Supplies: Collar, leash, food (food and
water bowls), and some toys. We recommend the purchase of a crate, this will aid in housetraining and give your dog a comfortable
area to call his own.
Homecoming:Try to arrange the homecoming
at a time when you can spend a few days of constant one on one
time with your dog. A week of vacation time is ideal or just before
the weekend.
Health care: Animals coming from
shelters may not have been fully vaccinated. Despite proper attention
some viruses still spread and may affect the dog you’re
adopting. Make sure any other animals currently in your home are
healthy and completely vaccinated for their protection. Have a
veterinarian check out the health of your new dog/puppy. Don’t
forget to be a responsible pet owner and have your dog spayed
or neutered!
House rules: Consistency is key when
it comes to setting routines! Decide in advance who is going to
be responsible for walking, feeding, and housetraining. Now is
also a good time to decide whether Fido is going to be allowed
on the furniture, where he’s going to sleep and if he is
going to have access to the whole house or if some rooms are going
to be off limits. It is much easier to start off with desirable
behaviours than it is to change them later.
Training and Discipline: Your dog
needs to know that YOU are the boss. Dogs are pack animals and
you want to make certain that you are the pack leader right from
day one. When you catch Fido doing something that he shouldn’t,
keep calm. In a firm disapproving tone, tell him “wrong”.
Don’t forget to praise your dog when he does something right.
A few treats or rewards make all the difference. Our Obedience
classes are a huge help in this area.
Housetraining: Routine and consistency
are extremely important when housetraining. Check out our behaviour
modification section for more information and helpful hints
Crating: This is not puppy jail!
Your dog has an innate “den” instinct. A crate can
make all the difference in housetraining and give your dog a safe
area that he can call his own. You should purchase a crate that
will be large enough to accommodate your dogs full grown size.
To reduce the risk of accidents in his crate, make the space smaller
with a crate divider of a secured piece of wood. Start off by
introducing the crate slowly. Only leave your dog in it for in
a few minutes a time until he’s comfortable, gradually increasing
the time he spends in his crate. Try using a command and a treat
to get him into the crate, “Time for crate” as you
throw in a treat.
Contact us for more information
to make your homecoming as wonderful as it should be!!!!
