Preparing for your puppy's first visit

Your puppy’s first vet visit is a tiny but important moment. You’re not just getting a checkup — you’re imprinting how they’ll feel about every checkup for the next fifteen years. Here’s how I’d handle it if it were my pup.

Before the visit

Skip the meal before, but bring the food. A slightly hungry puppy is easier to win over with high-value treats. Bring a baggie of their kibble plus something more exciting (boiled chicken, freeze-dried liver) — we’ll use it during the exam.

Bring the records. If your breeder, shelter, or previous owner gave you any vaccination, deworming, or microchip paperwork, bring it. Photos on your phone are fine.

Bring a stool sample if you can. A fresh sample (less than 12 hours old) lets us check for the parasites that are common in puppies and easy to miss visually.

Carry, don’t walk. Until your puppy has had at least their second round of core vaccines, public floors are not a great place. Pick them up in the parking lot, carry them to the room.

What we’ll do

A first-puppy visit takes about 45 minutes:

• Weight, temperature, full physical exam — eyes, ears, mouth (we’ll show you what their teeth should look like), heart, abdomen, joints
• A conversation about their first set of vaccines and the schedule for the rest
• Deworming, because puppies almost always need it
• A discussion of microchipping, spay/neuter timing, food, training resources, and the all-important socialization window (which closes around 14 weeks of age — you’re on a clock you may not realize)
• Treats. So many treats. We’ll pause the exam any time your puppy needs a moment.

What you’ll leave with

• A vaccination booklet you’ll keep for life
• A printed plan for visits two through four
• An honest cost estimate for the next year of preventive care
• Probably a small toy from our reception desk

The single thing that matters most

If your puppy enjoys the visit — if they leave thinking “that was the place with the chicken” — every future visit gets easier. Don’t rush. Don’t skip the snacks. Let them sniff. We’ve designed the appointment to give you time, and we’ll use all of it.

See you soon.