Bringing Home A Puppy
Congratulations on your newest addition!
You’ve decided to add a new member to your family - how exciting! The advice I have on this blog is not only geared towards new puppies, but also adult rehomes, rescues, fosters, and other guest dogs that you might be housing short term.
When I got my first dog (and second… and third…), I did what you probably did - use Google for advice. The problem with doing this is that there are so many opinions out there on what you need or how you must train your puppy to set them up for success. I can confidently tell you that everything I recommend below is tried and true with not only my dogs but also client dogs. Nothing below is endorsed - I simply would like to help you get a great head start on giving you and your new dog the happiest, most fulfilling life together.
MUST HAVE RESOURCES FOR YOUR NEW PUPPY
Supplies You Need
These are my must-have items (mostly specific to puppies) for new dogs to my home. For more information on how to use or implement any of these recommendations, reach out!Crate - one for the home, one for the car. I always crate my dogs out of my car for their own safety (think - car accident). For home crates, an airline kennel or wire kennel is appropriate. For car crates, I recommend a Ruffland Kennel which you can find at Cabela’s, LL Bean, or other independent distributors (in Chicago - Mojo Dog Co).
Exercise Pen - similar to a child’s play pen. For my young puppies, I use this as an in-between for the crate and complete freedom. This gives my dog more room to stretch out. I put toys, chews, and puzzle feeders in there to teach my dogs to self-soothe while contained.
Leash, Collar, Harness - I walk my puppies on a harness for a good while until they are at an age with mental maturity to learn how to walk on a loose leash on a collar.
Long leash and/or Flexi: I use this to potty my puppies. It gives the semblance of freedom without complete freedom so that I can make sure they aren’t eating things they shouldn’t, or I can practice my recall and reinforce them coming to me.
Puzzle Feeders and Edible Chews - My favorite ones are the following:
West Paw Toppl - can wet your puppies food and freeze it in this.
Woof Pupsicle - you can get the mold to make home made inserts, or buy the premade ones.
Beef Cheeks, Collagen Sticks, Pig Ears, Cow Ears, etc from Bully Bunches - a great teething chew for puppies.
Kong Wobbler - perfect for putting kibble in and letting the puppy wobble it around to dispense treats.
General Chew Toys and Soft toys: Make sure your puppy has access to different toys, especially during teething when their gums are sore. You can avoid problems later on if you give your puppy appropriate outlets of chewing!
Establish Your Village
Veterinarian - Establish a trusted veterinarian! Make sure you see your dog’s new veterinarian within 72 hours of picking up your dog to check for any health issues and get baseline levels of bloodwork.
Trainer - A trainer will be your best resource in setting your dog up for success. Don’t wait for problems to begin - start working with a trainer as soon as you bring your dog home to get started on positive habits.
Groomer - Get on your local groomer’s schedule as soon as it’s age appropriate to start to introduce your dog to positive experiences. Many groomers offer puppy baths, nail trims, and similar and would LOVE to help your new dog get acclimated to grooming procedures. They will also show you things you can do at home to keep up with the positive experiences, so make sure to ask!
Training Focuses
Here are some of my focuses for training a new puppy. If you have more questions specific to your scenario, reach out!Potty Training - every time your new puppy makes any sort of transition, potty them! Waking up from a nap, eating, drinking, playing… It might seem like a lot but this will help you avoid any unnecessary accidents. Make sure to bring a treat outside and reward for going potty outside!
Crate Training - acclimate your puppy to a crate. I promise you that it is not cruel. Your puppy will need to be crated in a variety of scenarios (home, boarding, grooming, car, in case of emergency). Teaching them that the crate is a safe place right away will help them learn to love their new home. Make sure you are giving your puppy multiple naps per day in the crate, and don’t only crate when you leave!
Markers - so many people have great intentions and want their puppies to walk loosely on a leash and recall from across the yard right when they are brought home. Great in theory, not so practical for a puppy! Establishing a marker system early on will help eliminate confusion and develop a working relationship built on trust and clarity… teach your puppy how to access awards. Think of clicker training, but with verbal words (yes = you get the treat!). You “mark” when they do something correctly and then reward! I can teach you a tried and true marker system that just makes sense for the dogs, so please reach out with questions.
Predictability > Schedule
Ever hear the phrase “dogs thrive on routine and schedule”? I’m here to debunk this. Dogs thrive on predictability. What I mean by this is that having clear communication and clear patterns to your life can help a dog grow in confidence. You do not need to follow the same exact schedule every single day for your dog (i.e., wake up at 6 am, breakfast at 6:30am, an hour long walk at 6:45am, etc.). By doing the same schedule day in and day out, you may be unintentionally creating an unadaptable dog. If your dog always expects the same thing every single day, what happens if you become sick and can’t do the 1 hour long walk? Or you have to board your dog away from home? Or you have a maintenance person come over in the middle of the day and have to crate your dog when they normally free roam?
All of these scenarios can be stressful to a dog that is not able to, well… go with the flow. So what can we do to set our new dogs up for success? We keep things fresh and change things up off the bat… such as, some days we don’t walk - we just play in the yard! Or other days, we go on hikes. Sometimes we do pet friendly store outings. We crate them sporadically throughout the day - sometimes for a little while, other times for several hours. Introducing this kind of lifestyle early on can help dogs become more well adjusted and adaptable. For more information on how we can create more predictability in our dogs lives while keeping them adaptable, reach out!Pet Insurance
I cannot speak highly enough on pet insurance. I know you might be thinking - it’s a scam, we will never use it, why not just use a savings account, or any other reasons. Hear me out! I have all of my dogs on pet insurance - no, it’s not incredibly affordable, however it has paid itself over tenfold already. I had a dog with a TPLO surgery done on his knee - this is an expensive, several thousand dollar procedure. The likelihood that his other knee will go is incredibly high… which means another surgery is possible. We were able to do the surgery and get incredible rehab for 6 months post-op without a question. Without throwing out exact numbers, we have easily been paid out tens of thousands of dollars from our insurance company due to our dogs claims. Dog insurance does not cover pre-existing conditions, so getting insurance right away is paramount to helping your dog out in case they need expensive procedures covered - especially later on in old age! My recommendations for pet insurance are Healthy Paws (this is the insurance I use), PetsBest (highly recommended from peers in the dog world), and if your budget allows for it, Trupanion. Of course, do your research and find what works best for your dog since some breeds or ages may adjust the price. I cannot speak highly enough on getting my dogs on pet insurance. There is never a time where I have to consider if my dogs can receive the top quality care they deserve because I know I can afford the medical necessities with a 90% coverage.
I know, I know… that was a lot of information!
And there is a lot to digest in this blog post. But all of this information is important for you to understand when you bring your new dog home. I promise that this information will help you set a great foundation with your puppy in terms of creating a happy, confident dog. Need help or assistance? Reach out at vibrantk9training@gmail.com for a virtual or in-person lesson.
