How to pick a healthy puppy

• The nose should be moist, but not runny.

• Check the eyes for clarity, and make sure there are no tear stains.

• Look in the puppy's ears to check for ear mites, waxy build up, odors.

• Separate the puppy's fur to see the skin. Skin should be white or pink, and there should be no sign of bugs or rashes of any kind.

All puppies are adorable, but they are not all healthy. And you want to make sure the little one you pick is a healthy puppy.

How you do that is that you start at the tip of their nose. You want a nose that is a little bit wet, but no discharge with any color to it, as if it had a cold. Then you want eyes that are bright and clear: no gunk in the eyes, nothing in the corner of the eyes, no tear stains.

Then you want to look inside their little ears. They shouldn’t have any wax, they shouldn’t have any odor, they should smell sweet, and there shouldn’t be any sign of mites or any type of bug infestation.

Same thing with their coat. Part the coat; look right down into the skin. If it looks pale or pink — no little specks of anything, or redness — you’ve got yourself a healthy puppy. Congratulations!