Congratulations on your new puppy! Hopefully before this point, you have done your research, and made all of the preparations necessary for your newest arrival.
If your new companion endured a lengthy plane trip, he will be a little stressed, tired, hungry and thirsty. His crate may be a little wet from the trip, and he may need to go potty. If your home is a few minute away to a few hours, give him a limited amount of water for the car trip as he may vomit during the car ride. I would bring some absorbent material like news paper to replace what is in his crate. he may have to tinkle, but It would be better for him to have his accident in the crate, rather than potentially exposing him to parvo virus or other diseases by letting him tinkle in a strange area exposed to vagrant animals. If he gets car sick don't fret. He will grow out of it.
When you get him home, you will want to give him some fresh water and a little kibble. You should already have on hand the same type of kibble the pup was on before being shipped as the breeder should have provided this information to you in advance of you receiving your new puppy.
He may cry and whine his first few nights with you, but he will quickly learn that this is his new family and he is safe.
You should already have a vet check that is scheduled within 48-72 hours of you receiving your pup for his well puppy check. This will insure you, and the breeder that the puppy arrived safely, suffered no ill effects from travel, and is in complete good health. The breeder will want to know the results of the well puppy check.
It is important to keep your puppy on a regular schedule of feeding and potty breaks. Puppies are unable to hold their urine all night until they are about 10-12 weeks of age. Before this time however, expect to do regular midnight trips out to allow him to relieve himself.
One thing that is helpful to remember is to potty break always right after, nap, play, and eating. If you remember this, your pup will have few or no accidents. Remember when you take him out to tinkle and you know he has to, don't bring him back in until he does, or he will relieve himself upon re-entering the house. This has happened to everyone at least once. Remember when it does, it's your fault not the pup's.
When you take your pup out, always stress the "outside" command or whatever command you intend to use for his potty break in the future. It is never too early to begin this, and he will learn quickly. Remember that the minute he relieves himself, you need to bring him in. Play sessions should be separate in the beginning, so there is no confusion for the pup about what "outside" means. It should mean potty break, not play.
Crate size is always important in crate training and house training. His crate should only be big enough for him to stand up and turn around. Any bigger and he will be tempted to potty in one corner and sleep in the other. Mind you this is during potty training time. Once he is trained, his crate can be larger.
It is better to feed the puppy small frequent feedings rather than a couple of large feedings. After your pup eats, he should be given the chance to relieve himself, and then he should rest. There is a condition of the stomach called "Torsion" that can happen after a dog eats a large meal, and then has strenuous exercise. What happens then is the very full stomach gets twisted and without immediate surgery often proves fatal.
Free feeding, meaning keeping the food bowl full and letting him eat when he wants is not a good idea. When it is time to eat, the food bowl should be put down for your pup and he should be allowed 15min. too eat without distractions. After that 15min. The food bowl should be picked up. If your pup shows any sign of food aggression, then dispense with the bowl for now and feed him from your hand. He will learn that the food comes from you, and he is safe. Food aggression should not be tolerated.
Puppies will chew on and sometimes ingest just about anything, so supervision is very important, not only for the sake of your furniture, but also for the sake of the puppy's life. They will swallow rocks, socks, wood chips, plants, you name it, and If you have plants in your house they should be kept out of reach of your pup. There are many types of house and outdoor plants that are fatal if ingested by your pup. So, you should educate yourself on what is and isn't toxic to your pup.
It is very tempting and natural to want to show off your new pup, but your pup should not be exposed to grounds other than his own fenced in yard until he is fully vaccinated at about 14-16 weeks of age. Parvo virus can live in the ground for about 6-9mos after being contaminated by an infected animal. Giardia is another concern. If you value your puppy's life you just won't take that chance.
Your puppy will become very mouthy. They don't have hands so this is how they explore different textures and tastes. If he is chewing on you, make sure you have a chew toy on hand and just redirect his chewing to his new toy. If you give your dog chew treats, make sure he chews these with your supervision. Many puppies die each year of accidental choking. I am absolutely against raw hide treats. We give our dogs pig ears, and cow hooves to chew on. Nyla Bones, and Roar Hides are good too. Just make sure you give your pup proper supervision.
Puppies are like sponges when it comes to learning. Take advantage of his inbetween meals or before meal times. When he is hungry is the best time to take a little tid bit of hot dog and work on his sit. Pups will do it naturally. He will not know what the word "sit" means but he will learn fast. When you dangle that treat, he will of course jump up and try to get it. Don't let him. He will soon sit his bottom down and look at you trying to figure out what you want. The minute he does this give him the treat and make a big deal about what he just did. You will be amazed how in minutes he will learn "sit" It is very easy to go from "sit" to "down". After you have the "sit" solid, you can then give him the "sit" command, and then guide him to the ground with the treat, giving him the treat inbetween his front legs close to his chest. He will learn "down" in no time. When you are doing basic commands, do not correct him at this age for getting it wrong, just omit the reward. This should be a fun time, and a bonding time between you and your pup with no stress involved. Keep your training sessions short, and always end them at the peek of his interest. If you find yourself getting frustrated because you have high expectations, then stop the session. It is never time to train when you are frustrated.
You can also leash train your pup very early. Just clip the leash to his collar and let him drag it around the house when you play with him. Give the leash gentle tugs, and call him too you, reward him for going to you with lots of praise, and a treat. He will be less rebellious this way. Never leave him unattended with the leash hooked to his collar. He could accidentally hang himself.
If you have small children, it is important not to let them pick up the new puppy. One drop can ruin a hip for life. Kids should always be supervised with puppies, as they like to pull ears, tails, and again can drop the puppy. This negative association can have grave affects on the pup's temperament as he matures. The other concern with puppies and small children is the risk of accidental hanging of the pup. I know from personal experience how tragic this can be. Someone I know, who had a collie pup, had his pup accidentally hung, when the neighbor kids took the pup to a park close by. The kids thought it would be fun to take the pup up the jungle gym which included a slide. They tied the pup at the top of the slide to keep him there while they went down the slide, and you guessed it, the pup wanted to follow and was hung to death on the slide. The owner was notified within minutes but the children were unable to undo the pup from the leash and the pup was in his last throes of death when the owner arrived to save him. He was too late.
If you have other dogs in the house it is important that they are supervised with your pup. Any negative experience early on with your pup, and other dogs can lead to dog aggression later in life.
Your pups nails should receive regular clippings to keep them short. If you are unsure of how to clip his nails, ask your vet to show you when you take your pup in for a vet check.
You should play with your pups ears and touch his feet, legs, tail and check his teeth frequently so he is accustomed to being handled. Most vet clinics will allow you to weigh your puppy without an actual appointment. This provides positive socialization for your pup. Not every trip to the vet should be about vaccinations. When you take your pup for his weigh in, the vet tech. will probably have a treat there for him, if not bring your own treat for him.
You should register your puppy right away with either your local municipality or with your vet, using his tattoo number, and tags if they are given in your area. Your puppy's tattoo can also be registered with the National Dog Registry.
Leerburg, has a good training video called "Your Puppy 8 Weeks to 8 Months". He also has other training videos that you might find helpful.
One last note on car safety. You see lots of people who drive around with their dogs loose in the car or in the back of a pickup. If people need to be restrained for safety then it would be reasonable to conclude that dogs need the same safety precautions. Our dogs always ride in our SUV in a crate. Our fellow club members who drive pickups crate their dogs in secured crates for safety as well. It is safe to assume if a person can be ejected through the front window or side window of a car, then so can a dog.
Author, Ginger Rex
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Author: Ginger Rex
