When waiting for a puppy, it’s always good to know ahead of time how to prepare for this exciting encounter. Floppy-eared, clumsy, endlessly cute, the puppy will fill your home with joyful excitement. At the same time, the responsibility for this funny little guy comes into your life.
So, German Shepherd Puppies 3 Months Old: What to Expect?
Physical And Behavioral Changes of a 3-month-old German Shepherd
At three months, it already becomes clearly visible that the German Shepherd puppy belongs to the breed of German Shepherds.
The dog’s eyes and gaze become expressive. Other external parameters of a German Shepherd puppy at 3 months include:
- The skull and body are proportional to each other, the frontal bone is slightly convex.
- The nose lobe is bright black. German Shepherds are characterized by a small hump on the nose. Noticing it in a 3-month-old German Shepherd , you can be one hundred percent sure that you have a purebred female german shepherds in front of us.
- Scissor bite of the front teeth.
- The ears begin to rise (if this is a hot topic for you, check out When Do German Shepherd Ears Stand Up).
- Tough thick coat painted in characteristic black and brown tones.
In addition, a 3 months age young german shepherd begins to increase rapidly in average size: its hind limbs and tail grow, and joints and muscles become more powerful.
At three and a half months, the German sheds for the first time.
Although the 3-month-old German Shepherd is slowly starting to grow up, he is still a child. Therefore, constant pampering and restlessness are his faithful companions.
At 3 months, he needs to put his energy somewhere.
It is important at this age to show masterly perseverance, to explain to the German Shepherd puppy what normal behavior is inappropriate.
Otherwise, the four-legged “rocket” will ruin all things in the house, including furniture.
At 3 months old, it’s time to teach the black German Shepherds to respond adequately to random passers-by, other dogs, and animals.
But it is not necessary to take the young German Shepherd to noisy and crowded places for this.
After all, his psyche is just beginning to form, and such a situation will make the three-month-old German Shepherd timid and twitchy.
At three months, the puppy nature will begin to show.
It is important that the active puppy nature is constantly trained.
Toys for a 3-month-old German Shepherd
Puppies are born with GSD puppy teeth and go through the process of teething stage.
Teething can last from 4 to 7 months (depending on the breed and nature of your puppy).
During this process, your puppy’s baby teeth will fall out.
As adult teeth develop in the puppy’s gums, the puppy experiences gum irritation, swelling and pain.
Look for the following types of safe chewing toys for a 3-month-old German Shepherd:
Hard rubber toys
Toys should be hard, but not too hard.
If they are too hard, your 3 month old German Shepherd can easily chew the toy and swallow the small pieces that have come off.
Puzzle toys
Three month old German Shepherd like toys that involve them (like playing fetch)! Look for puzzle toys that distribute dispense treats.
This is a great way to entertain the 3 month old German Shepherd puppy and keep his attention a little longer.
When a German Shepherds playing fetch, it trains thinking skills.
Toys of unusual shape and texture: three month old German Shepherd grow are not only adult teeth, but they explore the world with their mouths!
They like toys with unusual shapes, knots, etc., as well as toys with different textures. Just make sure that these toys do not have parts that can be chewed off and that you can choke on.
Size matters
Make sure that all toys fit your three month old German Shepherd in size.
If something is too small, it can be swallowed.
Going through your puppy teeth phase will require careful planning and patience, but with the right three month old German Shepherd protection and chewy treats, you and your dog will become happy campers.
Toys can help you divert your puppy’s attention if there are issues like biting or barking. Read here: How to Stop German Shepherd Barking or How to Stop a German Shepherd Puppy from Biting.
How to Take Care of a 3-month-old German Shepherd Puppy?
Of course, care and maintenance are also important components in the formation of a healthy pet.
This applies to vaccination, living conditions, and hygiene.
1) In order for a males or female German Shepherds to develop immunity, you need to go through the entire course of vaccinations and withstand quarantine.
Only after that, you can take the german shepherd puppy for walks and allow him to communicate with other animals.
2) As for the living conditions, it is best for the German Shepherd to live in the house for the time being. Later, you can build him an aviary or a dry warm kennel. It is impossible to allow the place of sleep and rest to be located in a draft.
GSD don’t like that. The post How Cold Is Too Cold for German Shepherd has instructions for building.
3) Hygiene should be weekly. These are ear cleaning, nail clipping and eye washing. As stated in the post How Often Should You Bathe a German Shepherd, the dog can be completely washed only 3-4 times a year.
