Shots due?

Question
Hi we're picking up a chocolate puppy on Feb 13th.  My husband and I have always been raised with dogs but this is our first together as we wanted to wait until we bought a house with a  yard before committing to a dog.  We're very excited.  I was wondering if you could give me a good website or just give me the information as to when shots are due and other routine checkups.  I'm also wondering what the best toys and treats are and if there's a special secret to training on how to NOT chew anything but what is allowed.  Also, do you have any pointers for how to kennel train?  He'll be an indoor dog and we intend for his kennel to be his "safe place" rather then a punishment but we'll be putting him in there whenever we're away from home too.  Any other training tips would be appreciated as well.  I want to be as informed as I can before we pick him up so we can begin training right away.  Thanks a bunch!

Sarah

Answer
Dear Sarah,

I am sorry i did not get to answer this sooner. Congradulations on getting a new puppy, so lets start off with the web site. There are alot of great web sites to find out all the info you need to know, my favorite is   http://maxpages.com/ferretz/Routine_Check_Ups .  They tell you basically everything you need to know.  Toys- kongs, they're made out of rubber and last a long time because thier hard to chew through. But toys also depend on how old the dog is, it its a puppy you need something soft, but not to soft that they'll rip through it. And as it gets older the harder the toys should get.  With this info, you can go to that store and not worry about getting the wrong type of toys.  For treats it all depends on the dogs taste, i have to buy 4 different types of treats for all my dogs, they are very picky but also they're amune and digestive system cant take other kinds of brands.  I would start out with "Canine Carry Outs" their bacon strips that could be torn into little pieces, you could also use alpple slices, cellery, and carrots. Dogs like to eat them, and you can give them as many as you please and not have to worry about them getting over weight. To train you dog not to eat furniture and other items, have a box with all his toys in one place at all times. When you want to play with him lead him to the box take out a toy and play. When your done lead him back to the box and put the toy back in (oh be sure the box is low enough for him to grab toys).  And if you ever catch him munching on something other than his toys, say no in a stern voice carry or lead him to the box and give him a toy. After awhile your dog will not only understand its bad to eat furninture, but he will also put his toys back in the box when he's done.  First things first, dont let the kennal get any bigger than the langth of your puppy streched out.  Thats because if he has to go to the bathroom he'll go in a corner and just more away from it. We dont want that, so if you already have and adult sie kennal your pet stores have small kennal fences and will enable you to make the kennal a certain size and let you reajust the sizes as the dog grows.  There are alot of other tips, so if you want, just email me again what you need to know, and ill give you all the information i know about the suject, congradulations again, and tell me how it goes.
Amy