NGKUR: What do I *NEED* for a puppy?

[piccyami]

So, we got a puppy over the weekend.  We have a ton of stuff for her, but I thought I'd ask.  What do you guys have that you absolutely love for your dogs?
Here's the super cute 8 weeks picture:


She's adorable, mischievous, and has way too much energy.  We're starting puppy classes on Sunday.  Because everyone in this town seems to want their puppies in puppy classes and all of the weeknight classes are full.

[LadyNymeria]

OMG she's so cute!!!

Are you planning to crate train? That has been the absolutely best thing we did for our pup. We still crate him when we go out (he just turned 2) because he loves his crate. We bought a giant one that came with an adjustable divider so it could be smaller when he was a puppy, grow with him, and now he gets the full space so he can stretch out while he's in there.

[pinkcat]

Omg she is adorable! No advice, just wanted to say she's cute What is her name?

[mrss44]

I second crate training. It's amazing. My dogs LOVE their crates. It's their safe place.

Also lots of stuff to chew on. LOTS. We have a lab/husky and she is constantly chewing.

[rablissful]

Kong's are the literal best. We put peanut butter in it when we sit down for dinner so our dog leaves us alone. We also put a tiny bit in it when we leave to distract him.

Since you have a puppy I echo a crate. We were never able to crate ours due to his past (he's a rescue), but he is fine in the house. We just close off the bathroom and bedrooms. We're lucky though.


(Side note: when we eat he doesn't jump up, bark, growl, he just sits and starts at you and drools. Which is gross. Sometimes he whines. Would rather him eat a Kong than drool on my floor)

[piccyami]

LadyNymeria, We got pretty much exactly what you're describing. She's actually already crate trained, which is awesome. Now that we have it (we were using the cat's travel crate, really a canvas dog crate), we're sleeping through the night.

mistabinx, We got the puppy version. She loves it. We're already familiar with Kong toys with our cats. We have a heavy gnawer and the kong cat toys hold up to her. Kong definitely makes awesome toys.

pinkcat, her name is Lucy.

[thelittleredm]

Absolutely do create training. She looks like an Australian Shepherd? They get to be a good sized animal so don't try to save by purchasing a smaller crate first if you haven't got one yet. Get a big one with a divider.

I can't give any tips about toys since dogs are so individual. I usually get a small variety of appropriate sized toys to see what the puppy likes and then rotate them so they don't get too bored. When they get bigger, I get more of whatever it is they like best. It's fun to buy them toys until you end up with a bunch of stuff they ignore.

We usually purchase puppy pads off Amazon because they're cheaper and work better than ones you typically find in pet stores.

We usually have two leashes per dog of different lengths so we can decide what works best for whatever situation we're taking them to (long leash for hikes on trails that require leashes, short leads for just walking around the neighborhood or in busy areas).

[♪♫choppinbroccoli♫♪]

I fucking love these treats for training (we use them beyond that, too, but we have a small dog):



buddybiscuits.com/

[Ray]

Definitely a crate

Kong toys are awesome

Training treats (anything small works well)

Food and water bowl

Poop bags, leash, collar.

Lots of toys for them to chew on (our dogs love rawhide)

We also go puppy pads so our puppy could pee when we were at work in the crate. We just bought a blanket from value village instead of a big expensive dog bed. We bought a clicker that was AMAZINGLY for training. And a little jingly bell we hang by the door. We trained her to ring it when she has to pee.

We ended up getting a prong chain for our other dog later on but that was because she wouldn't stop pulling when walking

HTH

Congrats!!

[mcktymck]

Take a kong (I would suggest getting a couple!) and put some PB in it, and then throw it in the freezer. I would always give my dog a PB kong if I was leaving for awhile, and she would go bonkers as soon as she saw me open the freezer door. Also, bully sticks. Dogs love bully sticks.

[piccyami]

thelittleredm, She's actually a mini aussie, so she'll only be 25-30 pounds. We still got the big crate so she'll have space to lounge when she's bigger.

♪♫choppinbroccoli♫♪, you may have sold me on those treats.

[goldenlove3]

Sooo cute. I think most people covered the basics but I'll also add brushes and other grooming supplies. We used them with my dog right away and she loves to be groomed now! We also used Bitter Apple to keep her from chewing things like chairs and tables.

[goldenlove3]

My in laws have an Aussie. He's a weird dog but really good. Aussies love to have jobs so he gets the paper every morning and recycles (carries bottles and cans to the recycle bin).

