🐶 National PUPPY Day 2025 – Mar 23

National PUPPY Day ORIGIN & HISTORY

National PUPPY Day is celebrated on the 23rd Day in March. Dogs are the most trusting, lovable, joyous animal. Seriously, who can resist sweet puppy dog eyes? They just make your heart melt as they work their way into it. Author, pet lover, and dog activist Colleen Paige created this as a national day for puppies in 2006. Since then the day has gotten global recognition. They are also receptive to human attention so it’s great for embracing that, especially with a new young puppy in your home. Puppies need lots of love, nurturing, and TLC so they can grow up healthy and have good lives.

Puppies need a safe, fostering, caring environment. This is the complete opposite of what living conditions are in puppy mills. This is an animal cruelty practice used only to make cash. They live in a very tight confined space with almost zero amount of room to move at all. They receive no attention and are fed very poor nutrition. If you aren’t in a place where you’re ready to become a full-time parent to these puppies, fostering a puppy is great as well. Young pups learn to have good dog behavior early on. This helps prepare them for being suitable and desirable for adoption.

Either way, fostering or adopting a canine is a great way to open your heart. Give a pooch some love and form a new bond that you’ll treasure for years to come. If you already have a puppy or dog, take this day to shower them with attention. Work on the closeness with your dog, after all, they’re members of your family. Bonding is a good way to enjoy downtime in your home away from outside stress in your private sanctuary or take them to a dog-friendly park.

HOW to Celebrate & Observe National PUPPY Day?

Not sure how to LOVE the day? We’ve got a few interesting ideas to consider that may help get you started.

Here are some activities that you can do on National PUPPY Day!

💙 Ready for your CLOSEUP Mr DeMille?

Hire a professional photographer or someone you know that’s handy with a camera to catch precious moments with your puppy.

💙 New Puppy – New TRICKS

Some say you can’t teach a dog a new trick. While your dog or puppy has a hard time learning a skill, you can practice and then practice some more. It’s time well spent and their ability to do something can only improve so don’t give up. Be patient!

💙 Doggy TREATS

Whip up a batch of homemade dog treats. Everyone loves homemade things.

💙 DONATE something

Donate to the ASPCA. Dog pounds gladly accept money, food, new toys, and supplies. You may be able to offer up your services by volunteering. If you don’t have a dog or can’t have one where you live, offer up a little time volunteering at a pet shelter. Dogs and shelter workers are appreciative of having the extra attention and help which is often needed at a sanctuary.

💙 RAISE Social Awareness

Use social media posts with the hashtags #NationalPuppyDay, #PuppyDay, #Puppies, #AnimalHolidays, #MarchHolidays, #Holiday, #FindADayToLOVE, #iHEARTdays to support the importance of celebrating, promoting, and sharing with the world why you ❤️ National PUPPY Day.

LEARN more about the importance of PUPPIES

BEHOLD THE CUTENESS OF PUPPIES

SEVEN Fun Facts you never knew about National PUPPY Day

1. Etymologists believe the word puppy is derived from the French meaning “doll” or “toy”. Shakespeare was the first to include the phrase “puppy dog” in his play “King John”. Prior to this English people referred to baby dogs as “whelps” 😕.
2. 101 Dalmatian spots? Dalmatians are actually born spot-free and develop their spots over time.
3. Part of necessity and evolution are factors why puppies are born both blind and deaf. Some theories suggest dogs need to hunt for survival to get food. The ability for dogs to hunt while being pregnant is difficult. Dogs have shorter gestation periods that last only two months This may help them cope with needing to adapt to getting food through hunting fast to ensure their survival. Therefore puppies do some of their development after premature births outside of the womb.
4. Sleep is critical for puppies! They need lots of sleep and they shouldn’t be disturbed as much as 20 hours a day.
5. Did you know smaller dogs are known for having smaller litters and larger dogs are known for having bigger litters? The largest litter of dogs on record belongs to a Neapolitan Massive in Cambridgeshire UK in 2004. This dog had 24 puppies in its litter through cesarean. WOW
6. The smallest puppy on record was a Chihuahua named Milly by the Guinness Book of World Records and necessitated being fed with an eyedropper for the first six months. Fully grown she stands less than 4 inches tall and can sit in a little teacup.
7. There is a 40 ft tall puppy statue that lives outside the Guggenheim Museum in Bilboa, Spain carpeted head to toe with 37,000 flowering plants. He’s a West Highland White Terrier in case you’re wondering.

Future DATES for National PUPPY Day

Puppy FAQ

What SHOTS does my puppy need?

• Your puppy needs DHLPP shots at 7 and 8 weeks and then repeated 3 weeks later. These are for Distemper, Hepatitis, Leptospirosis, Parainfluenza, and Parvovirus. At sixteen weeks your dog will get a vaccine for coronavirus. To maintain a dog’s immunity, shots need to be kept up with yearly.

What’s the best food to FEED my puppy?

• Look for foods that meet their requirements. Puppies need lots of protein. Good sources of protein are found in chicken and lamb. They also need fat, vitamins, and minerals. Be sure your dog food label says a complete balanced diet.

How can I TRAIN my puppy?

• To teach well-behaved dog behavior and obey commands they need to first have it instilled into them early on. This is a good bonding time for you both. They need repetition in short bursts to work on grasping skills and being obedient. Teach by telling your puppy what you want them to do, help them grasp what you’re trying to teach them, reward them with treats and praise when they finally listen to your instructions. Good job girl / boy. They respond to positive reinforcement like a Pavlov intellectual curiosity.

Why we L💜VE National PUPPY Day

We fall in love with puppies’ adorable cuteness. But puppy mills are horrible places for them to grow up and live; they aren’t fair at all to the animals. Like all living things we need to treat puppies with respect and see that they don’t receive animal cruelty which unfortunately puppy mills definitely are. In fact, I didn’t even know they existed until researching National PUPPY Day.

People love dogs and if you are a dog owner take time to give your pooch affection. If you don’t have a pet then fostering, adoption, donations, and volunteering are ways you can get involved in caring for dogs. Take action to love a puppy which is the cute part of a dog’s early life. After all, they’re titled as the esteemed man’s best friend.

1. So Darn CUTE

   Like all little fur babies, they can be a handful. This is what keeps us on our toes, gives us a workout, and they’re wonderfully non-guilting listeners. Think of a puppy as your judgment-free zone. And the eyes … those puppy dog eyes. 👀

2. HEALTH Conscious

   Puppies allow us to live a relatively stress-free life when they’re around. Anxiety, stress, depression all seem to take a back seat and melt away when they’re licking our faces And even if it’s not popular, growing up with a puppy in the household exposes you to more allergens and pet dander which eventually strengthens & boosts your immune system.

Ta-da da-da da-DAH
PUPPY POWER!