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Feeding:
At 6 weeks to 12 weeks puppies eat every 6 to 8 hours.
Estimate 1 ounce of food per pound of body weight or let them
eat until full.
I feed first thing in the morning, then when I get home
from work, then again before bedtime.
Phase this to 2 meals a day by the time the pup is 12
weeks old. I recommend staying on this schedule for life.
Kibble should be soaked with warm water until soft until
around 8 weeks old. You can also use goat’s milk or esbilac
(puppy milk replacer usually found in pet stores) as a treat
now and then. A little ‘human’ milk is also fine.
Use puppy food until around 6 months of age, then phase to
adult. 85% of the dog’s growth is complete by 6 months.
Puppy formulas tend to be very high in protein and fat; too
high for a dog that is not growing like a weed anymore.
Detrimental effects can start to occur.
I generally use chicken/poultry based foods for my
Pharaohs. Lamb based formulas are harder to digest and can
cause gas. In the USA, I have had good experience with Fromm
Adult Gold (Chicken and Duck), ProPlan Chicken and Rice or
Turkey and Barley, BilJac Select, Eukaneuba Adult Maintenance
and Pedigree. In Europe I have feed Pedigree Puppy.
Puppy play ‘safe’ area:
From age 6 to 12 weeks it’s going to seem like the puppy
potties all the time! I recommend setting up a limited area
for puppy to play and sleep in. Use baby gates or a baby play
yard or dog exercise pen to isolate around a 6 foot x 6 foot
area or larger.
This area should contain:
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a VariKennel type crate with the door removed. Put nice
fleece bedding in it. The dog will go in here to sleep or
have quiet time. Use only Vari-Kennels for young puppies,
they are safer than wire crates.
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a water bowl (something heavy or secure that won’t tip over
if stepped in, nothing too deep). There are ones that screw
onto the sides that are wonderful. Beware of buckets,
unless you vet wrap over the bent hooks. Dogs have been
‘fish hooked’ on them!
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newspaper to designate an acceptable area to potty in.
Some people have also used cookie trays with new ‘doggie
litter’ designed for dogs that is actually newspaper
pellets. Do not use cat litter. Dogs tend to eat it and it
is not good for them!
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Toys: small latex squeaks, fleecy toys are favorites, small
rope tug toys are also good
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chews – pressed rawhide, rawhide strips, munchee strips, sow
ears, ear puffs, bullies, snouts are all good
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A dog donut bed to lie in while out side the crate
As the puppy becomes more reliable in his potty habits,
transition this by moving his crate to wherever you want him
to sleep and put the door on it. Make sure the crate is close
enough to where you sleep so you can hear him cry if he has to
go potty. You may want to leave the ‘safe area’ set up with a
few toys, water, and donut bed as a place to put puppy while
you are busy until the ‘puppy phase’ is completely over and he
is reliable with free run of the house. I have found at
around 4 months the PH puppies are pretty good at not getting
into trouble every minute. I crate dogs while I am out of the
house until they are around 1 year to 18 months old. After
that, most PH will probably just sleep while you are out!
Housebreaking:
In the ‘safe area’ the puppy will learn not to soil his
crate. He will learn to go in it to sleep and keep it clean.
That is why you do not want a door on the crate until he can
hold his potty all night. If you put him in a crate to sleep
too young, he will have no choice other than to soil his
crate. That can be a tough habit to break when he is older.
Most of the time puppies seem to know to go to newspaper to
potty. They might also go on the floor, but I don’t make a
big deal about it at this point. Just have lots of newspaper
for right now and put down clean ones as they mess them up.
If you bring your puppy home in winter, remember it is
too cold for a tiny Pharaoh to be outside. Remember that
these dogs are built for a desert climate. They have very
little hair or body fat for insulation. Their blood vessels
are right at the surface to cool their blood quickly. Their
ears are very thin and fine and tend to freeze quickly. Some
adult Pharaohs are prone to ‘cold ear necrosis’ which includes
dry, flaky skin on the ear edges in cold weather and can lead
to scabs and missing ear tips. I would not push potty
training outside until temperatures are way above freezing.
