Puppy Starter Information Pack

Getting a dog for the first time can be quite stressful, scary, and a little chaotic. I have put together a puppy starter information pack so you can find all the necessary information needed to make this process a lot easier. 

*I mention a dog named Duke several times in this article, this is just to make it easier to understand the points I am trying to make. It also makes it a little more personal. 

Before we get started on tips and tricks and training, you need to know something. Dogs are not perfect. Your puppy will make mistakes and accidents all the time. You will deal with potty stains on your floor, chewed up dressers and shoes, and a few barks here and there. But even with all of the hardships, having a dog is so rewarding!

When a dog makes a mistake, you don’t usually punish it. Especially when it is a potty accident! Here is why…

Let me paint you a quick picture… You have left Duke in a closed off room while you go eat lunch. After enjoying your meal, you go back to check on Duke. When you walk into the room, you see an accident on the floor. You say “Duke, bad dog!” and give him a light smack on the nose after he ran towards you. 

What is wrong with that picture? Duke has run to you when you said his name, and in his mind, you punished him for that good behaviour. Puppies have short memories, so by the time you get back to the room he has probably already forgotten about the accident. Also, dogs obviously can’t understand English, so you pointing to the accident and saying something like, “bad dog for going potty,” will not train him to not go potty inside. 

Potty Training: 

This needs to start on day one. One thing that you need to know right off the bat, when your dog has a potty accident, it is your fault. Yes, I know, that sounds really mean and blunt, but it is totally true. Your dog can’t let itself outside to do its business. For the first couple of months Duke will need to be let out every 30 minutes. Quick tip- when you let your puppy out, stay out for five to ten minutes to make sure they are done! 

Crate Training:

The crate, when used properly, can be a very helpful tool! It is very nice to have a safe place for your puppy to go when you can’t be with him. There are several different crates including wire, mesh/fabric, or plastic. I prefer the wire crates as they usually have a tray to catch any accidents, and they can come with two doors which makes it easier when you are finding a place to put the crate. There is one simple step when crate training a puppy. Make it Disneyland! Make the crate the best place to be. When you feed your puppy, do it in, or right beside the crate. Work on simple tricks like sit or lie down in the crate and play with your puppy inside the crate. By doing these things, you are making the crate the best place to be. They connect spending time with you, and food to the crate. Don’t leave your puppy in the crate for too long, as they will need to go to the bathroom. Make it comfortable with a blanket and a toy. I keep my crate right next to my bed because Rory likes to see me at all times, but all dogs are different. For wire crates you can get special fabric covers so it feels more like a den, which the puppies like. With a plastic crate you don’t need to cover it with anything, but one thing I don’t like about them is they don’t have a tray that you can pull out to clean. I wouldn’t get a fabric crate because those are more for traveling, and they will stain quite easily. 

Feeding:

Puppies need to eat three-four times per day. Half a cup each day. 

When feeding your puppy, a really great thing to do is use it as a training opportunity. Don’t just set a bowl of food on the ground. Make your dog learn a new trick, or reinforce other things he knows like sit. When you do put his food on the ground for him to eat, play with him while he does it. Get your hands right in there from day one. Practise taking away the food in the middle of the meal, holding it for several seconds then setting it back down. Pet him while he’s eating and pull on his ears and tail. By doing this, you are showing him that he can be played rough with while eating. That way, when a young kid goes to pet your puppy while he’s eating, he won’t snap or bite. Do this every day so it will become a normal thing for Duke. When giving Duke bones, practise “give it.” Whenever you take a bone or toy from him, give him something else immediately. By doing this you are training Duke that even though his toy or bone is taken away, he gets something even better. That way, he won’t get protective of bones and toys. 

Do not feed your puppy human food! Especially scraps from the table. Sometimes I like to use cheese or peanut butter for treats, but don’t feed him any other human food. 

Leash Training:

Start leash training right away in your backyard. Puppies can’t go into public spaces until they have their third vaccination around 20 weeks old, just because they get sick easily. So, walk Duke on a leash in your backyard, make it fun with lots of treats and praise! He hasn’t been on a leash yet, so it may take time for him to adjust to this new thing. I like to use a harness on puppies because it is easier on their necks. A really great harness for dogs is from https://www.wildebeest.co/ They have awesome no-pull harnesses to make it easier for you when walking your dog. 

Command Training

You want to start training your dog from day one. I would start by teaching Duke the “sit” command. It is the simplest one and can be handy in teaching other commands. Before you get started on training Duke, you need to know some helpful tips! 

Dogs learn new things by positive reinforcement. There are three ways to reward or reinforce your dog. Treats. Play. Praise. Remember that. Treats. Play. Praise! Depending on how Duke is motivated, these will be very helpful. If he is food motivated (most dogs are) then he will learn quickly when rewarded with food. If Duke is motivated by toys, then a quick game of tug-of-war will be a fun reward for him. Or if Duke is motivated purely by pleasing you, then a simple “good” will do just fine. When training a dog, if you want to get anywhere, then you have to use a reward. Something I mention in my methods of training Sit, Lie Down, and Touch, is the marker word. This can either be “yes,” or “good.” This is the word you say every single time your dog does the command you asked. By pairing a treat with a marker word every single command, then your dog will eventually learn to be satisfied with just the word. So pick your word before you start training Duke, so that you can engrave it in his brain while he is still young. 