[mill23]

You've already got some great advice (crates, Kongs, treats) but I would add that spray that neutralizes urine! Natures miracle is what we use but it's super handy no matter the brand. Get the smell out quick so it doesn't set in!

Also the Poop bag holders that hang on the leash. The only way I remember to bring a bag.

[ellabee]

No advice, just wanted to say she is adorable!! What a cute puppy.

[piccyami]

Sept 10, 2015 11:56:00 GMT -5 goldenlove3 said:

My in laws have an Aussie. He's a weird dog but really good. Aussies love to have jobs so he gets the paper every morning and recycles (carries bottles and cans to the recycle bin).

Yeah, the owner of one of her siblings from a previous litter suggested a couple books they use.  (He's going to be an agility dog.)  She says he learns a new trick pretty much every night.  We're starting with the basics.  Like going up the stairs. 

[pismoduo]

She's a cutie!

I think PPs have mostly covered it, but I absolutely second the pee pads. We used them with our JRT - we kept her close to us, but we'd put one of the pee pads off to one side of the room, and when she had to pee she'd go over and start sniffing it. Then we'd take her outside, which I think helped her learn she should go outside to pee. If we failed to notice, she'd at least pee on the pad, which was nice.

Did not work AT.ALL with the shih tzu, though.

[goldenlove3]

Sept 10, 2015 12:00:56 GMT -5 piccyami said:

Sept 10, 2015 11:56:00 GMT -5 goldenlove3 said:

My in laws have an Aussie. He's a weird dog but really good. Aussies love to have jobs so he gets the paper every morning and recycles (carries bottles and cans to the recycle bin).

Yeah, the owner of one of her siblings from a previous litter suggested a couple books they use.  (He's going to be an agility dog.)  She says he learns a new trick pretty much every night.  We're starting with the basics.  Like going up the stairs. 

They are super smart! I really wanted to do agility with my dog and we were on track to start an intro class. Then she decided to chew a lamp cord and needed surgery so I had to cancel before class started. She needed time to recover then work got busy and we never ended up going back. I really want to get her back into some type of class though because she loved it and was really good in the ring.

[piccyami]

Sept 10, 2015 12:09:45 GMT -5 goldenlove3 said:

Sept 10, 2015 12:00:56 GMT -5 piccyami said:

Yeah, the owner of one of her siblings from a previous litter suggested a couple books they use.  (He's going to be an agility dog.)  She says he learns a new trick pretty much every night.  We're starting with the basics.  Like going up the stairs. 

They are super smart! I really wanted to do agility with my dog and we were on track to start an intro class. Then she decided to chew a lamp cord and needed surgery so I had to cancel before class started. She needed time to recover then work got busy and we never ended up going back. I really want to get her back into some type of class though because she loved it and was really good in the ring.

That terrifies me. We had one of our cats when he was a kitten and dealt with his curiosity and chewing, but the puppy is like a vacuum cleaner.  Anything on the floor ends up in her mouth.  Including the cat hair.  And there so MUCH cat hair.  Because one of them hates being brushed.  Because he's a grumpy old cat. (He's 4)

[goldenlove3]

Sept 10, 2015 12:24:16 GMT -5 piccyami said:

Sept 10, 2015 12:09:45 GMT -5 goldenlove3 said:

They are super smart! I really wanted to do agility with my dog and we were on track to start an intro class. Then she decided to chew a lamp cord and needed surgery so I had to cancel before class started. She needed time to recover then work got busy and we never ended up going back. I really want to get her back into some type of class though because she loved it and was really good in the ring.

That terrifies me. We had one of our cats when he was a kitten and dealt with his curiosity and chewing, but the puppy is like a vacuum cleaner.  Anything on the floor ends up in her mouth.  Including the cat hair.  And there so MUCH cat hair.  Because one of them hates being brushed.  Because he's a grumpy old cat. (He's 4)

The problem was that we got too comfortable with her and started leaving her out of her crate too soon. That's another reason that crates are amazing.. it keeps them out of trouble when you're not there to watch them.

[Deleted]

She is beautiful! Happy puppy days, all pp's have covered everything I would suggest so have fun!

[pismoduo]

Sept 10, 2015 12:24:16 GMT -5 piccyami said:

Sept 10, 2015 12:09:45 GMT -5 goldenlove3 said:

They are super smart! I really wanted to do agility with my dog and we were on track to start an intro class. Then she decided to chew a lamp cord and needed surgery so I had to cancel before class started. She needed time to recover then work got busy and we never ended up going back. I really want to get her back into some type of class though because she loved it and was really good in the ring.