If you do take your puppy outside, limit the time to just a
minute or two and try to use a coat. Also limit puppy’s time
outdoors until all vaccinations are complete. Almost
everything they pick up with their mouth harbors bacteria or
viruses.
One thing I have done in housebreaking during cold months
is to teach the dog to potty in the shower stall or tub. This
usually starts around 10 weeks of age. By then I usually have
the puppies sleeping in crates in or near my bedroom so I can
hear them cry. They usually only cry when they have to go. I
take them out of the crate, carry them to the shower stall
(mine has a glass door) and close them in. They usually go
potty instantly and it is easy to clean with my removable
shower wand. Since I travel to dog shows quite often, and
may be on the 13th floor of a hotel, I have found
this to be very handy in the middle of the night! Later in
life it is also nice when you have an adult that just couldn’t
hold it that day, they will go into the shower rather than
elsewhere. My hotel roommates find it amusing to watch my
dogs go to the bathroom to go potty!
When the puppy starts to have some bladder control, if he
starts to pee where he shouldn’t, or you see him pacing around
sniffing, pick him up quickly, rush outside (or wherever you
want him to go) and use a command to tell him what to do. I
say ‘potty outside’. Usually I am running to the door
repeating this, then I put them down and when they start to
pee, I PRAISE them, “GOOD POTTY OUTSIDE, GOOD POTTY
OUTSIDE!” Then come back inside immediately and give them a
cookie! Pharaohs usually house break this way very, very
quickly. You can also hang a bell from the door for the dog
to ring in case you can’t see him standing at it. That also
helps eliminate scratching to get your attention.
Puppy’s favorite things:
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Toys, fleece toys, latex toys, rope toys or any toys!
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Rawhide, especially pig noses, bullies, and sow ears (Avoid
pig ears, too greasy and cause diarrhea)
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fleece beds and donut beds
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they like to sit in your lap and be petted
Manners:
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the puppies have been corrected by either verbal (eh eh, no
no) or mild scruff shake (like mommy dog does)
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to call puppy, same their name, followed by ‘come’ – ALWAYS
praise when they come or even look in your direction! Make
coming to you a GOOD thing. Even if you have to walk them
down, GENTLY lead them by the collar to the spot you were
calling them from, then praise when you get there. One good
way to start recall training is to say, “COME” whenever
you put the food dish down. The puppy will learn to
associate ‘COME’ with something good.
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If puppy chews on the wrong thing, remove it from their
mouth and say “no no”, then replace it with something they
can chew (rawhide or rope bone). Praise for playing with
correct toy
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ALWAYS give a cookie when putting the puppy in their crate;
they will learn to run into the crate willingly.
Socialization and training
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I take my puppies to lots of places to meet new people and
dogs. Please continue to take your puppy to new places as
much as possible. Have people and dogs visit your house
also. (After they complete at least their 3rd
puppy shot!)
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Try to attend a Puppy Head Start class at your local
obedience school, and later a Beginner obedience class.
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You may want to try a breed handling class to prepare the
puppy for the breed ring if you are going to show. Junior
Showmanship is a great thing for kids to get involved in
with the puppy. It teaches them discipline and is very
rewarding.
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Talk to your dog constantly! Pharaohs really do understand
many, many words and it will make your life so much easier.
Whenever I go to put on a leash, coat or go to the door I
say ‘wait’ for the dog to ‘freeze and be still. If you
associate words with whatever you do with your dog, they
will understand.
Baths
It’s safe to give your puppy a bath, even at 6 weeks
old. I use any gentle, no more tears formula, human baby
shampoo from puppyhood through their entire adult life.
Pharaohs are a bit different than a lot of other dog breeds in
that they have almost no coat oil since they are a desert
dog. Most breeds have a rather oily coat, so a stronger
shampoo is needed to clean them. A strong shampoo can
irritate a Pharaoh’s skin and make them flake. Stick with
baby shampoo and only bath when they need it. Ttowel dry them
well and keep them warm until dry.