Teaching Sit: 

To teach sit you will want Duke on a leash. Have yummy treats on hand! Let him sniff the treat in your hand, then lift your hand up and slightly back. When he is in the sit position, say good, and nothing else. Not even sit. Repeat this until he learns that when you lift your hand up, he needs to sit. Reinforce this with your marker word, which is either good or yes, and a treat at the same time. After practising with only the hand signal and reinforcement several times, you can put a command to it. To do this, you say the command while giving the hand signal. 

Teaching Lie Down: 

To teach lie down you first want to get Duke into a Sit position. Have a treat on hand. Once he is sitting, and after you have rewarded his sit, hold a treat in your hand and guide his nose straight down. This is important, guide his nose straight down. You don’t want to bring his nose forward because he will stand up to get the treat from your hand, and you don’t want to bring his nose under his belly because he will want to stand up and back up to grab the treat. After brining him into the lie down position, reward him with your marker word and a treat. After several times of this you can put a word command on the action. 

Teaching Touch

I love the touch command because it is the best way to get your dog’s attention. To teach the touch command you are going to hold your hand out in front of Duke and wait. Don’t try to get his attention or make him touch your hand, this is a command that needs a lot of patience. The moment his nose touches your hand, reward him with a treat and a marker word. Do this several times before you put a command to it. 

Puppy Nipping\Biting

Puppies bite, it is a part of life. Why do they do it? Because that is how they discover the world around them. They aren’t meaning to hurt anybody, but those sharp little teethe do hurt. Here are some helpful tips to stop puppy biting. 

When Duke bites you, yelp or yell ouch then turn away. Remove yourself from him, if that means leaving the room, then leave the room. Wait ten seconds then go back to him again. Do this every single time he bites and eventually he will connect you leaving, with him biting. 

Everything you need to own a dog comfortably, and where to find it. 

• Crate- can be found on amazon.
• Potty pads- Can be found at Costco.
• Leash- Dollar Tree leashed work just fine for when he is little. 
• Collar (for the first few weeks a cat collar from the Dollar Tree will do just fine!) 
• ID tag -can be found and engraved at Pet Smart in Red Deer or at Pet Value in Ponoka. They are usually around $10. 
• Toys- you will want a variety of toys including chew toys, squeaky or crinkly toys, tug or rope toys, and balls. Buy a few good quality toys at any pet supply store or amazon, and a few cheap toys at the Dollar Tree, that way if he goes through the toys quickly it won’t matter because they are cheap. 
• Food and Water bowls. I like the stainless-steel ones from Dollar Tree. He will need small ones to begin with, but larger ones when he grows older. 
• Harness- Any pet store or amazon will have a small puppy harness to make it easier for walking. You don’t need one right away, because he can only start walking safely after his third vaccination around 20 weeks. 
• Dog bed- Winners has some really cute dog beds, for Duke you might want to buy a cheap one for when he is small, then Costco has nice big ones to fit him when he is older. You can also find dog beds at any pet supply store, or on amazon. 
• Nail Clippers- I would buy these at a pet supply store like Pet Value to make sure you have quality clippers. 
• Dog Shampoo- you can buy dog shampoo anywhere from Pet Value or Pet Smart, Winners, Walmart, or Amazon. I buy mine from amazon, a nice brand is Burt’s Bees for dogs. 
• Enzyme Odour Remover- Can be found on Amazon 
• Furminator- can be found on Amazon, sometimes at pet supply stores. A Furminator is a special kind of dog brush that you can use to keep Duke’s shedding to the minimum. 
• Puppy Exercise Pen- can be found the cheapest on Amazon 

Some other things that could be handy but aren’t a must are:

Puppy Heartbeat Toy, Dog Bones and Chews, Blankets from the thrift store for his crate, and disinfectant wipes.

Note* The puppy heartbeat toy helps with the first couple of nights. It has a heartbeat and a heat pack inside of the toy, which makes adjusting without his mom a little easier. 

Disinfectant wipes are handy to have whenever a puppy has an accident inside. 

As you train and raise Duke, you might think of more things that might be useful to you, but the list above is everything that I have needed for raising a dog indoors. 

Puppy Supplies Checklist:

1. Crate
2. Dog Bed
3. Toys
4. Potty Pads
5. ID-tag
6. Food and Water Bowls
7. Dog Collar
8. Puppy Shampoo
9. Nail Clippers
10. Furminator
11. Dog Harness
12. Enzyme Odor Remover
13. Puppy Exercise Pen
14. Leash

Dogs need plenty of exercise in a day. Take Duke outside to play every single day! On top of that, after his vaccinations are all caught up, take him on a walk daily. Since he could be living inside, you do not want him pent up inside! A large dog who is bored does not sound very fun. So, give him lots of play time inside and out, and take him on lots of walks! 

When Duke is younger than 20 weeks old, take him on walks in your backyard to get him used to the collar and leash, and to help keep him exercised.

Okay, that is all the information I can think of at the moment. If you have any more questions, I would love to answer them! I hope you enjoyed reading all this and are not to overwhelmed! Just know that having a dog can be very fulfilling when done right!