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Your dog is your companion who will give you many years of love, friendship and loyalty in exchange for loving care, safe shelter, clean water and decent food. They also rely on you to provide them with health care when they are ill and regular exercise and grooming to help keep them fit and healthy. Listed below are 10 essentials for keeping your dog fit and healthy for many years to come:

1. make sure that you give your dog a collar and that it includes an identity tag with your name and telephone number on it, or even better have an electronic tag fitted just under your dogs skin, this makes it easy to track your dog should it get lost or stolen.

2. make sure you follow all the local laws and regulations regarding licensing for your dog and that they have the correct vaccinations when they should.

3. When on public property keep your dog on a lead, you should always keep your dog under strict control at all times when out and about. Never let your dog go wandering off alone and make sure they cannot get off your property without you. When you are walking keep your dog on its lead by your side until you come to an area away from cars, even then your dog should be well behaved and always do as its told the minute you tell it.

4. Make sure your dog has proper accommodation; if you keep your dog outside in a kennel make sure it’s the correct size for the breed of dog and that you spend a decent amount of time with it. Dogs crave companionship and don’t like to be left all day alone or tied up in a small pen, make sure you can devote the time needed to take care of a pet before you take on the responsibility.

5. take your dog to the vets regularly, makes sure that you take your dog to see the vet on a regular basis, this way illness can be caught before it shows and always make sure your dog has the necessary vaccinations when needed.

6. spay or neuter your dog, dogs that have this surgery are known to live longer, be healthier and have less behaviour problems.

7. give your dog a healthy balanced diet with plenty of clean fresh drinking water available at all times, if your dog puts on too much weight then seek the advice of your vet before restricting their diet.

8. take your dog to obedience classes, this not only makes your life a lot easier but also that of your dog, a well behaved dog who does as they are told will be welcome at a lot more places than ones which just please themselves.

9. Give your dog the exercise that they need without over doing it, two walks for roughly 15 minutes is adequate enough for most breeds providing they can get outside in the garden throughout the day. Smaller breeds may not even need this much exercise, care should of course be taken with very young puppy’s as their little legs may tire easily.

10. Be patient with your dog, sometimes your companion may not understand what is required of them and you may have to repeat or tell them in a different way what you want them to do. Dogs aren’t mind readers and cannot understand anything and everything you ask of them so a little patience on your part can go a long way.

Whichever breed of dog you are looking to buy it is important that you choose a good breeder from which to purchase your puppy, a reputable breeder will always ask you several questions before they will let you buy a puppy and of course you should have several questions of your own for the breeder. Of course when you are buying a puppy you should first determine what role the dog will play, if you want a puppy as a companion and pet or if you will want to show the dog.

Puppies bred specifically for showing are of course more expensive than ones who are to be just pets, the only difference being a show dog will have to meet strict requirements set out for the breed while the pet may have colour miss-markings or some such trait that it doesn’t meet up to the high standards required for showing. Points you should look for when choosing a breeder are:

* A breeder who keeps the dogs in the house rather than in pens or runs outside.

* The puppies look happy and healthy and don’t shy away from strangers but are adventurous when meeting new people.

* The area where the dogs are kept is clean and hygiene is maintained.

* The breeder shows you the puppies parents or at the very least their mother.

* Choose a breeder who only breeds one type of dog and who knows the breed well.

* The breeder can show you vets records and has a medical history of the dogs and puppies.

* The breeder can offer you advice on the breed and is willing to provide after care once you have bought a puppy.

* A breeder who is willing to provide references to other people who have bought puppies in the past.

* A breeder who feeds a premium brand of dog food.

* A breeder who encourage multiple visits before you buy the puppy and who encourages all the family to visit before buying.

* A breeder who can give you a written contract regarding the health of the puppy.

The breeder should never just sell puppies to anyone without first asking questions about the buyer, common questions the breeder should ask of you are:

* Why you want a puppy.

* Ask about which vet you would be considering using after buying the puppy.

* Ask about your accommodation, making sure you have adequate space for a dog.

* Ask if you are home to take care of the dog during the day.

* Ask about what you know about the breed of the dog.

* Make sure you understand any health problems relating to the particular breed of the dog.

Your new puppy’s parents and its genes will play a big part in how your puppy will turn out when it’s fully grown into an adult dog, you of course as the owner will also be able to influence this outcome. By petting, playing and teaching your new puppy good behaviour you can help your puppy to develop good socialisation skills.

Your puppy will have been weaned around the age of 6 weeks but they still learn valuable lessons from their mother up to around 8 t0 10 weeks, this is the time when they are ready to leave their mothers and litter mates. Here is a general guideline to your puppy’s stages of development:

Two to four weeks

* This is called the transitional period and it is the time when your puppy will be most influenced by its mother and its litter mates.

* Teeth begin to come in and the puppy’s eyes will start to open, their sense of smell and hearing will now develop.

* They begin to stand and try to walk, the tail will wag and the puppy can bark.

* By the end of the fourth week the eyesight should be fully developed.

Three to twelve weeks

* During this period the puppy should have contact with other people.

* By three to five weeks the puppy is well aware of its surroundings and its companions.

* By weeks four to six the puppy is influenced by its littermates.

* From four to twelve weeks a puppy will start to be influenced by the people around it, they will learn how to play and begin to develop social skills.

* Seven to nine weeks and the puppy will begin refining its skills and can start to be house trained * Eight to ten weeks the puppy can experience fear and needs positive training from this age.

* Nine to twelve weeks the puppy begins to refine its actions and explores its environment more, the puppy will focus more on people.

Three to six months

* A puppy will be greatly influenced by playmates.

* The puppy will begin to grasp ideas of submission and dominance.

* The puppy will begin teething at this stage.

Six to 18 months

* The puppy is more influenced by people.

* During the months seven to nine the puppy will go through another stage of chewing anything and everything.

* Dominance will increase particularly in male dogs.

* Sexual behaviour will start to show in dogs that haven’t been neutered or spayed.