Ears and taping:
Pharaoh Hound ears generally stand up on their own, but some
need support for varying lengths of time.
I have seem some ears pop up at 6 weeks and stay up,
others take until 6 months to stand, and sometimes rarely up
to 11 months. Some never stand completely erect. The Pharaoh
Hound standard calls for a ‘large, fine ear’. The ear needs
to be fine or thin so that it is an efficient ‘cooling fin’ in
the desert enabling the blood vessels to be as exposed as
possible. The truly fine ears are the last to stand. Some
Pharaohs with more incorrect ears, that have lots of
substance, stand more quickly.
My general rule is that if the ear is continually
changing, don’t mess with it! If it get’s stuck in one of the
following phases for any length of time, support it. If in
doubt, call me.
Pharaoh Hound ears all
start out with ears folded front which are called ‘button
ears’, the type you see on a Dalmatian. As they start to come
up, they turn out to the side usually into a perfect ‘rose
ear’, which is the type of ear you see on a Whippet or
Greyhound. Then the ears start to go up (prick). They are
usually still weak and floppy and often as soon as they stand,
they tend to flop inwards over the skull. As the base of the
ear gains substance, the ear set will correct itself and
should wind up with the ears at roughly 11 and 1, or slightly
off the side of the skull.
If the dog is very
warm, from lying in the sun, or being under covers (they love
that), the ears may flop! Don’t panic. As soon as they hit
the cooler air, they will pop back into shape. However,
teething can affect ear progress. The ears tend to become
weaker as the puppy starts cutting adult teeth. I would
support them during this period if they do and some believe
calcium supplements are good at this time.
Now the tricky part is
how to support them. Each breeder has their own favorite
method.
First clean the inside
of the ear with alcohol or an astringent that will remove any
waxiness or dirt or your support materials are not going to
stick and will fall out within minutes! Wait a few seconds
for the ear to dry.
Then open up 2 Breath
Right Nasal strips that will be used as the support. I use
small/medium size at first, then the large if supporting a 6+
month old’s ears. But Breathe Right strips are not sticky
enough to say in on their own!
(New Tip from a Chinese
Crested person: Use Super Glue GEL (IT MUST BE GEL) to affix
the nasal strip.)
So to affix them to the
inside of the ear I use bandage tape. My favorite is Fixomull
from Sweden. I have friends send it from Sweden, and you can
find it on the internet, but that is a lot to go through. If
you have a connection, get some. You usually only need one
package to do one puppy through the whole support period. My
second favorite is Kendall WetProof which I buy at dog shows.
It is an American product and is around $8 a roll. You can
get it off the internet or probably from a vet or hospital
supply store. I have also used bandage tape from drug
stores. As long as they are ones that say ‘maximum hold’ they
will work. I like the Kendall tape because it is stiff and
also provides it’s own extra support.
Cut the
bandage tape to look like an ear. Cut off the corners so it
has an ear tip and an almost straight bottom. Don’t leave any
sharp corners.
Like this, but round off the corners:
/\ Lay your Breathe Right nasal strip on it
before sticking it in the ear.
/ \ Put the fabric side against the sticky
tape side, so the sticky side is towards the ear.
/___\ Position the nasal strip where ever the ear
is weakest; usually towards the outside of the ear.
You can even use 2 in a teepee shape for a really weak ear, or
just one down the middle for a weak tip.
Now put the whole
contraption into the ear. Have someone else hold the puppy.
I find it best to put the tip in position first, then run my
finger down the middle and smooth out towards the edges.
Don’t worry if it is wrinkled or not positioned perfect. It
will still do the job. They usually fall out on their own in
around 4 to 7 days. I sometimes wait a day before putting in
a new one to let the ear breathe a bit. Sometimes the skin is
a little red underneath. The ear usually wants to stand for a
day or two. Then if it starts to look weak again, put in a
new support.
My Pharaohs rarely try
to scratch their ear supports out. However my older Pharaohs
love to remove tape from puppy ears! If you really have
trouble keeping these in, you can use skin glue. I have not
tried this, but I know other breeders have used it if needed.