That terrifies me. We had one of our cats when he was a kitten and dealt with his curiosity and chewing, but the puppy is like a vacuum cleaner.  Anything on the floor ends up in her mouth.  Including the cat hair.  And there so MUCH cat hair.  Because one of them hates being brushed.  Because he's a grumpy old cat. (He's 4)

I've finally gotten my dogs to stop lunging for something as soon as I drop it on the floor, but I don't think I'll ever get them to stop eating random bits of stuff they find.

To be clear - my house isn't disgusting or anything. But if there's even one piece of a leaf or some grass or a tiny shred of paper or whatever on the floor, the dogs find it. And sometimes they smuggle those little tiny pinecones into the house without me noticing it until they're crunching away on it.

[kayladawn91]

Ahhhhh she's so so so cute!!!!!

Kong brand everything! My dogs are heavy chewers and that's the best brand for toys. We also put peanut butter in them and they love it!

My dogs hated their crates as puppies and would chew on the bars and hurt their mouths so we bought something called Bitter Apple spray and sprayed it on their crates so they wouldn't chew. It worked great for us.

Also a harness. My dogs walk much better with harnesses than with just leashes. The day I switched I noticed a 100% difference in our walks.

[pismoduo]

Speaking of harnesses - has anyone tried those harnesses that (I think) go over the head, so if the dog starts pulling on the leash it tugs their head down? Our JRT is a leash puller, and while I can usually get her to simmer down a bit with a forceful command of "Heel!" and a sharp tug, sometimes she just goes ballistic. With two different dogs on two different leashes, it can be tough to handle her at those (admittedly rare) moments. I'm wondering if a harness like that would help?

[piccyami]

Sept 10, 2015 12:42:57 GMT -5 kayladawn91 said:

Ahhhhh she's so so so cute!!!!!

Kong brand everything! My dogs are heavy chewers and that's the best brand for toys. We also put peanut butter in them and they love it!

My dogs hated their crates as puppies and would chew on the bars and hurt their mouths so we bought something called Bitter Apple spray and sprayed it on their crates so they wouldn't chew. It worked great for us.

Also a harness. My dogs walk much better with harnesses than with just leashes. The day I switched I noticed a 100% difference in our walks.

I love harnesses.  Our cats are Maine Coons and love to go for walks.  When they outgrew the kitty figure 8 harnesses, we moved to the "tiny" and "small" sizes for dogs.  I feel like I have so much more control with a dog harness than the cat ones.  We tried attaching the leash to Lucy's collar, but she just thought it was some strange game of tug.  The harness is so much better.

[TheEleventhHour]

She's adorable! I was wondering if she was an Aussie or tri-color Border Collie (we have a BC). No advice since our old man is 15 ... I completely forget what it is like to have a puppy but she is so sweet.

[hydrangea1019]

I love mini aussies!! That was our second choice behind the corgi.

I second, third, 40th the crate training. It seriously is amazing!

Also KONG KONG KONG. We don't use the kong toys that you stuff with food or pb (she's not interested) but she is IN LOOOOOVE with the Kong stuffed animals. No joke, this dog has a serious attachment to the pink Kong elephant.

Any toys that say indestructible or tough are not match for our corgi, but the kong stuffed animals last a LONG time for us!

[brazilianpeach]

Sept 10, 2015 10:37:13 GMT -5 mistabinx said:

She's adorable!! All of our dogs have LOVED kong balls, the mini is a good size for puppies. You can put treats inside that they have to work out, keeps them entertained forever and also helps them to learn what is appropriate to chew on.
kong ball example


ETA they're also very durable, this is one of the only things we gave our dogs that they couldn't destroy.

Make sure kong balls have an orifice on each side. Dogs have had their tongue sucked in the one orifice one and died. True story

[rablissful]

Sept 10, 2015 14:37:32 GMT -5 hydrangea1019 said:

I love mini aussies!! That was our second choice behind the corgi.

I second, third, 40th the crate training. It seriously is amazing!

Also KONG KONG KONG. We don't use the kong toys that you stuff with food or pb (she's not interested) but she is IN LOOOOOVE with the Kong stuffed animals. No joke, this dog has a serious attachment to the pink Kong elephant.

Any toys that say indestructible or tough are not match for our corgi, but the kong stuffed animals last a LONG time for us!

My sister bought Roland an "indestructible" toy for him one year for Christmas.

He ripped it open before we left. She was so upset by it.

[rungirlrun]

Ahh what a cutie!!