site-FcpdNw • March 26, 2021

Bringing Home Your New Puppy And New Puppy Checklist

In this post, I will be discussing everything I did to prepare for Caos's arrival, what I brought with me on the journey to pick him up, and what to expect during the first 24 hours with your new puppy. 

Preparing for your new puppy

It's pretty common to put down a deposit on a puppy before the litter is born, which is exactly what I did with Caos. This allowed me PLENTY of time to prepare for the moment I would finally bring Caos home. There's so much to think about and with your level of excitement quickly rising, I'm here to help you gather all the necessary items to have before bringing home your new puppy.

Here is a list of items I purchased BEFORE my puppy came home:

Collars. Now, I went a little overboard in this area and had 4 different collars for Caos before he even came home. And even with 4 collars, none of them fit because he was smaller than I had expected. So make sure to have a couple cheap collars in different sizes, so you can be prepared for your puppy.  

Harness. Some people choose not to purchase a harness, however they seem to have gained a lot of popularity over the years. Initially, I wasn't planning on purchasing a harness, however I found this amazing tactical harness on Amazon (I'll be writing a post all about my favorite puppy products and linking them in the future) that I couldn't resist. Not only did it have velcro on both sides for patches (Caos had his name on one side and "In Training" on the other) but it also had a handle on the top, which came in really handy for picking Caos up without having to bend all the way down. It was almost like he was a little purse!

Leash. This is pretty self explanatory. I bought 2 leashes in case I couldn't find one or needed a backup. 

Food and water bowl. There are a TON of cute food and water bowls, but remember, you will most likely need to purchase a larger set of bowls as your puppy matures. 

Toys. Lots of toys! Remember to get a variety of soft toys, hard toys, and something kind of in the middle. Puppies are going to gravitate towards the softer, plush toys in the beginning, but they grow FAST and their preferences will change just as quickly.

Dog bed. I went ahead and spent the money on a higher quality large dog bed that Caos could grow into, but you can always buy a smaller dog bed for your puppy and purchase bigger beds as your puppy grows. 

Treats. It's pretty common for puppies to have sensitive tummies, but if you want to pick up some treats to try out, go for it!

Puppy food. Be sure to ask whoever you are getting your puppy from what brand of food they are feeding the puppy. You may want to switch brands down the line, but it's extremely important to transition any puppy/dog's food over time, and like I said earlier, puppies are notorious for having sensitive tummies. 

Potty training. If you're going to use puppy pee pads or something similar, you'll want to make sure you have those items ahead of time. If you're going to teach your puppy to go out in the yard, maybe you want to hang some bells by the door and teach your puppy to ring the bells when they need to go potty. Because I live in an apartment complex with other dogs, I opted to use "Doggie Lawn" to potty train Caos. If you want to learn more about the Doggie Lawn, check out my post about my experience with potty training Caos. 

Dog crate. Again, this is an item not everyone decides to use. However, if you do decide to utilize a crate, remember to get a crate just big enough for your puppy to stand and turn around in. If the crate is too big, your puppy will potty on one side and sleep on the other. Now I get it, crates are expensive. So if you plan on utilizing a crate and want to buy one that your puppy will be able to use when it is full grown, just make sure to section off the crate and only allow your puppy room enough to stand up and turn around. 

Some other items you may want to purchase before your puppy arrives are; 
  • Brush 
  • Toothbrush and toothpaste
  • An ID tag
  • Nail clippers or a nail grinder
  • Blankets personally for your puppy
  • Treat pouch
  • Portable dog bowls for traveling or long hikes 
  • And if you're into clothes or bandanas for your pup, add those in too!


Picking up your puppy and the first 24 hours

Alright, the time has finally come to go pick up your puppy! You have all your essential items ready for when your puppy finally gets home, but now we need to prepare for the drive. Whether you only need to travel 10 minutes or 6 hours (like me), you're going to want to have the following items with you on your journey:

Collar/harness and leash. If you're traveling many hours like I had to, you will need to stop for potty breaks, so having a collar and leash will be essential. Now, for some of you who only have a short journey and will be carrying your puppy, I would still recommend to bring a collar and leash because you never know what may happen.

