Bringing Home Your New Puppy
Congratulations on the new addition to your family! With a little work, some planning and forethought, your new dog will be a well-behaved companion for years to come. It is important to recognise that first impressions are lasting ones and habits begin to develop from day one. Be sure to instil good manners and habits from the first day you bring your new puppy home. Remember, good habits are as hard to break as bad ones. You should prepare your house for the new arrival. You will need a place to confine the puppy when you are not with them and during the night. A crate is an excellent choice. Not only do you know that your puppy is safe, so is your house. It also serves as a safe haven for the puppy to escape to when the family or visitors get too overwhelming. Never use the crate as punishment or time out.
You should feed your new puppy 3 or 4 meals a day until they are 12 weeks old. Find out which food your puppy is currently eating and start with the same, once he is settled in you can gradually change to a preferred diet by slowly introducing small amounts of the new food. The food should be based on good quality, commercial puppy foods which are formulated specifically for puppies. Feeding meat only is not a balanced diet. Vegetables and eggs should be cooked as they are more easily digested. Never feed cooked bones as these can splinter. Puppies do not need milk after they have been weaned. Milk is a common cause of diarrhoea. Do not feed onions, chocolate, macadamia nuts, apple and pear pips or stone fruit kernels to your puppy as these foods are TOXIC to all dogs. Large amounts of broccoli, grapes or raisins may also be toxic. Always provide plenty of fresh, clean drinking water, keeping the bowl clean. From the moment your puppy comes home show him where he is to go to the toilet and reward generously. When he makes a mistake, clean it up, do not say or do anything. You need to take a young puppy out to the toilet every hour, after food and after waking up. Most puppies will learn very quickly if there is no real fuss made of mistakes. Sometimes they may regress, if this happens just go back to basics- rewarding generously. Some puppies will take longer than others to toilet train, so just be patient and don’t get angry, it just makes the process longer. From the first night settle your puppy down to sleep (after a toilet visit) in his crate or confined area. Make sure he has a soft bed, a bowl of water, a few stuffed animals to cuddle up to, some chew toys and perhaps a hot water bottle wrapped in a towel (the water bottle is only appropriate for the first night or two), some newspaper to toilet on, although it shouldn’t take long until he can hold on all night. If he cries or barks DO NOT go to him. If he sounds distressed wait until he is quiet and then check. Do not let your puppy train you to come when called.
Socialising -This doesn’t mean playing with the neighbours dogs. It means meeting lots of new dogs in the first 3 months. Once your puppy is immunised you can take him to the dog park to meet all sorts of other dog breeds, as well as old dogs and other puppies, the more the better.
One of the most important things you should do as soon as you know a new puppy is coming home is book into
Whatever you do relax and enjoy your puppy…….. Gayl |
