shots

Question
My puppy is 6 weeks old and I am going to give him his shots. Do I give a 7 way shot??

Answer
Yes. However, unless you are planning on giving your dog all of his shots for the rest of his life, I would just go ahead and have the veterinarian do it. I only say this because, in most cases, vets do not "recognize" shots given at home and will insist on giving the dog its shots themselves. When you take the dog in for its rabies vaccinations, there is a good chance the vet will say "Hmmm...well, the dog also needs this vaccination and this one and this one..." Simply saying that you gave the dog its shots doesn't really mean anything. So, in all likelihood, you may be paying for the same vaccinations twice- once at home, and once at the vet's office. Check with your vet first to see if they have any kind of policy that covers an issue like this one. They may have certain criteria that you have to meet in order to keep your dog's records up-to-date with their office. For example, they may want you to bring in the packaging, etc.

Also, something else to keep in consideration are your local laws. In some areas, it is required by law that you have a current shot record from a veterinarian's office or other animal clinic for each animal you own. If your area of residence has this type of regulation, you really need to have the vet administer the shots instead of doing it at home.