In the summer, it would be good to take the dog to the reservoirs so that she could swim freely. It is very useful for muscles and joints. Also, you should not forget about puppy coat. The puppy coat should be shiny, smooth, without tangles.
4) It is also important to take your pet for checkups to a veterinarian to make sure that everything is fine with yoyr doggy.
If the veterinarian recommends something, you should try to follow all the instructions.
3 Month Old German Shepherd Health Issues
It is very important to monitor the health of your 3-month-old German Shepherd.
Your 3 month old German Shepherd puppy should be vaccinated against rabies, plague and parvovirus at this age.
Going to the vet repeatedly over several months for vaccinations, and then for boosters or titers throughout your dog’s life, may seem like an inconvenience, but the diseases that vaccinations will shield our pets from are dangerous, potentially deadly, and, thankfully, mostly preventable.
Your Complete Guide to First-Year Puppy Vaccinations by AKC
It would be better if you also started deworming it on a monthly basis.
Watch for changes in his appetite or energy level, as this may be a sign of illness.
Allergies are one of the most common diseases of dogs, and German Shepherds are no exception.
When you see that your German Shepherd puppy often scratches, has red or irritated skin, or loses its fur, it may suffer from allergies.
Joint problems are also common in adult german shepherds due to their large size and rapid growth. Your dog will limp or appear to be in pain if he has joint problems.
Panosteitis is a disease that affects the long bones of the legs and is most often found in large breeds such as adult German Shepherds.
Symptoms include lameness, pain, and stiffness.
Also, the problem may be the change of milk teeth to permanent ones.
It is important to monitor the condition of the puppy, and also so that milk teeth do not cause gum inflammation in a young pup. To eliminate pain and scabies during teething stage, use chew toys and special ointments.
Puppies have 28 deciduous teeth also known as primary, baby, or milk teeth. Adult dogs have 42 permanent teeth, also known as secondary teeth.
Persistent Deciduous Teeth (Baby Teeth) in Dogs by VCA Animal Hospitals
If you think that your puppy may have any health problems, take him to the veterinarian for examination.
With proper care and treatment, most puppies can recover from these health problems and live a happy and healthy life.
The Need for Exercise for a 3-month-old German Shepherd
German Shepherd are active german shepherd dogs that need regular exercise or can become destructive and dangerous to others if they don’t get enough of it.
A three-month-old German Shepherd needs about 30 minutes of activity every day. This may include walking or playing ball, as well as training.
Excessive or insufficient physical activity can lead to problems in the long run. If you live in an area with cold winters, you will need to find other ways to keep your puppy active indoors.
Here are some ideas for exercise for puppies:
- Purchase a set of stairs for most puppies and place them in different rooms of your house. Encourage your puppy to use them by offering dispense treats at the top of the stairs.
- Arrange agility training in the yard or in the living room, using household items such as chairs, laundry baskets and blankets.
- Hide the toys all over the house and ask the puppy to look for them.
- Take your puppy to a dog park or kindergarten for socializing and exercise.
- Providing your German Shepherd with exercise is extremely important for her physical and mental health.
- With a little creativity, you can find ways to make your puppy active and happy even on the coldest days.
Chapter FAQ
How big are German Shepherd puppies at 3 months?
You must ensure that your pet is properly fed a german shepherd puppy for 3 months so that its development is correct. At the age of three months, the weight of an animal of the German Shepherd breed should be 12.1-14.2 kg (depending on gender), height at the withers 40-46 cm, chest circumference 55-59 cm. At 3 month old german shepherds, the ears begin to rise – they become heavy, large, they rise “house” or “cap”, they can fall to the side.
Can a 3 month old German Shepherd be trained?
If you purchased a German Shepherd dogs from a breeder and everything went according to plan, then by 3 month old German the puppy is already more or less accustomed to the german shepherd breed owner and family members.
Eou need to start obedience training. He knows his nickname, his place, gets used to the feeding regime, masters a leash or harness, learns to respond adequately to external stimuli (for example, to the signals of cars in the street) and calmly endure care procedures it will be enough exercise.
And also to maintain order in the house: go to the toilet for diapers or outside (after vaccination and quarantine), do not perform actions prohibited by the owner, do not ignore basic commands. If potty-training is still a work in progress, read more here: How to Potty Train a Puppy German Shepherd.
Of course, you also have a lot to obedience training. For example, to be consistent in education and german shepherd puppy training, to understand the capabilities of a pet and not to demand from him beyond measure, to give commands clearly and in the right situation.