Blankets. I knew I wanted to cuddle Caos the entire journey home, so I made sure to have plenty of blankets at the bottom of my seat and on myself so he would have a comfy place to rest. If you plan on crating your puppy for the journey home, blankets in the crate will offer a comfy, soft space for your puppy to sleep. 

Crate. Some people choose to crate their puppies on the journey home. So if that's you, make sure to safely place the puppy's crate in your car and have it nice and secure before your journey home.

Towel, paper towels, wet wipes, and a natural cleaning spray. It doesn't matter if you are driving 10 minutes or 6 hours, puppies tend to get car sick. If this happens, you're going to want to be prepared to clean up any accidents that may arise. 

Other items you may decide to bring are extra water, portable dog bowls, toys, food, or treats! 



Welcome Home!

You finally have your puppy and you're about to walk through the front door. How exciting! Here are a couple things to keep in mind when you bring your new puppy home, especially during the first 24 hours. 

Other pets. Now, ultimately this is your puppy and how you choose to raise him/her is up to you. However, your new puppy is experiencing a lot right now. Your puppy has just been taken from his/her littermates and mother and has embarked on an entirely new journey where everything is new, and sometimes scary. By keeping your other dog(s) and cat(s) in another area of the house when you bring home your new puppy, it allows your puppy to adjust to all the new smells and surroundings without being over stimulated by other animals.  

Puppy proofing! Puppies are notorious for getting into trouble by getting into things they aren't supposed to. To prevent any accidents from happening or your puppy getting into something he/she shouldn't, make sure to block off any areas you can't see. This will allow your puppy to have the chance to explore and run around in a controlled environment. In some cases, you may want to attach a leash or long lead to your puppy in case you need to redirect them at any moment. Also, be sure to put up any wires or cords that may be enticing and harmful to your puppy.

And finally, potty breaks! Puppies have an extremely small bladder and need to be taken potty A LOT if you want to prevent accidents. Just remember to take your puppy potty after every nap, after eating and drinking, and after playtime. It's better to be safe than sorry, so frequent trips outside will not only minimize accidents, but you will begin to identify your puppy's potty schedule. There's a reason people always say, "getting a puppy is like having a baby," they require A LOT of time and attention and your sleep will definitely be compromised. 

If you want to know more about how I potty trained Caos and the methods I used while living in an apartment, I will have a post about that up soon. 

