Getting a puppy is exciting. It is an important day. After all you will be getting a puppy that will become a companion and, in some ways, a friend to you for many years to come.
The other day I saw a Shorkie puppies for sale sign while out shopping with my friend and watched her turn to mush before my eyes. She said it bought back memories of the day she took her beloved pup home.
Without a doubt, the day you take your puppy home is usually an emotional one, but you need to bring yourself back down to earth and be practical too. It is important to prepare carefully for your new puppy.
You need to go out and buy some essentials before you take him or home. Here is a list of the most important items that you really should have before you buy your pup.
Puppy Essentials
1. A collar and a lead
On the day, that you take your puppy home you should have a lead and collar ready for him or her. It makes sense to take it with you in the car when you go to pick your pup up just in case.
Make sure that you add an identification tag to the collar with your contact details on it. If you live in a country where you need a dog licence buy that in advance and have the number engraved on the ID tag too. Don’t forget to update it later with your dog’s microchip number as well.
2. A crate
Puppies need to be contained at times when they are in the home. They need a space that they can call their own and somewhere that they can be confined to until you have managed to housetrain them.
3. A dog bed
It is also important to give your puppy a comfortable bed to sleep in from night one. Your dog’s first bed will need to be washable. They are unlikely to wee on it, but they may urinate near it, which means the bed can still get soaked.
4. Food and water bowls
Your dog will need a solid heavy food bowl and a separate one for its water. A solid heavy bowl made out of something like ceramic is better than a plastic bowl. If your puppy goes crazy and starts tearing around the room (and they will), they are less likely to knock the bowls over if they are heavy and solid.
5. Suitable food
Puppies get hungry fast, so you need to buy the right food before you pick up your puppy. A puppy should never be made to skip a meal especially not on its first day in your home.
6. A few treats
You also need to buy some puppy treats. The sooner you start training your dog the better. Getting them into the idea of treats at an early stage will help you when it is time to start training your dog.
7. A brush
Grooming your dog is important for skin health as well as cosmetic reasons. Again, the sooner you start grooming your dog the better. If you start doing it when your dog is still a pup they will be used to it and grow to like being groomed rather than fight you when you try to do it.
