New Puppy? How to Prepare Your Family and Home
Essential Puppy items:
A crate or kennel. Your puppy needs a quiet place of her own to rest in. Dogs, like their cousins the wolf like to go to dark, quiet places to rest. Kennels are helpful to keep your puppy safe from harm, to use in travel, and for her to sleep in. A kennel will not only bring you peace of mind and some rest in between play times, but it will provide a place for your puppy to call hers.
An old quilt or blanket for inside the kennel. You may be tempted to purchase a cute puppy bed. I will caution you against it because your puppy is going to have many accidents and you will have to wash the quilt numerous times during the first few months of its life. Unless your puppy bed is washable, stick with the old quilt or blanket you have stashed away at home. Be aware of tags, stray yarns, and any decorative hanging material on the blanket or quilt you choose. Puppies will eat anything and everything.
Water and food bowls-stainless steel are preferable as puppies will chew anything they can get their mouth on. Plastic bowls are easily chewed up and shards of plastic could be easily swallowed and present a danger.
Puppy food. Check with your vet about preferred food. Talk to your breeder or previous owner about the type of food they are using. Ask if they can give you a few days worth of food to take home with the pup if you will be using a different brand. Over the next few days, gradually introduce a few pieces of the brand of kibble you will be using, mixed in with the type the puppy is used to.
Collar. Purchase an inexpensive flat nylon collar, according to the size of the puppy. If you are unsure, check with the pet store clerk, or ask the breeder to measure your pup’s neck. Your puppy will grow out of this collar (she will probably go through at least two collars before settling on her permanent collar), so, do not spend a lot of money on this purchase.
Leash. This is one of the most important items to purchase. Within the first few days of bringing your pup home, you will want to introduce her to the leash. Purchase an inexpensive nylon leash that is about 6 feet long to start with. You will also be going through additional leashes during your puppies first few months, so again, don’t break the bank with this purchase.
Hair brush. Puppies need to be groomed daily. A wire bristle brush should do the trick, but check with your vet about the specific needs of your pup’s breed. You really do not have to bother with purchasing a puppy size one and then a larger one later. Your pup will grow into her brush.
Toothbrush. This is another inexpensive and crucial item. For about 5 bucks, you can get toothpaste and toothbrush for your pup. The earlier you start to brush your pup’s teeth, the easier it will be later on when she is full grown, and the better her oral hygiene will be, preventing large vet bills and health problems later on. Dog toothpaste comes in flavors dogs like, such as chicken. Do not use human tooth paste.
Nail clippers. Unless you are a pro at cutting a dog’s nails, I suggest buying a puppy size nail clipper to start with. Puppies’ nails should be cut once a week. The sooner you begin trimming your pup’s nails, the easier it will be once they are older.
Ear cleaning solution. Pups should have their ears cleaned once a week. Get them used to this right away.
Puppy toy(s) or bone. Nylabones are excellent to have on hand and are safe for your pup to chew on. Toys are very helpful to use when playing with your pup and to keep her active and in good shape. They are also useful to help her develop her senses, coordination and curiosity. I recommend a Nylabone, a Kong toy of your choice, a tennis ball, and a toy that hangs and can be moved to capture your attention such as a bone attached by a shoelace.
Helpful (but not essential) puppy items:
Feeding mat (not essential, but helpful to have a placemat or towel underneath the feeding bowl and water dish as your puppy is bound to be quite messy when eating and drinking.
Nail file
Retractable leash (if you are planning on using one to train).
Baby gates.
These will keep a puppy contained to a specific room or area of the house.
Cottage cheese and yogurt (plain).
Add a teaspoon of cottage cheese along with some water to your pup’s meals the first two weeks to help moisten the food. The cottage cheese is good for extra protein as well for your growing pup. Give your pup a teaspoon of plain yogurt twice a week to help restore their intestinal flora. Dogs love this stuff!
Bitter apple-found at a local pet supply store.
This can safely be sprayed on areas you do not want your pup to bite as the taste is bitter to (most) dogs.
Dog bed.
It is helpful to have two areas of the house your dog can call your own. Be sure they are in secure places. Dog beds or even a soft towel or blanket can be used for a puppy to sleep on outside of the kennel during the day.
Basket to keep near where your puppy sleeps (on top of the kennel works well).
Keep your pups toys, grooming items, leash, etc. handy). Keep the basket out of your puppy’s reach however as they will try to chew it.
“The Art of Raising A Puppy” by the Monks of New Skete.
I highly recommend this book for any person raising a puppy, whether you have raised one in the past or not.
Must haves to buy and do:
Have a stack of old towels (dish towels will do) handy. If you don’t have any or don’t have any you don’t want to part with, buy a bunch of them at a dollar store.
Rug and floor cleaner.
Be sure you have laundry detergent and bleach on hand. Towels and puppy bedding need to be cleaned often.
Deodorizer. There are a number of dog deodorizers on the market. Febreeze or Renuzit would work just fine and are cheaper. In addition, you can use them throughout the entire house and on your couch or car fabric while dog deodorizers are specific to house training needs.
Paper towels. Very helpful for cleaning up spilled messes, or puppy accidents.
Walk through your home and check to see that there are no loose wires, the electric outlets are covered if not in use, shoes are put away, window blind cords are not dangling, any potentially dangerous object is removed from the path your puppy will be traveling on and any object you would not like broken is stashed to a higher location or put away until further down the road. Puppies chew everything and are curious about anything in their path.
Decide on a name. If possible, tell your breeder what name you chose, so they can start using this name. Choose a name that is understandable to a dog. Dogs are not people and will have a hard time understanding words that are longer than 2 syllables. Choose a name that ends with a long vowel or a soft a (e.g. Ivy or Anna).
Decide who is going to be responsible for the puppy. Who will feed it? Walk it? Play with it? Especially if you have a number of family members, take some time to figure this out before the puppy comes. The first few weeks your puppy is home is very crucial to its development and socialization with people. You want to be sure that everyone in the home is on the same page about how the pup will be cared for, disciplined and played with. Sending conflicting messages can be damaging to having a well trained pup.
Educate your children on how to handle a pup (no picking them up in the middle) and how to play with the puppy. Children can be over zealous in playing with a new animal and may unintentionally harm your puppy.
Lastly, one of the most important things to do and probably one of the best things you can do for your pup is to have one person block out the week your new family member will be brought home (and preferably the first two weeks). Take vacation time from work. It will be well worth it in the end. Puppies should never be left alone for large blocks of time, especially their first week to a new home. They need to go outside constantly, they need the security and comfort that their needs will be taken care of and this is a crucial time in socialization of your pup as well as a very important bonding time.