As always, thanks so much for following along! This is me, running with Caos. 
By Alexandria Steely July 26, 2021
With summer in full swing and COVID-19 restrictions being lifted, anyone and everyone is outside trying to enjoy the weather and sun. Now, I don't know if it's because more people are out and about more than ever or if people are more carefree now that COVID-19 restrictions have been lifted, but I am noticing A TON of people at the parks with their dogs off-leash. Now, I am fully in favor of having my dog off-leash under the right circumstances. I have also trained, and am still in the process of training, my dog to be off-leash. Yes, you heard that right, training my dog to be off-leash. Listen, I'm here to break it to you... no matter how much you think your dog loves you and will stay by you when taken off leash, they're just not going to. As soon as you take that leash off, your dog is going to leave your side and engage in self-rewarding behaviors like exploring, sniffing, chasing birds, etc. Here's an example of an encounter I had the other day at the park: A woman pulls up to the park with her dog and gets out of the car with her dog on leash. I'm in a large grassy area working with Caos about 15 feet away from some items I had left in the grass. I continue working with Caos, but also am aware that this woman is now in the same vicinity as me, as Caos is off-leash. I watch as this woman takes her dog off-leash and the dog immediately trots off to smell the surroundings. At this point, I ask Caos to come to me and lay down, as I wait to ensure that the woman has control of her dog. As I'm watching, I notice that not only is the woman on her phone and not paying attention to her dog, but she also hasn't noticed that Caos and I are under the shade by the tree line. The woman's dog proceeds to go over to my things that I had left in the grass and begins rummaging through them. At this point, the woman finally looks up from her phone and begins yelling, "no," "come," "leave it," "stop that," "come," to which the dog doesn't even acknowledge her existence. It's not until the woman finally reaches her dog, that she's able to pull it away from my belongings. The woman then pulls her dog by the collar away from my things, releases the dog again, throws a ball and tells her dog, "go get it," to which the dog completely ignores her again and trots off the opposite way. The woman continues to yell commands at her dog as she runs after it and finally puts the leash on. Sadly, I hear the woman say to the dog, "why are you doing this to me?" "why aren't you listening to me?" I then continue my training session with Caos, all while continuing to be aware of my surroundings and this woman. I watch and listen as I hear the woman becoming increasingly frustrated as she's giving her dog commands to no avail, although now with the leash on, and hear her say, "look, that dog is being good and listening to his owner," "why aren't you listening to me", "don't you love me?" It was truly heartbreaking because I could hear the hurt in the woman's voice. But the thing is, just because your dog loves you, doesn't mean they're going to stay with you when given the opportunity to be off-leash. Your dog has to respect you and listen to you ON LEASH before you can think about taking the leash off. If your dog can't sit, down, heel, stay while on a leash how can you expect them to 1) listen to you when off-leash and 2) be called off a distraction... you can't. You need to have a solid foundation and be sure that your dog is engaged with you FIRST, then you can start to think about taking the leash off. And even then, start with a 50 foot or 100 foot long line that you can attach to your dogs collar. That way, your dog can be away from you and have the opportunity to explore, but if they don't listen, then you still have a way to correct them or pull them back to you. Now, things happen and you may be working your dog off-leash for weeks or months with 100% recall and then all of the sudden your dog fixates on something and doesn't come back when called. Figure out what went wrong and go back to the basics. Maybe you need more exposure on leash with whatever the distraction was or maybe you need to go back to using the long line. That's okay. What's not okay is continuing to take your dog off-leash when they aren't listening to you, in hopes that it's just going to click and they will all of the sudden become obedient. Because like the woman I mentioned earlier and so many others that I've come across at this park, they continue to let their dogs off-leash with no progress in their training. I have seen dogs run across the street to get a ball, run clear across the field to chase a person, and seen dogs leave their owners to run up to another dog. Any one of these scenarios could have ended in tragedy if a car was coming, if the dog attacked the person, or if either dog was aggressive. So please, be a responsible dog owner and keep your dog on a leash until they trained and have a solid recall. And if an accident does happen and your dog runs up to another person or dog, PLEASE apologize to that individual. Be smart and be responsible. As always, this is me, running with Caos.
By Alexandria June 11, 2021
Potty Training. An often frustrating aspect of training a puppy. No one wants to deal with accidents and the constant in and out for multiple potty breaks, but we all have to do it. Surprisingly, constant accidents and unsuccessful potty training is a huge reason why so many dogs wind up in shelters. First and foremost, potty training begins the moment you walk through your front door with your new puppy, so you need to do some research in advance so that you can decide how you are going to potty train your puppy. Now what do I mean when I say you need to be prepared? Well, you need to determine by what means you will be potty training your puppy. Do you live in a house and you will be utilizing your backyard from the beginning? Do you live in an apartment with easy and quick access to grass? Are you going to use puppy potty pads or something similar? Will you be using a training bell on the door to teach your puppy to alert you when they need