Your Puppy’s Journey
Bringing a new life into the world is a beautiful journey, one filled with nurturing care, gentle guidance, and natural growth. From the moment your puppy takes their first breath to the day they join your family, we honor each stage of their development with patience, love, and intention. Here, you can follow their path—watch as they grow stronger, explore their surroundings, and build confidence through early socialization and care. Every step is thoughtfully guided to ensure they transition into their new home with a peaceful heart and a joyful spirit. Step into their journey and witness the harmony of nature, nurture, and new beginnings.
Recommended Products
Bringing home a new puppy is an exciting and rewarding experience, but it also comes with important responsibilities. To help you give your furry friend the best start in life, we’ve carefully selected and recommended high-quality products that support their health, comfort, and development. From nutrition and training essentials to toys and grooming supplies, every product we suggest is chosen with your puppy’s well-being in mind. Whether you’re a first-time pet parent or a seasoned dog lover, our recommendations are designed to make your journey smoother and more enjoyable.
Keeping Your Puppy Healthy
We start all our puppies on NuVet Plus vitamins at 6 weeks old. All our adult dogs are on a maintenance of NuVet year around. NuVet protects your puppy’s still developing immune system and assists with vaccine response. It also fills in vital nutrients cooked out of processed pet food. In addition, it promotes that thick, luxurious, shiny coat that you see on healthy Border Collies. They have great products for aging dogs and supplies like shampoo. They offer auto-ship on whatever frequency you prefer. Most owners get a bottle of 90 wafers for 3 months. It breaks down to about $16 a month. And, most of all, create the longest-healthiest life with your favorite new family member. Use code 141059 to order or re order.
Puppy Preperation
Preparation is not just about supplies but about mindset and being educated. A calm and centered approach creates a space of safety and balance, where your puppy can learn, explore, and thrive. From setting up a peaceful home environment to embracing the first steps of training and bonding, this journey is one of mindfulness—meeting each moment with awareness and gentle guidance. Here we have outlined some of the first important steps.
Continuing the Zen Approach at Home
Your puppy has been raised through our Zen-based method: calm energy, clear guidance, and an environment that supports confidence rather than chaos. Bringing that same energy into your home is the key to raising a grounded, responsive, emotionally balanced dog. Below is the structure we recommend all owners follow.
The Zen Five: The Daily Method We Use Here 1. Stillness First, Action Second - A calm dog learns faster. Before asking for anything, pause and let your puppy settle. We never train an excited mind instead we teach the mind to become calm before we ask for effort. This is the core of our Zen approach. 2. Guide, Don’t React - Respond with clarity, not emotion. Zen handling means: • move slow • use a steady voice • correct with intention, not frustration • reward with presence, not hype Your puppy will mirror your state, so be the grounded one in the room. 3. Structure Creates Freedom - Puppies thrive when their world is predictable. Zen structure looks like: • consistent feeding and potty times • crate naps to reset the nervous system • short training sessions with clear boundaries Once the basics are solid, freedom expands naturally not before. 4. Teach Awareness, Not Just Commands - Zen training isn’t about running through cues. It’s about teaching the puppy to notice: • your body language • the environment • their own energy When a dog learns awareness, obedience becomes effortless. They follow because they understand. 5. Protect Their Mental Space - We don’t flood puppies with stimulation or endless excitement. Zen raising means maintaining: • gentle introductions • calm socialization • environments that don’t overwhelm • a balance of play + quiet time A well-regulated nervous system is the foundation of a well-behaved dog.
How to Live Zen With Your Puppy Here’s what that looks like in everyday life: • Pause before opening doors. • Reward calmness as much as training success. • Keep movements slow and purposeful. • Lower your voice instead of raising it. • Give direction before the puppy makes the wrong choice. • End sessions on a peaceful note, not a frantic one. • Handle with intention as every touch matters. Zen isn’t a technique; it’s a daily atmosphere. Your puppy already knows this way of being as they were raised in it. Bring the Zen Home When you continue this approach, your puppy grows into a dog who is: • thoughtful • emotionally stable • deeply connected to you • confident without being chaotic • respectful without being fearful • responsive without needing bribes or force. Zen creates dogs that think, not just react. It creates owners who lead, not just manage. We’ve given your puppy a peaceful foundation. Now you get to be the calm center of their world.
Puppy Gut Health & Our Preventative Care
Program A healthy gut is the foundation of a strong immune system, proper digestion, and overall well-being. From day one, we take a proactive approach to supporting each puppy’s gut health and reducing the risk of common issues such as worms and giardia. Our Early Gut Health Protocol We use a layered, preventative method to give every puppy the strongest start possible: • Regular Deworming Puppies are dewormed every two weeks as a standard preventative measure. This helps control common parasites before they ever become a problem. • Natural Digestive Support We add pumpkin powder to their meals to promote healthy digestion, regulate stools, and provide gentle fiber support. • Doc Roy’s GI Synbiotics We use Doc Roy’s GI Synbiotics on all nursing moms and all puppies. This product provides both probiotics and prebiotics, supporting a strong gut microbiome, healthy stools, and improved immunity from the very beginning. We highly recommend that families continue this same product once their puppy goes home to ease the transition and maintain digestive stability. You can find the link below. • Clean, Controlled Environment Our whelping and play areas are kept sterile, sanitized, and frequently refreshed. Additional Steps We Recommend To further strengthen gut health, you may consider: • Gradual Food Transitions Keeping puppies on the same diet during the first few months of going home minimizes digestive upset.
