{"topic_id":"companion_dog_husbandry","category":"companion-husbandry","context":"---\ntopic_id: companion_dog_husbandry\ncategory: companion-husbandry\ntitle: \"Dog husbandry — housing, exercise, preventive care, and home safety (Merck Vet Manual)\"\nlang: en\nsource: \"Merck Veterinary Manual — Dog husbandry — housing, exercise, preventive care, and home safety (Merck Vet Manual)\"\nsource_file: pdf-raw/companion-care/companion_dog_husbandry_src.txt\ndate_parsed: 2026-07-31\ntokens_estimated: 430\nverified: true\nverification: c1_substring\nsource_document: \"Merck Veterinary Manual (professional veterinary reference)\"\ncitation:\n  authority: \"Merck Veterinary Manual\"\n  title: \"Dog husbandry — housing, exercise, preventive care, and home safety (Merck Vet Manual)\"\n  url: \"https://www.merckvetmanual.com/dog-owners/selecting-and-providing-a-home-for-a-dog/providing-a-home-for-a-dog\"\n  retrieved: \"2026-07-31\"\n  ref: \"\"\n  doc_type: \"professional veterinary reference\"\n  needs_review: false\n---\n# Dog husbandry\n\nThe text below is reproduced verbatim from the first-hand source (Merck Veterinary Manual).\n\n> Puppies can benefit from having a dedicated space in which to rest or sleep, typically a crate, which helps with housetraining and other training.\n> Many adult dogs also feel safe in a crate because it’s their own space.\n> Remember, dogs are social animals and don’t like being alone.\n> Shelters should be big enough for the dog to stand up and turn around.\n> Shelters should have a solid roof and be off the ground to keep the dog dry.\n> Dogs need regular exercise to stay healthy and avoid behavior problems.\n> Owners should be careful not to overdo it, especially in hot or humid weather.\n> Some breeds with breathing issues, like French Bulldogs or Pugs, may not handle long exercise sessions well but can still benefit from shorter walks.\n> Dogs that are bored or lonely can develop behavior problems, like destroying things or even harming themselves.\n> Adult dogs: At least once a year for a full checkup.\n> Senior dogs (over 7–8 years old): Twice a year or more.\n> Core vaccines recommended by nearly all veterinarians prevent illnesses like distemper, parvovirus, and rabies.\n> Dogs should be tested for heartworm every year and should receive heartworm prevention medicine year-round.\n> Good dental care in dogs helps prevent plaque and tartar buildup, which can lead to gum disease, just as it does in people.\n> All dogs should be spayed or neutered unless they are being bred.\n> Be sure to keep harmful chemicals like cleaning supplies, antifreeze, and certain plants out of reach of pets.\n> Puppies can leave their mother at about 7–8 weeks old.\n> Most dogs reach adulthood at 9–12 months, but large and giant breed dogs can take almost 2 years to become adults.\n> Socialization is also important, especially between the ages of 2 and 4 months.\n\nSource: `pdf-raw/companion-care/companion_dog_husbandry_src.txt` (first-hand professional veterinary reference, tag-stripped).\n\n## Claims (verified C1 substrings of source_file)\n- `Puppies can benefit from having a dedicated space in which to rest or sleep, typically a crate, which helps with housetraining and other training.`\n- `Many adult dogs also feel safe in a crate because it’s their own space.`\n- `Remember, dogs are social animals and don’t like being alone.`\n- `Shelters should be big enough for the dog to stand up and turn around.`\n- `Shelters should have a solid roof and be off the ground to keep the dog dry.`\n- `Dogs need regular exercise to stay healthy and avoid behavior problems.`\n- `Owners should be careful not to overdo it, especially in hot or humid weather.`\n- `Some breeds with breathing issues, like French Bulldogs or Pugs, may not handle long exercise sessions well but can still benefit from shorter walks.`\n- `Dogs that are bored or lonely can develop behavior problems, like destroying things or even harming themselves.`\n- `Adult dogs: At least once a year for a full checkup.`\n- `Senior dogs (over 7–8 years old): Twice a year or more.`\n- `Core vaccines recommended by nearly all veterinarians prevent illnesses like distemper, parvovirus, and rabies.`\n- `Dogs should be tested for heartworm every year and should receive heartworm prevention medicine year-round.`\n- `Good dental care in dogs helps prevent plaque and tartar buildup, which can lead to gum disease, just as it does in people.`\n- `All dogs should be spayed or neutered unless they are being bred.`\n- `Be sure to keep harmful chemicals like cleaning supplies, antifreeze, and certain plants out of reach of pets.`\n- `Puppies can leave their mother at about 7–8 weeks old.`\n- `Most dogs reach adulthood at 9–12 months, but large and giant breed dogs can take almost 2 years to become adults.`\n- `Socialization is also important, especially between the ages of 2 and 4 months.`\n","sources":["companion-husbandry — Dog husbandry — housing, exercise, preventive care, and home safety (Merck Vet Manual) (retrieved 2026-07-31)"],"source":{"authority":"companion-husbandry","title":"Dog husbandry — housing, exercise, preventive care, and home safety (Merck Vet Manual)","url":"https://www.merckvetmanual.com/dog-owners/selecting-and-providing-a-home-for-a-dog/providing-a-home-for-a-dog","retrieved":"2026-07-31","ref":"","doc_type":"official PDF","source_document":"Merck Veterinary Manual (professional veterinary reference)","verification_file":"pdf-raw/companion-care/companion_dog_husbandry_src.txt"},"source_document":"Merck Veterinary Manual (professional veterinary reference)","source_file":"pdf-raw/companion-care/companion_dog_husbandry_src.txt","tokens_estimated":430,"generated_at":null,"tip":"Use /api/v1/topics to discover more topics. /api/v1/nutrient for precise single-point queries. /api/v1/cross_compare for 2-3 standard comparisons."}