Health & care
What travels with your puppy, what you are asked to do in the first 72 hours, and exactly where the line sits between what is guaranteed and what is not.
Before handoff
| Item | What it contains | Status |
|---|---|---|
| Veterinary examination record | Date, practice and findings for that individual puppy. | Included |
| Vaccination record | Products administered, dates, and the schedule your veterinarian should continue. | Included |
| Deworming record | Products and dates administered to date. | Included |
| Feeding sheet | Current food, quantity, timing and how to transition safely if you intend to change it. | Provided |
| Comfort item | Something carrying the scent of the litter, which measurably helps the first two nights. | Provided |
| Signed agreement | The purchase agreement and the health guarantee, both countersigned. | Provided |
| Registration paperwork | AKC registration paperwork for your puppy. | Included |
The 72-hour examination
Within 72 hours of collection or delivery, have the puppy examined by a licensed veterinarian you chose and paid for. It is a condition of the guarantee, not a courtesy.
If that examination identifies a contagious illness present at handoff, or a life-threatening congenital defect, the written remedy applies — with the timescales and the process set out in full in the health guarantee and the refund policy.
Book the appointment before the puppy travels. Practices are frequently full, and a missed window is the most common reason a buyer loses a remedy they would otherwise have had.
Lifelong care
A measured, consistent, good-quality diet. Miniature Schnauzers are predisposed to raised blood lipids and to pancreatitis, so high-fat treats and table scraps carry more risk in this breed than in most. Discuss diet with your veterinarian explicitly.
Brushing two to three times a week and professional grooming every six to eight weeks. Beard and leg furnishings mat quickly; ears and nails need routine attention. Start handling paws and ears on day one so none of it is a battle later.
Fleas, ticks, heartworm and intestinal parasites according to a schedule your veterinarian sets for your region. Regional risk varies enormously; general advice from the internet is not a substitute.
Small breeds accumulate dental disease early and it is genuinely painful. Daily brushing from puppyhood, when it is easy to teach, saves both money and misery.
An extra pound on a fifteen-pound dog is a significant percentage. Body condition should be checked by feel, not by the number on the bag, and rechecked at every veterinary visit.
Yearly examination, vaccination as advised, and honest reporting of anything you have noticed. Owners spot changes long before a veterinarian does — say so.
Everything on this page is general breed and puppy-care information. It is not a diagnosis, a treatment plan or a substitute for your own veterinarian's advice about your own dog. Where this page and your veterinarian disagree, follow your veterinarian.
It is published in full, in plain language, with the exclusions stated as clearly as the cover.