pet into the kind of healthy specimen that is desirable begins when he or she is a puppy. In order to understand puppy health problems, one must know that some puppy diseases and physical ailments are serious, while others are not. This article will deal with some of the not so serious but nevertheless important health issues that puppy and dog owners face.

Grooming and Exercise

Healthy pups have soft shiny coats,their breath is sweet and their dispositions sunny. One of the basic principles to support the natural healing process and produce a soft shiny coat is to always provide the best nutrition that you can. Proper nutrition is essential for optimal well being and performance of your puppy now and into the future. Bone and muscle health promotes flexibility and mobility by maintaining strong bones and lean muscle mass. Sometimes we become so used to seeing obese pets that we think the lean dogs are abnormal. Many healthy dogs are a bit thin, particularly active young male dogs. So always be careful not to over feed. Remember too that puppies require a special diet, so ask your veterinarian to recommended a diet for your puppy. A wholesome diet is one of the best investments you can make and one of the best gifts you can give your puppy. Generally speaking, dogs are remarkably healthy animals, and if proper care is taken with their feeding and exercise, they seldom get sick. The cardiovascular benefit provided by energetic play with other dogs is great for a dog's weight control and longevity.

Keeping your pet well groomed also assists in keeping the fleas and other diseases away. The better the condition of your puppy the less attractive he will be to fleas and the less likely he will be to become sickly. In other words he will be just plain more enjoyable to be with.

A proper diet and sufficient exercise are key factors in keeping your puppy healthy

Parasites

Parasites can present a severe health risk to young puppies and even adult dogs.

Fleas are probably the most common parasite of them all.

At a very young age a puppy can pick up fleas. Usually this is from the mother but they can also be acquired from other sources outside the home.

Flea eggs hatch into a larval stage which feeds on debris and organic matter and lives freely in the environment of your home or outside. Fleas feed on their animal hosts, but spend the majority of their time off the animal. The adult flea will lay it's eggs on the dog's coat and then these fall off. The eggs are most often found in the carpet, bedding,or anywhere your dog or puppy spends most of it's time. When checking your dog for fleas, look on the lower back area above the tail and at the base of the ears. There you may actually be able to see the fleas moving around on the skin. Remember it is always best to start tackling the problem of fleas before your puppy gets infested. Prevention is the key to winning the battle against fleas. Although each flea only consumes a small drop of blood, fleas usually attack in large numbers and a really severe infestation can lead to the onset of anemia and in extreme cases, even death. Thankfully, the adult flea is the most sensitive to flea prevention products.

Your flea control program should also involve the treatment of your home and outside in the yard. There are many good products available at pet shops and department stores.