2 Jack Puppies 10 week old

Question

Lola  

Jack   Hi!....We just bought two little and so cute 10 weeks Jack Russells. They have been with us for 4 days and are eating, drinking, playing and sleeping very well. In 10 days they will have the second round of injections. The weather is quite cold over here right now, -10C to -1C. We have been taking the dogs to the back garden for 10 min for them to get use to pee and poo outside several times a day. Jack, the male, started to develop a dry cough last night, no constant but it sounds like if he had something stuck in his throat, no to frequent, no other symptoms . is it still Ok to take them out in the cold? can I start taking them out for longer ish walks?
Many Thanks

Answer
Hello Jelen,

There is nothing wrong with taking them out to pee/poop in the cold but they JUST learned how to control their body temperatures, so don't stay out too long. 10 minutes MAX.   Plus their little paws are unprotected and they get cold/burn very quickly. Put coats on them too. That is VERY cold.
Make sure to PRAISE PRAISE PRAISE when they actually DO pee/poop outside. Give an extra special treat (cheese) etc.  Don't punish when they make a mistake in the house, unless you catch them in the act of pee/poop in the house, then take them right outside.  Negative reinforcement (punishment) never works. Positive reinforcement is much better.

The coughing is unlikely caused by the cold. Are they in doggie day care or anything like that?
It could be kennel cough -
It could be heartworm

When you go to the vet, they will do a blood test for heartworm and give you a nasal vaccine
for kennel cough which will clear things up if this is the problem.  

Be careful not to pull on the leash/collar too hard at this young age which can also cause that
cough.  

Best of luck with your new babes!!

Lastly, I apologize for the lateness of this response, my own dad has been in the hospital and
I have not opened my email for about 10 days.

Take care