to go out? Whatever method you decide to use to potty train your puppy, remember these 3 points: Consistency is key. Patience is a virtue. Potty training won't happen overnight. Positive reinforcement will create good habits and strengthen the bond between you and your puppy. Timing is Everything Now, for a GENERAL rule of thumb, a puppy can hold its bladder for 1 hour for every month old they are. For example, if your puppy is 5 months old then they should be able to hold their bladder for about 5 hours. Remember, however, that this is a general rule and some puppies have smaller bladders. Puppies need to be taken out A LOT! For a frame of reference, you're going to need to take your puppy out: First thing when he/she wakes up in the morning After every meal After they drink water After they wake up from a nap After playtime Right before bed When taking your puppy outside, always go out the same door and go to the same spot in the grass/yard. Your puppy thrives on routine and consistency and will begin to correlate the actions you take, with knowing it's time to go potty. Also, be sure to keep in mind that if you do live in an apartment complex, there are multiple other dogs using the same grass your puppy will be using and you don't know if they are sick, have been vaccinated, or are carrying any parasites or diseases. Until a puppy is fully vaccinated, it is extremely important to keep puppies away from areas where other dogs have used the bathroom. As a rule of thumb, if you see poop or traces in the grass, go somewhere else. Before I brought Caos home, I knew I would have a difficult time taking Caos to the same spot to potty every time, due to the amount of dogs at my apartment complex and the fact that people don't pick up after their dogs (this still baffles me, there's poop stations all over for the owners convenience and it's part of a dog owners responsibility.. but I digress). So, I decided to purchase a Doggie Lawn. Doggie Lawn is a great company that sends owners REAL grass swatches that can be left outside, or inside with a tray, and deodorizes all odors because it's real grass. This allowed me to take Caos outside, to the same grass area every time, where I could ensure he would be safe from catching any parasites or diseases from other dogs. I would highly recommend checking them out if you live in an apartment complex or simply want more peace of mind! Now, Let's Talk Accidents Accidents will happen.. and it's your fault, not your puppy's. So how do we minimize accidents? Don't deviate from your routine. Have your leashes, collars, shoes, flashlight, umbrella, and treats by the door. If accidents are going to happen, they're going to happen in the moment where you can't find your shoes or your puppy's leash. So designate a spot to store everything you may need to take your puppy outside to potty and make sure you always return those items to that same spot. Now, when an accident happens there are two things you can do: 1) If you catch them in the act, firmly say no, pick the puppy up, and take them outside to their potty spot. If they finish going outside, praise them like you would normally, and return inside. 2) If you find the accident after it's happened, you CANNOT punish your puppy. I repeat, you CANNOT punish your puppy if you don't catch them actively going potty inside. Do not rub your puppy's nose in the accident. Your puppy is not able to distinguish that the act of going potty in the house is what he/she is being punished for. Clean up the accident and determine why the accident happened. Is the area for your puppy too big? Were you not watching them? Determine what happened and move on. Have a plan, stick to your schedule, and remember that timing is everything. Potty training doesn't have to be a nightmare, and as long as you're consistent, potty training will be a breeze. As always, thanks so much for reading! This is me, running with Caos.
By Alexandria Steely May 9, 2021
Puppies. They're so cute, soft, and snuggly! But those sharp, razor blade like little puppy teeth are anything but soft and cuddly! But here's the thing, puppies don't have hands. Well duh, right? Obviously not, because every day people are always asking and searching in Google for, "How do I stop my puppy from biting?" Puppies can't feel, play with, and experiment with different textures and objects with hands like human babies can, so they use their mouths to explore. Furthermore, when puppies start teething, they're going to want to bite and chew on whatever they can get their mouths on. There's all sorts of articles out there that will tell you how to get your puppy to stop biting and nipping. I've read everything from yelping out loud when they bite, like their littermates would. I've read articles telling people to press against their puppy's upper lip. There are plenty of methods out there that you could try. But how do you stop your Malinois puppy from biting? Truth is, you don't. They're called "maligators" for a reason and your puppy was bred to bite. Your Malinois puppy simply isn't going to stop biting. Even if your puppy isn't from a powerhouse working line, your puppy is still going to encompass the intense desire to bite. Simply put, your Malinois puppy has a natural drive to bite.. And that's what they're going to do. So if you're reading this hoping to find the magic method to get your Malinois puppy to stop biting, you're not going to find it. What I can help you with, is in learning how to redirect your Malinois puppy from biting you, onto a toy. Hone in on your puppy's natural instinct and desire to bite. Play with a rope or toy, and refocus their attention from your shirt, onto the toy. Truth is, if your puppy is out with you then you should be engaged in some kind of training session or play time. When your puppy is out, you should have 100% of your focus, on your puppy. So if you don't feel like constantly redirecting your puppy from biting due to being tired or just wanting to relax, then your puppy should be in its crate where it can't get into trouble or learn bad behaviors. Remember, you got a Belgian Malinois. Biting just comes with the territory.
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