Puppy Prep Ideas

Setting up the house

• Have your puppy crate in a comfortable area, but not isolated in a room that is never used.
• You may want to buy a gate to secure “puppy free” areas. We did this in our laundry room since that is where the cats food and litter boxes are.
• Pick a place for the dog’s food and water bowls, it is nice to be consistent with your puppy right from the beginning so they don’t get confused.
• Pick a designated potty area, and be consistent with it. If you have a back yard, you may want to add a bark chip area that is specifically for your dog. That way the pup doesn’t ruin your grass, flower beds, etc. in the future. Dogs learn quickly, if you allow them to urinate on your grass early, they think it is ok later.

Budgeting

• Choose your veterinarian in advance, and discuss prices for routine puppy shots, heartworm medication, spay/neuter charges, etc., so you can budget in advance. Puppies are expensive! Also find out where the closest 24 hour emergency vet is in relation to where you live and program that number into your phone.
• You may want to purchase puppy insurance. It usually ranges between 25-35 dollars per month and covers accidents, illness, and routine check ups. For Tilly, we use VPI Pet Insurance, which was recommended by our veterinarian (www.petinsurance.com). She is on the VPI Superior Plan ($26.77 per month), which covers accidents and illnesses ($50 deductible per incident), and also routine wellness coverage (puppy shots, spay, routine physicals) with no deductible.

Transporting Puppy Home/Acclimation

• It is a good idea to have more than one person along for the ride when you pick up your puppy. They will be scared, and won’t want to sit by themselves in a crate or box. Make lots of stops for bathroom breaks if you are driving far. You should exercise your dog before bringing it into it’s new home. A tired puppy is much more relaxed when meeting other family members, other pets, children, etc.
• Have your puppy’s schedule in place in advance, and stick to it! It will be tempting to throw the whole schedule out the window, and just play with your cute pup all day (especially if you have kids), but this is a critical learning period in your dog’s life. You need to establish yourself as its pack leader(s) right from the start.
• Once you get your new puppy, you will want everyone in the world to meet it, as well as all of your friend’s dogs! It is important that your puppy is not exposed to other dogs until it has had at least it’s second round of puppy vaccinations. Even if other dogs are healthy and vaccinated, they can carry certain bacteria and diseases to your puppy. Once they are vaccinated, socialization is very important. The more dogs they meet the better!
• It is a good idea to introduce your pup to lots of different people at an early age. You may want to do this slowly. In other words, don’t have ten people come over to meet puppy the first day! Once the pup feels secure in his new home and schedule, slowly have people come over to meet him. After a few weeks, it is then ok to bring your puppy to meet others.
• During the puppy’s first six months, it is also important to acclimate them to a variety of sounds and sights so you don’t have future problems. For example, our puppy will be coming from a farm in Iowa, and moving to the intersection of Belmont and Western! We constantly have fire trucks, ambulances, fire works, cars honking, thunderstorms, etc. These sounds will no doubt scare little Tilly. It is important to reinforce her when these noises occur, letting her know they are no big deal. If a fire truck goes by, make a big fuss over her, and offer a treat. Bang two pots together, offer a treat, etc.

Housebreaking Plan

• Crate training
• Crating your puppy will speed up the housebreaking process. Dogs are denning animals and once they are used to a crate, they should feel secure and happy in it. Place the crate in a busy room where people are social so the puppy does not feel isolated.
• You may want to put the crate in your bedroom at night. Dogs are pack animals, and eventually your dog will want to sleep in your room with you (not necessarily in your bed, that is a personal decision, our bed is reserved for our two cats). Also, during the first week, the pup will be scared being away from mom and siblings and you don’t want it to feel isolated. The puppy will cry through at least the first night. It is ok to comfort him/her, but don’t take the pup to the bed with you! They will never get used to the crate if you do this! We decided to set up our crate in our family room, which is our busiest room in the house. The first week, one of us will sleep on the couch in the room with the pup until she gets used to her new living arrangement. With proper exercise and scheduling, after a few days to a week, the puppy should be tired enough at night that they no longer miss mom and need someone there through the night.
• When first introduced to the crate, make sure the puppy has had a long walk and is ready to rest. A treat or chew toy should accompany the first crate introduction.
• The crate should be big enough for the puppy to lie down, stand up, and turn around, but no bigger. You don’t want the puppy to be able to go to the other side of the crate to do his business and still stay dry, he won’t learn to hold it. We have borrowed a life stages crate, which has a divider that can be adjusted as the puppy grows.
• Do not use the crate as punishment!
• Do not put food or water inside of the crate. It is important to be in control of the puppy’s water and food intake. If they have free access to water and food, you don’t know how full their small bladders/bellies are.
• Leave the puppy in the crate for two-four hour periods. Find a designated outdoor bathroom area, and bring the puppy to this area after offering a drink. When the puppy eliminates, say “potty”, or any other designated word. After the puppy eliminates outside, give lots of praise, and treats. When brought inside, puppy can have ½ hour to an hour of play time, then goes back in crate. Repeat process. As puppy starts to learn to hold it, play time outside of the crate is increased.
• Accidents
• During the learning process, there will be accidents. It is important that the puppy is not physically punished, this only makes the puppy scared to eliminate in front of you, and they will secretly go in other parts of the house. If you catch puppy in the act, make a noise and face that shows the puppy you are not pleased and gets its attention. Then bring puppy to its designated outside area to finish. If puppy continues to eliminate outside, reward with praise, and say “good, potty”.