
Puppy Survival Guide 10-12 Months: A Monthly Cheat Sheet For Raising A Puppy & Preserving Your Sanity
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Time to read 15 min
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Time to read 15 min
Woohoo! You survived the toughest months of your puppy’s first year (hopefully with your sanity still intact). Give your pup a congratulatory snoot boop. In this 5th and final edition of our Puppy Survival Guide series for puppies aged 10–12 months old, we finish breaking down the most vital info to set you up for a successful and happy life together—covering health and wellness, training, behavior, nutrition, safety, and physical development.
Table of contents
This essential task checklist rounds up key points from the article below.
Essential Task Checklist For Puppies 10–12 Months Old |
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☐ Schedule a 10–month adolescent vet visit to check for physical or behavioral abnormalities. ☐ Talk to your vet about appropriate time to switch from puppy food to adult dog food. Many dogs switch around 12 months. ☐ Talk to your vet about appropriate age to start forced exercise (e.g. taking your dog for a long run). ☐ Watch for females experiencing first heat cycle if they haven’t started already. ☐ Take steps to avoid accidental pregnancies once males and females reach sexual maturity. ☐ Talk to your vet about spaying or neutering your puppy—many vets wait until 12 months old. ☐ Talk to your vet about preventative gastropexy surgery for large and giant breeds—often done during spay/neuter. ☐ Continue to introduce new things/people slowly to avoid future issues. Reward with treats. Your dog is more easily spooked during this age. ☐ Adolescent puppies are likely to test boundaries. Go back to basics on training if necessary, or seek help from a trainer. ☐ Talk to your vet about starting routine dental cleanings. Continue at-home dental care with toothbrushing and dental chews . ☐ Once your puppy reaches 12 months, talk to your vet about necessary yearly check-ups and vaccine booster recommendations. ☐ Continue routine flea/tick/heartworm prevention. ☐ It’s a pup parent requirement that you exclaim “Oooo big stretch!” every time they stretch out their leggies. |
If you missed the first four chapters in our Puppy Survival Guide series, or just adopted a 10–12 month old puppy, we suggest checking out Weeks 8–12 , Months 3–4 , Months 5–6 , and Months 7–9 to make sure you didn’t miss any important milestones.
We know, that’s an overwhelming amount to cover! That’s why we took notes for you! In case you don’t have time to dive into those articles right now, here’s a quick recap of essential puppy tasks covered in previous articles that should be started or completed by the time your puppy hits 10 months old:
By 10–12 months, many dogs—with the exception of giant breeds and some large breeds—are now fully grown. They’ll still have some filling out and fluffing up to do, but they won’t get much bigger overall. They’re at a stage that’s comparable to when you first open one of those vacuum-sealed mattresses. They don’t get any bigger lengthwise after opening them, but you have to leave them out overnight to expand and fluff up.
Puppy Growth Chart 1
Dog Size | Weight | Rapid Growth Period | Timescale To Fully Grown | Total Lifespan |
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Toy (Extra Small) | Less than 8 lbs | Birth–11 weeks | 6–12 months | Approx 15+ years |
Small | 9–22 lbs | Birth–4 weeks | 8–12 months | 14–16 years |
Medium | 23–55 lbs | Birth–16 weeks | 8–18 months | 10–12 years |
Large | 56–99 lbs | Birth–18 weeks | 11–18 months | 9–12 years |
Giant | Over 100 lbs | Birth–20 weeks | 12–24 months | 7–9 years |
Most small, medium, and some large dogs will reach physical maturity during months 10–12 . A puppy is considered to have reached physical maturity when their bone growth plates fully close 2 . Growth plates are the parts of bones that get longer as puppies grow during their first year, and don’t fully close until their skeleton is done growing. For some large breeds and most giant breeds, this likely won’t happen until closer to 18–24 months old.
Once your puppy’s bones are done growing—and with the approval of your vet—your dog should be able to handle forced exercise (i.e. going for a run with you) without damaging their joints. Strenuous exercise before puppies’ skeletons are finished growing can cause future hip and joint issues. When they’re close to 1 year old, it’s a good idea to talk to your vet about the ideal age to start more rigorous exercise.
Most small, medium, and some large sized dogs likely went through puberty between months 5–9; larger dogs may reach puberty during this 10–12 month period. Even still, some giant breeds may not reach puberty until a few months later. Puberty is also when females enter their first heat cycle (a.k.a. doggie period).
Once your puppy reaches puberty, they become sexually mature and capable of reproducing. However, allowing puppies (who are still growing themselves) to become pregnant this early is dangerous and high risk to both your puppy’s health and the pups they would be carrying. This is one of many reasons it’s extremely important to take steps to avoid accidental pregnancies, and talk to your vet about spay and neuter options at this time.
Dog joy delivered every month!
All puppies at this age will still be going through their second fear impact period, during which they’re easily spooked and skittish. At the same time, depending on your puppy’s breed, they will either be going through puppy adolescence or entering their young adult stage.
