Vaccinations and the First Vet Visit: Week 4 with Your Puppy
At around twelve weeks the second shot of the primary course is due — and with it the appointment that decides something much bigger: whether your dog experiences the vet as an enemy or a non-event for the next fourteen years.
Your puppy is now about 12 weeks old
The essentials at a glance
Under the German StIKo Vet guidelines, the primary course runs at eight, twelve and sixteen weeks plus a final shot at fifteen months. In your week 4 the twelve-week vaccination is usually due — bring the pet passport and a pouch of treats.
- Core vaccines for every dog in Germany: distemper, parvovirosis, infectious hepatitis and leptospirosis. Everything else is a case-by-case decision with your vet.
- The appointment is training time: every relaxed minute on the exam table pays into fourteen years of vet visits.
- Deworming from now on per ESCCAP: monthly treatment or monthly faecal checks until six months of age.
- Puppies compensate poorly: ongoing diarrhoea, repeated vomiting or lethargy are a vet case sooner in a puppy than in an adult dog.
- Budget roughly €150–250 for the first vaccination year — depending on practice, region and the German fee schedule (GOT).
This article summarises current professional guidance for orientation and does not replace veterinary advice in the individual case. If your dog is unwell, your vet is the right address.
What happens at the first vet visit?
Nothing dramatic — which is precisely the point. On the agenda: a general examination (heart and lungs, palpation, teeth, ears, weight), a look at the vaccination record, and the due shot. Bring the EU pet passport, the breeder's deworming log, and a stool sample if the practice asks for one.
Your most important job at this appointment isn't medical: make the visit a good experience. Arrive a few minutes early, let the puppy sniff the waiting room, feed treats on the scales and the table, stay relaxed yourself. Many practices actively support this — ask whether you may drop by between appointments just to say hello.
If you haven't yet, this is also the moment to register with the practice and save the emergency numbers: your practice's and that of the nearest 24-hour animal clinic. You don't want to google either for the first time when it's serious.
Which vaccinations does your puppy need now?
Under the guidelines of Germany's standing veterinary vaccination commission (StIKo Vet), the core vaccines every dog should have are: distemper, parvovirosis, infectious canine hepatitis and leptospirosis. The primary course starts from week eight — your puppy had that at the breeder's — and is completed at around twelve and sixteen weeks plus one more shot at fifteen months.
Why so many appointments? Because of the immunological gap: maternal antibodies protect the puppy at first but can blunt the effect of early vaccinations — and when they've waned enough for a shot to take full effect varies between individuals. The repetitions close exactly that gap.
Non-core vaccines — kennel cough, rabies without travel plans, Lyme — are decided together based on circumstances. For travel within the EU, rabies vaccination is mandatory; it's possible from twelve weeks and becomes travel-valid 21 days after the shot. The vaccination scheduler on this site works out the dates for you.
Primary course per StIKo Vet (orientation)
| Age | Vaccination |
|---|---|
| 8 weeks (at the breeder's) | Distemper, parvo, hepatitis, leptospirosis |
| 12 weeks | Repeat; rabies possible in addition (e.g. for travel) |
| 16 weeks | Repeat distemper, parvo, hepatitis |
| 15 months | Completion of the primary course |
What does vaccinating cost?
A combination shot including the required general examination typically costs between €50 and €80 per appointment in Germany — the range comes from the veterinary fee schedule (GOT), which lets practices charge one to three times the base rate, and from regional differences.
For the whole first vaccination year — the remaining primary-course appointments plus rabies if needed — €150 to €250 is realistic. Add deworming or faecal checks and, depending on region, tick and flea prevention.
The honest savings tip: not on the vaccines. Treating parvovirosis in an intensive-care unit costs a multiple of the entire primary course — never mind the risk to the puppy.
How often does a puppy need deworming?
At the breeder's, your puppy was already dewormed every two weeks from its second week of life — the dates are in the handover documents. From now on, ESCCAP recommends for puppies: monthly deworming until six months of age, or alternatively a monthly faecal examination, treating only on a positive result.
Both are professionally sound — treatment is more convenient, faecal checks avoid unnecessary medication. Discuss with your practice what fits you; for dogs that scavenge, eat faeces or mix with many other dogs, the recommendation is stricter.
After month six the schedule becomes risk-based: for the average dog, four treatments or faecal checks per year are the accepted minimum. Worth knowing: a wormer works on the day it's given — it doesn't prevent. The rhythm matters more than the product.
How do you tell your puppy is unwell?
By deviations from the normal state you now know well: a puppy that won't eat, seems listless, vomits repeatedly or has diarrhoea for more than a day belongs at the practice — more readily and earlier than you would judge it for an adult dog. Puppies have few reserves; fluid loss in particular becomes dangerous fast.
No panic, though, over single events with undisturbed general condition: one vomit after gulping food, one soft stool after excitement — that's everyday life. Observe, note it down, mention it at the next visit.
More on the common complaints — diarrhoea, giardia, coat care and nails — comes bundled in week 10. For now the rule of thumb: when in doubt, call. That's what you saved the numbers for.
Frequently asked questions
May my puppy meet other dogs before the second shot?
Yes — deliberately and with judgement. The socialisation window doesn't wait for the vaccination schedule; complete isolation until week sixteen does more harm than it prevents. Safe: contact with demonstrably vaccinated, friendly dogs, and a puppy class that checks vaccination records. Avoid places with heavy anonymous dog traffic and droppings — dog parks, service stations.
Is the rabies vaccination mandatory?
There is no general vaccination duty in Germany, and the country is considered rabies-free. It becomes mandatory at the border: for EU travel your dog needs a valid rabies vaccination in the pet passport, possible from twelve weeks, valid from 21 days after the shot. If a holiday is coming, plan ahead.
What if we missed a vaccination appointment?
No reason to panic, but reason to call: depending on the gap, the shot is simply caught up or the schedule slightly adjusted, per the StIKo guideline. What matters is completing the primary course, not hitting every date to the day.
How do I best give the wormer?
Most products come as a tablet or paste — hidden in a bit of liver sausage or wet food, nearly all puppies take them voluntarily. If not, the practice will show you direct administration. Note the date; the monthly rhythm slips faster than you'd think.
My puppy was listless after the vaccination. Is that normal?
A tired day, slight soreness at the injection site or a smaller appetite are common, harmless reactions. Listlessness beyond 48 hours, facial swelling, vomiting or diarrhoea right after the shot, however, should be reported to the practice immediately.
Sources
- StIKo Vet — small-animal vaccination guideline (Friedrich-Loeffler-Institut)
- ESCCAP Germany — how often to deworm dogs
- ESCCAP Germany — deworming puppies correctly
- LMU Munich, Small Animal Clinic — canine vaccination management
Last reviewed on July 27, 2026 by Sufyan Osamah · what that means: Editorial standards
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