Ever since we decided to get a puppy and possibly found a breeder to buy our new puppy from we’ve been busy trying to get ready for the new addition.
When we went to the Humane Society Tuesday night we stopped in their pet supply store before we left and looked at all the dog toys, the huge assortment of dog foods and snacks available and so on. I must admit we were pretty confused.
I mean, what kind of things do puppy need?
We decided to get a small dog collar and a leash to go with it. I know we won’t be talking the puppy out to the park until all it’s shots are finished but I want it to have a collar and we might use the collar and leash for short walks around our yard and property.
We also got a double food and water dish set. It’s on a stand so it’s less likely for a dog to make the dishes tip over and spill.
Then we stood looking at the array of doggy toys that we could purchase. We ended up picking two that would be good for teething puppies/ small dogs. We tried out some squeeky toys but we both nixed them fairly fast and they were loud! Maybe we’ll give in and get the pup one at some point but for now it’s all set with two toys to chew on.
We also got a really nice camouflage fabric doggy bed. It’s stuffed full of microfiber and if the pup doesn’t use it maybe I’ll roll it up and use it as a cushion … really, it seems pretty comfy.
Now I bet since we bought the dog a doggy bed already it will never use it!
Last night Chris came home and went right out to a department store. He had to get something from the baby furniture department. No it wasn’t one of those nice baby cribs although I hope one day we’ll get one of those too.
We’d talked the night before about what to do about our stair case. It’s a narrow staircase of only 29 inches and we opened up the one side of it in the dining room. There’s no banister which is legal since it’s such a narrow stair way … but still it could be dangerous for a small child or animal. So we talked about getting a baby gate.
We figure that the dog will likely spend most of it’s time with me and I’m on the main floor most of the time, but when we are upstairs the dog will still probably want to be near us … so when Chris went out to the store he got a baby gate that slides open.
Unfortunately since our stairway is so narrow a gate that barely slides open due to the narrowness of the opening won’t do. Chris actually expected me to get to the top of the stairs and lift my leg up over it. Yeah … try that when you’re dizzy or nauseated or maybe carrying a puppy in your arms? Uh huh. Back to the store he went!
He eventually came home (after we took a look on the internet for the kind I’d wanted him to get) with one that has a true gate that will swing open in either direction.
Tomorrow we’ll install that either at the top of the stairs or perhaps in the upstairs hallway just on the other side of the bathroom. Might as well keep it easy to get to the bathroom right, since it’s almost at the top of the stairs anyway.
What would you do? Put the gate at the top of the stairs or keep it easy to get to the bathroom and put the gate on the other side of the bathroom entrance?
Chris also picked up the kind of food that the puppies are currently being fed and some small treats to help with training.
Is there any other essentials that we really should get before we have a new puppy in the house?
Oh what gorgeous photos. There is nothing like a new puppy. That puppy breath. I have a new baby too. He is a yorkie who is 16 weeks old. My others are getting a little older, I have a lab, bassett, springer and the neighbour’s dog lives here.
I found that toys were really important. What worked well was a new toothbrush, they love it. Go figure. Also a plastic bottle with some dog chow inside to make it rattle.
Enjoy,
Sharon
Your new puppy ia very lucky!
Awww… puppies are so adorabled! Did you get puppy pads? Puppies pee continually 🙂
I LOVE the noisy squeaky toys – and so does Hugo – but Kent HATES them. Hugo has lots…heheheh 🙂
What’s his name? What is he? When do you get him?
Hey Tricia! Thanks for stopping by Emma’s blog and congrats on the soon to be addition! What kind of puppy are you getting? Hope you’ll post pictures!
Oh…how sweet to have a new puppy!! One thing I would highly recommend is a dog crate and start him in it early. I didn’t use one with my first dog – Big Mistake!! The vet urged me to use one but I refused. Then with the dog I have now, I broke down and got one immediately. He hated it at first but now loves it and it’s his own little room. He goes in and fixes it up often – scratches around, smooths out the blanket, fluffs it up and sleeps. For years I kept the door locked on it when I left and he was fine with it but eventually he figured out how to unlock the door on it and now, I just leave it open. Good Luck!! Ellen
Wow Sharon you have a lot of dogs! Did you have your Lab as a puppy? If so how was it? Congrats on your latest pup.
We have two chew/pull type toys for the puppy to be already and I expect that we’ll have a whole basket full of toys before a month goes by. LOL Interesting about the toothbrush though. As for the bottle I guess puppies are like little kids and normal household objects sometimes make the best toys. 😉
Hey Heather. No we don’t have the Labrador puppy yet. We’ll take a long drive tomorrow evening to see the breeder and pick out a puppy if they look healthy and if we are pleased with how they’ve been kept etc.
So at this point we don’t know if we’ll be coming home with a boy or girl or if it will be black or yellow! LOL
If you have any good name ideas let me know! With our lizards we always took a while to pick a name because we wanted the names to suit their personalities. I don’t think it will take quite as long to discover a puppies true personality though. 😉
Puppy pads eh? I was saying to Chris that he should try to get some of the bed pads from the hospital. LOL (it was a joke as that would be stealing of course!) I expect that they are similar to what you are talking about, but bigger. We don’t even read newspapers, but I think we should buy a few weekend papers so we’ll have some newspaper to put down too!
When we were at the Humane Societies pet store we were squeaking the toys and they were so loud! We both went NO. Maybe we’ll change our minds if we can find a slightly quieter squeaky toy. I know dogs love them.
Thanks for the tips! If you have any more I’m listening.
Jean Luc, Thanks. I think we’ll give a puppy a good home. We’re both looking forward to hopefully bringing the puppy home tomorrow night.
Hi Emma, thanks for visiting. We hope to get a Labrador Retriever puppy tomorrow night. If we do I expect there will be photos posted sometime on Saturday. 😉
Ellen thanks for the puppy tips. I think we’ll look for a crate on Saturday. Any brand recommendations? I guess we should get one that will fit the dog when it’s fully grown?
I think I’ve got a lot to learn in a very short time. This will be the first dog that either of us have owned. I lived with my sister and her husband when they had two German Shepherds and my brothers Rhodesian Ridgeback lived with us for close to two years when I was growing up … but I’ve never cared for a puppy so this will be interesting!
Decide on the house rules:
On the furniture or not, what rooms will pup be allowed in? Jumping on people or not…etc.
Prepare the environment:
Get down on the floor and crawl around, look under furniture, what kind of things can you grab, chew, ingest, pull down? Secure cords, move fragile objects to high ground. Move anything small enough to fit in the mouth.
Select a spot for long term and short term confinement.
Go Shopping:
Dog beds, crate of appropriate size, toys of various textures, dog food… …leash, collar, id, treats…make your own liver…Yumm! Cleaner for the inevitable accident, puppy pads or newspaper, camera, and Baby Gates.
Sign up for a training class…do your research on trainers.
HAVE FUN!
That is some preparations you’ve made. I know you will be ectatic when the puppy finally does comes as you have obviously been looking forward to it for a long time 🙂
Enjoy your puppy I know he will love you both for all the care you give him.
yea one of the best ways to protect your puppies are baby gates. Keep them out of unwanted areas. I use baby gates to keep my pets out of the living and doubles as keeping my baby in the living room. It works great