.. and what you really don’t need to waste your money on
You’re getting your new puppy any minute - exciting! You’re looking forward to enjoying quiet nights, a nice clean home, happy laughing children playing with the puppy.
But is it possible you’re underestimating the amount of work involved in rearing this new fluffball? Are you perhaps anxious about “not getting it right”, and turning your house into a war zone where nobody gets any sleep and everything is chewed up?
Let’s plump for the first image - a happy home with the addition of a much-loved puppy. A bit of planning is needed to make this all work. You could go to a pet store and come out with hundreds of pounds’ worth of stuff - much of which will be useless to you.
But hey, I’ve been there before - many times! I’ve had many new puppies of my own to care for, and plenty of students’ puppies too. So I can show you how to get what you need to make this run as smoothly as possible, and avoid cluttering the place up with unnecessary purchases that get destroyed in short order.
It’s pointless, for instance, buying a smart expensive bed for your puppy till you know his chewing proclivities. Some pups chew, some don’t at all. Some are piranhas, some just suck and love their beds to death. Use any old blankets or towels you happen to have around to make a cosy nest. You can get a beautiful bed when you know it won’t be shredded.
Like fencing a field for your new livestock - you soon get to know what you are up against in terms of the escapability quotient of the boundary and the crushing strength of your puppy’s jaws. Till then, make sure that boundaries are stronger than you think, and watch carefully when you give your puppy anything to chew.
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Download your free Guide to Puppy Gear and eliminate all this worry. It shows you just what you need - and what you don’t need.
Also check out these posts - which give you the inside track on how to use this kit:
You’ll see from the Guide that the right sort of crate is essential to the whole system. Don’t get a soft crate. That fabric and zip will last 0 minutes if your puppy is an escapologist and tries to fight his way out. Start with a robust, good-quality crate with a metal pan, that will last for donkey’s years, and he’ll never even try to dig an escape tunnel. If you teach him kindly to love his crate, of course, he’ll never want to escape!
The same goes for toys. You can buy one specially for your new puppy, but the children may enjoy donating one of their old soft toys as a welcome gift. The local charity shop is where my supply of bears and monkeys come from. If it’s safe for a baby, it should be safe for your puppy.
You’ll need a soft easily-adjustable collar to carry your puppy’s id disc. He may be microchipped, but you want to make it easy for anyone who finds him to return him to you fast. And I’d recommend using a body harness from the start so your puppy never learns to pull into a collar and choke himself.
Just as your children go through growth stages and need larger and possibly tougher clothing that fits, so your puppy will go through a few harnesses on his way to full maturity. This is an item that needs to fit snugly and safely, so don’t try to save money on this. If your puppy slips out of his collar or harness and ends up under a car you’ll see it was a false economy.
And skip the retractable lead - this article shows you all the horrors and dangers of one.
If you follow the Guide to Puppy Gear you’ll know you’re doing your best for your new companion while avoiding the mistakes that could cost you money. If you don’t get the right stuff to help you, you may end up with chewed furniture, wet carpets, a crying puppy, and no sleep - not a happy outcome!
Let’s get you started so that you have speedy housetraining, easy puppy compliance, and no chewing; quiet nights, nice clean home, and happy laughing children playing with your new puppy!
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