Bringing Your Puppy Home
The day has finally arrived. You are going to collect your puppy.
It’s a great idea if you can have plenty of time at home with your puppy for the first few days to a week from when you have collected your puppy.
This will help your puppy to settle in and to adjust to being in its new home.
If possible try and arrange to collect your puppy in the morning. This will then allow for more time to settle them in at your home for the rest of the day or if you have a long journey from the breeders you can take your time.
If you discuss with your breeder if you are going to be using a crate for your puppy they may crate train the puppy for you. This is incredibly helpful for when you are going to be transporting your puppy home.
It is the law that puppies and dogs must be secure in the car when you are travelling. You can be fined if they are not safe and secure in the car.
If you have got a bit of a drive to get home. Stop frequently. This would be the only time that it would be necessary to use puppy pads. As your pup may not have had any vaccinations. Whilst they do have some immunity from the mother, in these circumstances it is better to be safe than sorry. Offer the puppy some water each time you stop. They may not want any food.
Be prepared for travel sickness. This is very common for puppies and it is generally a short term problem. If your puppy does get motion sickness the more frequently you can take your puppy out in the car on very short trips the easier it will be for them.
When you arrive home it is probably sensible to take your puppy into your garden.
If it is completely secure then allow the puppy just to have a wander around. It will give them the opportunity to go to the toilet. Have a few little treats with you so you can reward them as soon as they have gone to the toilet.
When you and your puppy are ready, go inside the house and allow the pup to explore their surroundings. Have a bowl of water available at all times for your pup. (It might be an idea to use a ceramic bowl so the puppy can’t pick it up. You can also buy a clip for the bowl to be suspended in your puppy’s crate to prevent them from paddling in it)
Try not to overwhelm the puppy. If you have young children ensure that they don’t grab the puppy and try and pick it up. It could frighten your pup and they may growl, nip or scratch the children. If you have a playpen this would be a great area for your puppy to be whilst you introduce your children to the puppy. Never punish your puppy for any unwanted behaviours.
Allow your puppy to have a sleep undisturbed. They will be very tired from the journey and all the mental stimulation.
When can I start Training?
Immediately! We have until a puppy is 15 weeks of age to get them used to many different things. This is when the second fear phase can start. The more new positive experiences a puppy can have from 3 weeks to 15 weeks of age the better it is for the puppy and will help them to develop and mature into a happy well-balanced dog.
The training journey starts straight away. You will be doing some of the training instinctively.
The first thing you need to teach your puppy is their name. Your breeder may have already started this for you.
Have your tiny treats ready. If your puppy is looking at you say their name and give them a treat.
After a few times try saying your puppy’s name when they aren’t looking at you to see if you get a response.
Repeat this a few times. Don’t do too many repetitions at once.
If there is more than one of you in the room with the puppy when you are doing this exercise only one of you should be working on this exercise at a time.
Take your time and don’t rush your puppy. It is exciting having a new addition in the family and you will be excited to show everyone. This can be a bit overwhelming, so take things slowly and allow your puppy to settle into their home for a few days as it can take them a while to decompress and adjust to their new home.
The sooner you start toilet training with your puppy the better. Take them outside every 15 to 20 minutes. Go out to the same spot with them so they become familiar with their scent, and they will be more likely to toilet there each time. you can create a toilet area in the garden for them.
If your puppy hasn’t had a collar on you want to desensitise them to wearing a collar as soon as possible. Take it slowly. Use treats when you introduce the collar and put it on slowly and then take it off and put it on again. Keep doing this and gradually leave it on for longer and longer. It can be helpful having a collar or harness on your puppy in the house when you are with them as it can make it easier for you to gently take hold of them.