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The Puppy Checklist
So you have just bought yourselves a new puppy. Are you prepared? Do you have everything you need to keep the puppy and you happy? Here is a list of things you may have overlooked.
The Essentials
- Puppy Collar – When choosing a collar for your puppy you need to remember that your puppy is going to grow very quickly. At this stage it may be wise to choose a collar that has a fair bit of adjustment in it. We usually recommend you save the fashionable collars until they have done most of their growing. Then you can choose that Diamonte Jeweled collar without having to replace it every month!
- Lead – Especially important when your puppy has had all of it’s vaccinations and is ready to be taken for a walk. But even before this it is never too early to start training with a lead in your house or backyard. While they are puppies we generally recommend a lead that is fairly lightweight.
- Food Bowl – When deciding what food bowl to use remember the size of the breed and how much they are going to eat. Also bear in mind that puppies will chew and large breed puppies will possible chew a plastic bowl very quickly if they get bored! We recommend stainless steel bowls with a rubber “skid stop” base. These are easy to clean and can’t be chewed!
- Cage or crate - This serves two purposes. Firstly it gives somewhere safe and secure for the puppy when you can’t supervise it. Secondly it is a safe and easy way of transporting your puppy to the vet to get it’s vaccinations done.
- Food – This is probably the most important decision to make. What do I feed it? We usually recommend that at least 80% of their diet consist of a quality “super premium” biscuit. Bear in mind that the better the food the less stools the dog is going to produce, and the puppy will be a lot healthier and more trainable. We recommend Hills Science Diet, Advance, and Eukanuba.
- Water Bowl – Once again the water bowl you choose should be relevant to the size of the dog. It should be large enough so that it has a constant source of water but not large enough for it to fall into and possibly drown in.
- Bedding – Your puppy needs a suitable sized bed to sleep on. When choosing the bed it is advisable to choose one that has a removable, washable cover.
- Brush – A brush is needed to keep their coat healthy. Choose the right brush for your breed and it should just about last you forever.
- Toys – All puppies need a variety of toys to chew and play with. Providing toys for them to chew can quite possibly save your sofa or shoes from being chewed. We recommend Kongs range of puppy toys.
- Treats – Be careful when deciding which treats you give your puppy, especially when it is really young (under 20 weeks). Most chicken flavored treats are fine otherwise Hills Science Diet and Eukanuba do specific puppy treats which are really good. As a training treat we usually use Schmackos Chicken Strapz cut into small pieces.
- ID Tags – Very important. If your puppy manages to get out and go exploring, an ID tag will ensure he gets home if he gets lost.
- Puppy Training Pads – The easiest way to toilet train your new puppy. We advise the pads be used in conjunction with Puppytrainer Housebreaking Aid.
Other things to consider.
- Harness – These are great, especially for controlling larger breed dogs. Harnesses give you that little bit of extra control and most good harnesses also have a seatbelt attachment for your car. This can be used to “belt up” during car rides.
- Flea, Mite & Tick Prevention – At some stage all dogs will suffer from the odd mite or flea if they are not on a prevention program. We recommend Advocate, which is a simple to use monthly treatment for Fleas, Mites, Heartworm and intestinal worms. If you are in an area where ticks are common then a treatment of Frontline may also be advisable.
- Worming – Prevention is better than cure. A monthly dose of Advocate is all you need to prevent worms including heartworm. (A heartworm test is advised before starting treatment, but consult your vets advise when you get your vaccinations done)
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