From 6–12 months old your puppy will go through what is called a “fear impact period.” In fact, this is their second fear impact period (the first happens around month 3). During this time—which lasts for months—your puppy will be easily spooked by new things 2 . Although some of their fears can be pretty amusing at the time (picture a puppy barking at a wacky waving inflatable arm flailing tube man), it can have a lasting impact on them if you don’t properly address their fears.
Depending on your dog’s breed and size, they may be going through puppy adolescence or their young adult stage.
Your puppy should be fully vaccinated, dewormed, and on routine flea/tick and heartwork prevention. If you haven’t done so already, now is the perfect time to talk to your vet about:
Although some veterinarians will spay or neuter a puppy as early as 6 months old, studies in recent years have shown that there are advantages to waiting until around 1 year to spay or neuter. Follow your vet’s guidance about the proper time to spay or neuter.
Along with asking your vet about starting routine professional dental cleanings, it’s incredibly important to stick to an at-home dental cleaning routine, as well. Dental health is often one of the most overlooked, yet most important aspects of dogs’ health. If teeth are not taken care of, dental disease in advanced stages can cause tooth loss, bone, and tissue loss to the point of causing a broken jaw, infections, sinus and eye issues, and even heart, kidney, or liver disease.
Here’s what your dog’s eat, sleep, poop, and play schedule will look like from age 10–12 months:
10+ Months Old | |
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Eat | 2x daily |
Sleep | 11–16 hours per day |
Potty | 3–4 potty breaks per day (Can “hold it” up to 8 hours) |
Exercise | 45 minutes of exercise. Ask your vet about starting rigorous exercise. |
Always do you own research when picking the perfect food for your pup, but if you need a place to start, try BARK Food for puppies and adult dogs!
At month 10, your puppy should now be eating twice per day. They should be kept at an ideal weight where their waistline is narrow with an “hourglass” figure. Make sure to discuss their ideal weight with your veterinarian. This will help you keep them on target.
As your puppy nears the 12 month mark, you’ll also want to discuss with your vet when the appropriate time is to switch from puppy food to adult dog food. In general, these are the timelines for when you should ask your vet about switching:
Small breeds: 7–9 months
Medium breeds: 9–10 months
Large breeds: 12–13 months
Giant breeds : 13–14 months
By now, your dog should already be getting about 30–45 minutes of leisurely exercise per day. This would include things like light walks and playing in the yard. Around 10–12 months—depending on the size of your dog—is when you can begin to add in forced exercise, like taking them for a run with you.
However, forced exercise should not be started until your veterinarian has confirmed that your dog’s growth plates have fully closed and they are done growing. Waiting until your dog hits this stage will help prevent too much pressure on bones that may cause hip and joint issues in the future 2 . Some large and giant breeds may need to wait a few more months to begin forced exercise.
At 10 months, your puppy should have a good grasp on all of their basic commands. You should be working with them to increase the difficulty of their commands, or adding new tricks. Make sure to always keep up with command practice throughout your dog’s life. Once you stop practicing, they’re more likely to keep pushing boundaries or ignoring commands.
At 10 months old, your puppy’s bladder should now be able to “hold it” for 8 hours. This means you can begin to test the boundaries of leaving your puppy out of their crate for short periods of time while you’re gone. It’s best to start testing free-roaming by leaving for short periods of time before leaving them out of their crate for an entire work day.
Life Pro Tip: Buy a puppy nanny cam to keep an eye on your dog while you’re gone.
During puppy adolescence and the young adult stage, your puppy may start showing signs of bad habits that weren’t addressed well early on. This may look like food guarding, toy guarding, being possessive over certain family members, nipping, showing aggression, or separation anxiety.
Any undesirable habits should be addressed ASAP. The longer you let your puppy get away with these behaviors, the harder it will be to correct them. Don’t be afraid to seek help from a professional trainer!
Additional Products/Memberships For Your 10–12 Month Old Puppy
ASPCA Animal Poison Control
If your puppy eats something they shouldn’t, call the animal control poison center at (888) 426-4435
Emergency Vets
If your puppy has an emergency when their regular vet is closed, you may need to find a 24/7 emergency vet near you. Emergency Vets USA enables you to search for an emergency vet by state or call (855)-778-6815 .
Lost Pet
National hotline for reporting lost pets 1 (800) 486-2631
Dog CPR How-To
Dog CPR Quick Guide
Dog CPR Training Video
Choking Dog/Dog Heimlich Maneuver
Dog Heimlich Maneuver Training Video
Sources
1 Lewis, Georgia. “Musculoskeletal Development of the Puppy Birth to Twelve Months.” Research Gate, Hartpury University: Animal Therapy Magazine: Issue 15, 2019, https://www.researchgate.net/profile/Georgia-Lewis/publication/333118590_Musculoskeletal_Development_of_the_Puppy_Birth_to_Twelve_Months/links/5cdc8200299bf14d959c443d/Musculoskeletal-Development-of-the-Puppy-Birth-to-Twelve-Months.pdf.
2 Hennet, Margo. “Puppy Survival Guide.” 2 Mar. 2022