Vet/Vaccines
Please see my vaccine chart for my recommended
immunization schedule. My approach to vaccines is to not over
vaccinate. There has been enough studies done that seem to
indicate that over vaccination can do more harm than good.
When you are administering a vaccine, you are injecting your
dog with a killed or modified live virus so that the dog can
build immunity to that particular disease. A dog’s immunity
level can be measured by testing ‘titers’. Studies indicate
these immunity levels remain high enough to prevent diseases
for anywhere from 3 years to life. So annual vaccinations for
all diseases are most likely overkill. And there have been
cases where vaccines have killed the dog! Dogs can die of
allergic reactions to vaccines if too many vaccines are given
at one time and some vaccines are just more reaction prone
than others. Some studies indicate cancerous tumors are
occurring more often at popular injections sites (the nape of
neck) and also some auto-immune diseases and hemolytic anemia
may be caused by over vaccination. Remember each time you
inject your dog with a virus; your dog’s immune system has to
respond to it. Some older dogs especially have weakened
immune systems and just cannot do this any longer.
I weigh the risk/benefit of each vaccine. I recommend
doing your own research on the internet and deciding what is
best for you.
Allow at least a period of 4 weeks between any single
vaccinations, medications, or anything that will stress your
dog's immune system! NEVER combine any more than one
vaccination per vet visit, such as a Rabies booster and DHPP
booster at the same time. NEVER give heart worm treatment
within 4 weeks of a vaccination. I cannot stress enough to
allow your Pharaoh Hound's immune system to respond to one
vaccination at a time.
This breed is a 'primitive breed', whose history in
solely on Malta up until very recent times (1967), where the
environment is VERY natural Usually including NO vaccines, no
medications, no commercial dog foods, no preservatives, no
household cleaning chemicals. The Kelb Tal Fenek is most often
fed table scraps bulked out with whole grain bread. This is
the environment this breed has adapted to. Some individuals
are more sensitive than others to elements they would never
encounter in their native environment.
‘Puppy Boosters’
Puppy boosters are combo shots that vaccinate against
several diseases. The most common combo is usually called
DAPP – for distemper, adenovirus, parvovirus, parainfluenza.
Sometimes this shot also contains Coronovirus, and also
sometimes Leptospirosis. Some of these diseases only occur in
puppies, others can occur into adulthood.
Please see the Pet Passport that comes with your puppy to
see what vaccinations and worming your puppy has received.
Leptospirosis is not common in some areas and is one
vaccine that I, and probably most other breeders, have had the
most reactions to. It often causes hives and swelling in
Pharaohs. Sometimes severe enough that I thought the puppy
would go into shock and even liver or kidney damage. As the
puppy gets older, there is much less risk of severe reaction.
Therefore I recommend not giving Lepto until the annual
booster, when the puppy is a little over 1 year old. Then
assume they are immune for life and do not give it again.
Some breeders even give Prednisone or Benedryl before giving
any shot containing Lepto to minimize the risk of the allergic
reaction.
Parvo is the disease a young puppy is most at risk of and
it can be very life threatening. My approach though is not to
rush the vaccinations, but limit the puppy’s exposure to other
dogs and the outside world until all 3 boosters are
complete. Let other people and dogs visit your puppy at your
house, but make sure you know the visiting dogs are healthy
and have all guests leave their shoes at the door. It is on
the bottom of shoe soles that most bacteria and viruses are
tracked in. Keep your puppy away from ‘high traffic’ areas in
your house at this time. Stay in the ‘safe area’. You can
also have visitors wash their hands with anti-bacterial soap
before playing with puppy.
Try not to let your puppy eat things off the ground
outside. This is where they will come in contact with things
like giardia and coccidia.
Bordetella or Kennel Cough
Kennel Cough is usually
not serious, except sometimes in small puppies. It is roughly
the same as having a cold. The dog coughs. It is self
limiting, which means it goes away on it’s own without
treatment. The vaccine is generally an intra-nasal liquid.
