Preparing your home and garden for the arrival of your new puppy

Before the arrival of your new puppy it is essential that you make preparations within the home and garden. Puppy proofing your home is where you think of all the hazards that the puppy is likely to come across and remove them. The way to go about it is to understand that a puppy explores its world with its mouth and nose, they love to chew and get up to mischief and they will try to investigate their world and beyond.

Within the home, think about where you will allow the puppy and where you will not. Once decided, make sure all family members know what the boundaries are. In rooms where the puppy is allowed, remove potential chewing hazards such as trialing wires, children’s toys or valuable furniture. Also, use dog gates to restrict access to areas of the house where the puppy is not allowed.

Within the garden, make sure it is secure and fully fenced and any small potential escape holes are closed up. Remove poisonous plants that your puppy may come into contact with and if you have a large garden, use pens to restrict access to certain areas such as compost heaps or your beloved flower bed!

Finally, before you bring your puppy home, prepare a space within the home that will belong to your dog. Within this space, make sure the puppy has a warm bed, food bowls and whilst very young, somewhere where unavoidable toilet accidents can happen.

Equipment you will need.

You will need the following equipment ready before you bring your puppy home:

Food and water bowl

Puppy Food – your breeder will probably provide you with a small amount to begin with and some advice on when to feed. If you are unsure, ring in advance and ask what food to buy ready for the arrival of your new puppy.

Warm bedding – you may also wish during the first few nights or if it is very cold to provide your puppy with a hot water bottle to provide heat and mimic the warmth it would receive from sleeping with its littermates and mother. Don’t make the bottle too hot, just enough to mimic the puppies own body temperature and make sure you also use a hot water bottle cover.

Dog gates – if you want to restrict your puppy to certain areas of the house.

Collar, tag and lead – it is a legal requirement in this country that all dogs wear a collar and tag with its owners details on. You may wish to buy this before your puppy arrives or shortly afterwards if you are unsure of size. It will take time for your puppy to get used to wearing a collar so make sure you introduce it slowly and that he wears it for short periods only to begin with. Remove it at night or when your puppy is not under constant supervision to avoid any accidents caused by your dog trying to remove it. Aim to have your dog used to wearing the collar and tag by the time your dog takes its first walk.

If you crate train your dog, always ensure your dog is not wearing its collar whilst inside the crate to avoid strangulation caused by the tag accidentally becoming entangled in the bars.

Non Toxic Toys – these are great to provide your puppy with something it can chew.

Picking up your puppy from the breeder or kennels

Your aim on the day should be to provide a quiet, calm and positive experience for your new puppy. Good planning will help to make the day go smoothly and slowly ease your new puppy into its new home.

Before leaving home, if it is a cold day, make sure you leave the heating on so the house is warm. Take a blanket and pet carrier with you and make sure there is someone to go with you to help look after the puppy whilst you are driving.

Once at the breeders or kennel, try to get as much information as possible about how to feed and look after your new dog during its early days. Remember your puppy up until this day has only ever known its mother, littermates and breeder, so you are complete strangers to the dog. You must take this into account and be as sympathetic to its needs as possible.

Puppy’s car journey home

Place the blanket in the pet carrier along with your new puppy and use this to safely transport your puppy home. Make sure there is someone with you to sit with the puppy during the car journey to help comfort him and deal with any signs of stress.

Keep your driving steady so as not to alarm the pup. Avoid any sharp cornering, sudden breaking or aggressive driving and beeping of the horn as this will just scare your new puppy.

Arriving home: Introducing your puppy to its new home and family.

Once home, place the pet carrier in the puppy’s space or pen. Make sure there is fresh water and a supply of food. Open the carrier and let the puppy emerge when good and ready. Once he emerges let him explore his new space and bed. Keep other family dogs away from the puppy and pen during the first few days. You can introduce the dogs later!

Don’t be alarmed if the puppy has any immediate toilet accidents; this will be due to nerves and the stress of the car journey. Clean any accidents up straight away. Once the puppy becomes more confident you may wish to try taking him out to the garden to see if he will go to the toilet. If he won’t perform, make sure there is plenty of paper for him to use.

Try to make the first few days within the home as quiet as possible and to spend as much time with him as you can in between sleeping.

Puppy's first night.

Decide where your puppy is going to spend his first night. If this is in your bedroom it should be done with the overall aim of eventually getting him to sleep in his own bed and space. Place his bed next to yours and provide an area where he can go to the toilet unless you are prepared to get up and take him out to the garden. You will need to do this several times during the night. Alternatively, you may wish to make a bed up for you next to the puppy’s bed and space and sleep there for the first couple of nights.

Introducing your new puppy to other dogs in family.

Allow a couple of days to pass before introducing your new puppy to other family dogs. If your other dogs are unvaccinated then keep them well away until your puppy has been fully vaccinated.

Allow both dogs to gain the scent of each other first by allowing them to investigate an item belonging to the other dog. Then allow the dogs to meet. You may wish to keep the older dog on a lead to begin with in case your puppy gets stressed or if your other dog is a bit boisterous. If it gets too stressful then separate them and try again later. Dogs will very quickly establish the hierarchy between themselves and you should let them do this and try not to interfere unless the puppy is at risk of injury.

Registration with a Vet.

As soon as you bring your puppy home you will need to get them registered with a vet. You will also need to take your puppy for a health check and vaccinations. During this time your vet will examine the puppies overall health and administer the puppies first vaccination unless the breeder or kennel has already done so. Make sure you gain a vaccination certificate for your puppy and keep it safe. You will need this every time your dog has its yearly booster vaccination or if you ever wish to kennel your dog or want to gain a pet passport.

Written by Nicola @ Dog Store