Establish work in your newfound team – and everything will work out!
Top 5 first commands in a puppy’s life for obedience strength training
How much exercise? You can teach these commands to your happy dogs from the very first days in a new home. Do not expect that he will immediately understand and assimilate everything. But gradually, through trial, error and repetition, the baby will learn enough exercise:
Place
You can’t
Ugh
To me
Take a walk.
In the period from 3 to 6 months, this list will double in average size. And how many commands the dog will know by the year!
How long should a 3 month old German Shepherd puppy be active?
The average activity of a german shepherd puppy training in three months should be an hour and a half an hour a day. But it should be borne in mind that the load should be uniform, it cannot exceed twenty minutes at a time, otherwise the juvenile stage happy dogs will overwork.
The German Shepherd walk for an average of 2 hours.
How much should a 3 month old German Shepherd puppy eat?
Feeding young pup from 3 months should be balanced, full-fledged, regular.
Components of proper feeding times of a german shepherd puppy from 3 months:
a convenient bowl,
the desired frequency of feeding the german shepherd puppy,
the correct portion average size,
room temperature foods,
high quality german shepherd puppy kibble,
healthy homemade food,
vitamin supplements.
If you have decided to feed a pup 3 month old german shepherds with natural products, the basis of feeding should be meat (at least 70% of the healthy diet). You can also add fermented dairy products, eggs (boiled or raw yolk), boiled fish, vegetables, fruits and porridge.
Feeding a pup from 3 months is carried out 5 times a day (the interval between feedings is about 4 hours).
Feeding young pup from 3 months should be balanced, full-fledged, regular.
Components of proper feeding times of a german shepherd puppy from 3 months:
a convenient bowl,
the desired frequency of feeding the german shepherd puppy,
the correct portion average size,
room temperature foods,
high quality german shepherd puppy kibble,
healthy homemade food,
vitamin supplements.
If you have decided to feed a pup 3 month old german shepherds with natural products, the basis of feeding should be meat (at least 70% of the healthy diet). You can also add fermented dairy products, eggs (boiled or raw yolk), boiled fish, vegetables, fruits and porridge.
Feeding a pup from 3 months is carried out 5 times a day (the interval between feedings is about 4 hours).
A portion of healthy food for a pup from 3 months should not be either too large or too small. If the pup leaves healthy food in the bowl, cut the portion. If, on the contrary, he does not leave the empty bowl for a long time and continues to lick it, it is worth increasing the portion. As a rule, with natural feeding, a pup from 3 months eats a volume of foods equal to 5% of its weight.
Feeding a puppy from 3 months can be both natural and dry food. Dry food should be of high quality (premium or super premium class), produced specifically for pup. Also, focus on the average size of the pup (healthy food for pup of small, medium and large breeds are different). To determine the amount of feed, follow the manufacturer’s instructions on the package.
Remember that access to fresh water should be constant and unlimited (fresh water is important).
It is not recommended to feed small German puppies at 3 months old
Potatoes. It contains starch, which is poorly absorbed by the body of babies.
Milk. Most babies have lactose intolerance at this age.
Fried, pickled and smoked dishes.
Sausages.
Bones of chicken and other birds. They damage the other dogs esophagus and can also get stuck in the throat.
Any food from the human table is harmful to 3 month old german , as at any other age.
Vaccinations at the age of three months
At 3 month old german, puppy does not need vaccinations. Rabies vaccine is given only in one year, revaccination also occurs later.
The vaccination calendar for standard puppy does not provide for any vaccinations at this stage of the dog’s life. But if the first vaccination was carried out later than usual, then the second often falls at the age of three months.
The 3 month old German Shepherd eat the right and healthy diet to strengthen the joints.
How much should a puppy sleep?
On average, a 3 month old German Shepherd sleep for 16-18 hours. It seems like it’s a lot. But puppies have a growing body that requires a lot of sleep and energy. A more mature German Shepherd sleep for 14 hours.
If you do not get enough sleep, health issues may begin. Health problem can be expressed in the form of increased aggression. Daytime naps is also very important.
Check out the tricks this little guy shows:
Conclusion
Any dog is a huge responsibility. The dog needs training sessions, frequent walks, strength training, and mental stimulation. Their DNA test contains all the skills necessary for fighting dogs. Get ready for a 4-month-old German Shepherd. We have collected many interesting facts from the life of a 4-month-old German Shepherd.
The juvenile stage in puppies is very active. But it is important not to forget about proper care. Stay healthy!