This vaccine usually causes no reaction. If you regularly
are among other groups of dogs, such as going to classes,
going to shows, more than likely your dog will be exposed to
another dog with kennel cough. So you may want to vaccinate
every 6 months to 1 year. There is no real danger in skipping
this vaccine as far as I am concerned. It is one vaccine that
immunity does not last and you cannot extend the schedule more
than 1 year. I do give this vaccine every 6 months.
Lyme Disease (USA and Canada only)
This is a nasty disease and a nasty vaccine. Even with
what I thought was very thorough tick searches, I had 3 dogs
come down with Lyme. Once a dog has Lyme, amoxicillin will
treat the disease, but nothing can eradicate it. Every time
the dog’s immune system is suppressed, the Lyme symptoms could
appear again. Affected dogs can acquire almost every problem
you can think of with the potential of almost every internal
organ affected, plus crippling arthritis. I had one dog I had
to give $20 per week Adequan injections for life, just so she
could walk again. There are several vaccine makers, but most
breeders agree the most effective one is LymeVax from Fort
Dodge. However it can cause mild to severe allergic reactions
in many dogs including hives, swelling of lips, complete
swelling closure of eyes and has even caused shock and stopped
breathing! One vet I talked to was giving Epinephrine before
the LymeVax injection and some were giving Prednisone, again
to minimize the risk and level of the reaction. Even with
these risks from the vaccine, the benefit still far outweighs
the risks of having Lyme disease. What I would recommend is
to postpone this vaccination until the first chance of ticks
in the spring. Then you will need two shots, 3 weeks apart.
Give Benedryl or Prednisone before taking this shot! Also
purchase a tick collar that contains the active ingredient
Amitraz, such as ‘Preventic’. Ticks can only pass Lyme
disease if attached to your dog more than 24 hours. These
collars usually prevent ticks from attaching, or if they do
attach they will die and fall off before 24 hours.
These collars work extremely well.
Heartworm (USA, Canada
and other areas where heartworm exists)
Heartworm medication should be started in the spring. I
do not give when mosquitoes are not present. Since some breeds
are sensitive to the drug Ivermectin and experience seizures
from it, do not use Hartguard. Some Pharaoh Hounds can be drug
sensitive. I feel Sentinel is the safest heart worm
preventative, followed by Interceptor. Although Interceptor is
possibly linked to auto-immune problems in some present
research. Do not use the 'plus' versions of any of these
medicines that treat other types of worms as well. In general
NEVER combine drugs or vaccinations. Only give one at a time
and at least 4 weeks apart.
Other Worms (pinworms, roundworms, tapeworms, whipworms)
Dormant worm cysts are
present in every dog, and mom passes them to her puppies where
they grow into larvae and adults worms. Puppies need to be
wormed every two weeks starting at 2 weeks old and continuing
until 12 weeks old.
Check your passport and/or
my vaccine chart to see which wormings your puppy still needs.
Do not use a product
containing piperazine. It is cheap, but only kills around 70%
of adult worms and no larvae. Use Panacur from your vet or
Nemex II, Evict, Drontal Pup, or Pyran 50 from your pet supply
store. These contain much more effective wormers!! Again,
please check the internet on this one. I order from
www.countrysidesupply.com.
Medicines
Household medicines I commonly use are:
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1 Imodium and/or 1 Pepto Bismol for mild diarrhea or tummy
upset. Withhold food, phase back in with rice or pasta.
Any diarrhea lasting more than a day is serious. Please
contact a vet.
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Pedcid/AC or Tums for any vomiting/tummy upset. Yogurt with
acidophilus bacteria is great for restoring good intestinal
flora! And most Pharaohs love it, too. I give this
routinely in their food.
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1 25mg Benedryl or Prednisone for any bee sting or any other
allergic reaction that may cause hives.
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Neosporin is good for any cuts or abrasions
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Aspirin for sprain, limping, or pain. Do not give any other
aspirin substitutes, some are toxic to dogs.
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