This guide will help you and your puppy get to the best start in life together. Basic healthcare can be provided by your vet and includes annual vaccines, and regular flea and worming treatments. Decisions about which food to feed, early socialisation of your puppy and getting the right insurance cover deserve some research and require a dedicated owner.

Dogs are socially obligate mammals just like human beings, which is one of the reasons they make such wonderful companions. However, this means being alone is not a natural canine behaviour and just like people being forced into isolation often results in a negative emotional response. This does not however mean that dogs cannot learn to be comfortable with their own space and develop good emotional resilience to stimuli that would otherwise be a negative experience.

Allergic symptoms in pets look different to those in humans and may include: itchy skin, licking paws, face rubbing, loss of hair, recurring ear infections and chronic loose stools. Broadly they can be thought of in three main categories: flea/ insect bite allergic dermatitis, environmental allergens, food allergies.