Taking Your Puppy Home
Updated: Jun 29, 2021
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By now, you have already picked out your favorite from the litter, you have chosen the best name any puppy could have, and everyone in the family can't wait to meet the new addition! This is one of the more exciting moments when purchasing a new puppy. There are a few things to consider before this special moment.
We will go over:
What will you need to be ready
What should you do before hand
Making the trip to get your puppy
Arriving home with your new puppy
What you will need to be ready - essentials
There are a few basic items we suggest getting:
This is the basics of caring for your puppy. You will want to bring the crate with you so that you can safely transport your pet. If you will be on a longer trip, we also suggest bringing along some clean water and maybe even a pop-up travel dish. If you are taking a pit stop and letting your puppy out to go to the bathroom or take a drink, we also suggest having your dog on the lead. This helps make sure they don't dart off or into traffic.
While not essential, if you are planning to keep your food and water dishes in a common area, we suggest a mat, or bowls that don't move easily. While not necessary, the Yeti dog bowls are well made and never disappoint.
YETI Boomer 4 Stainless Steel, Non-Slip Dog Bowl
We start all our puppies on Eukanuba Small Breed Puppy food. While there are many great dog food brands, Eukanuba has been a consistent staple for our kennel. We find it to provide a great balance of nutrition that is easy on the dog’s stomach. If you want to stay consistent with that food transition, we suggest getting a bag in advance. That way you are ready for dinner time when you get home! If you prefer a different brand, we suggest incorporating a bit of what they are use to to wean them off their current diet. It helps ensure they continue their interest in eating and don’t experience any big transitions that might result in accidents in the house or crate.
What you should do before hand
This may be the most important step. One of the most critical things to do beforehand is find yourself a dependable veterinarian. We treat our dogs like family, so we rely on them to keep our dogs healthy and safe. We would be more than happy to try and connect you with someone we know, just send us an email before hand, or be sure to ask when picking out your puppy. Because we have clients from all over the US, and in some cases internationally, we suggest you also check out resources like the USDA Veterinary Accreditation Program and the American Animal Hospital Association. These programs have more rigor in the evaluation of veterinary practitioners. Reach out and do your own evaluation of potential veterinarians. Just like your own doctor, you have to trust them. Ask if there is a preferred first visit once your puppy is home.
You will also need to prepare your home. Your puppy is curious, and that is a good thing! You want to encourage that curiosity and leverage as much positivity in your training as possible. Behavioral correction with positive reinforcement is much better than negative reinforcement. We will be writing more about our training philosophies in a future post. By picking up things you might not want the puppy to chew and get into, it gives them more opportunity to be curious!
Making the trip to get your puppy