How Owners Can Continue Gut Health at Home Your puppy’s digestive system is still developing during the first year of life. Here’s how you can continue the healthy foundation we’ve already built: • Continue Doc Roy’s GI Synbiotics Daily Using the same synbiotic we start them on helps support digestion, reduces stress-related stomach upset, and keeps their gut bacteria in balance. • Keep Feeding Consistent Sudden diet changes can cause diarrhea. Introduce any new foods slowly over 7–10 days. • Avoid High-Risk Environments Early On Puddles, communal water bowls, dog parks, and daycare facilities can be high-risk spots for giardia and parasites—especially before your puppy’s immune system matures. • Monitor Stool Quality Any chronic softness, mucus, or blood in stools should be discussed with your veterinarian. Maintain Regular Deworming. Follow your veterinarian’s fecal testing and deworming schedule throughout the first year.
While we take extensive measures to prevent parasites, complete prevention can never be guaranteed. Giardia and worms can be found in virtually every environment, and because a puppy’s digestive system is still developing, they remain more susceptible.
Puppy Training
Bringing home a puppy is a wonderful and exciting experience; it’s also the best time to start their training. The first few weeks are filled with special achievements, development milestones and important bonding time. However, you are likely going to be faced by boisterous and obnoxious behavior almost immediately. As a puppy parent you must be responsible and take a few steps to ensure they mature into a well-behaved dog. We ask that all of our new owners sign up for Spirt Dog Training Online “Ultimate Puppy Bundle” course well before you puppy comes home.
AKC S.T.A.R Puppy Graduation Reward
Raising a well-mannered, confident puppy takes time, patience, and dedication. Completing the AKC S.T.A.R. Puppy Program is an important first step, laying the foundation for a lifetime of good behavior and strong bonding. To celebrate this achievement, Team Reeves Ranch offers a $100 Chewy gift card to the first puppy from each litter that graduates! It’s our way of recognizing your hard work and commitment to giving your puppy the best start in life. We’re proud of our puppies and their families—keep up the great work, and enjoy this exciting milestone!
Naming Your Puppy
If you don’t already have a name picked out, here is a great link to help find a unique one.
Vaccinations & Dewormings
Our puppies receive the vaccine Neopar at 6 weeks of age to help prevent parvo. They also receive one, Canine DHPP 5-way vaccination from a licensed veterinarian before they leave our care at 8 weeks of age. Puppies need 3 booster shots early and yearly boosters in order to help protect against deadly diseases. As a responsible breeders we do everything in our power to make sure our puppies leave our care healthy but there is no way to protect a puppy 100%. Rabies, heartworm, flee & tick treatments should be given by your veterinarian as well. Most states require rabies vaccines along with local licensing of your puppy. Check with your veterinarian for your city’s requirements.
Deworming:
Since your puppy was 2 weeks old it has been dewormed every 2 weeks, over a 3 day period with Safeguard dewormer. Your puppy will need to be dewormed once a month until 6 months of age, then once every six months for the rest of its life.
Umbilical Hernias In Puppies
Occasionally, puppies are born with a small umbilical hernia, a minor condition where the belly button doesn’t close completely after birth. While this might sound concerning, in most cases, it’s completely harmless and requires no surgery or intervention. These small hernias often shrink and close on their own as the puppy grows, typically resolving by adulthood. They don’t cause pain or health issues, and most puppies with them lead perfectly normal, active lives. We always monitor our puppies closely and keep new owners informed about any minor conditions like this. If you ever have concerns, we’re happy to guide you through what to expect and when, if ever, a vet visit might be needed.
Snoot Shades
The color of a puppy's nose will vary from puppy to puppy depending on the coat color. It can be black, brown, liver, pink, or the same color as its coat. It can also be solid in color or speckled. Most of the time a puppy's nose will start off one color and change to another as it ages. Puppies are often born with pink noses, which later darken.
Border Collie Coat Colors
Border Collies are known as the smartest dogs in the world. They also have beautiful coats that, despite common misconception, come in a wide variety of colors.
Eye Color
Many new puppy owners ask the same questions: Will my puppy’s eye color stay blue? The truth is that not all puppies born with blue eyes will continue to have blue eyes when they get older. Puppies eyes can change to brown, blue and even green. Some pups experience changes in eye color, but what you see at six months is usually what you’ll see into adulthood.