Everything that can be decided before the puppy arrives should be, because the first days are for getting to know your puppy, not for shopping, rearranging furniture or arguing about who walks it at six in the morning.
The most important first
- Ask your breeder first: which food the puppy eats, how much and how often, what bedding and crate it is used to, and what is in the puppy pack, so you do not buy the wrong things.
- Buy the basics, not everything: a crate or pen, a bed, bowls, the same food the breeder uses, a collar and leash, an ID tag, safe chew toys, cleaning supplies and a baby gate or two.
- Puppy-proof at puppy height: cables, shoes, children’s toys, medicines, cleaning products, bins and anything small enough to swallow are the usual problems.
- Decide on the house rules and the routine together — where the puppy sleeps, where it goes to the toilet, who feeds it and when — so everyone does the same thing from day one.
- Book your veterinarian and save the emergency numbers before the puppy is home, not after something goes wrong.
Talk to your breeder before you shop
Your breeder knows exactly what your puppy eats, where it sleeps and what it is used to, and a good breeder will want to tell you. Ask for the feeding plan in writing, including the brand, the amount and the number of meals a day, and buy that food. Changing food at the same time as changing home is one of the most common reasons for an upset stomach in the first week. Ask what the puppy pack will contain, so you do not duplicate it: many breeders send a blanket that smells of the litter, some food, and the puppy’s records. Ask, too, about the journey home and what time of day suits the puppy best.
What to buy
The American Kennel Club’s list of essentials is short, and that is a good thing. Start with:
- A crate or a puppy pen, big enough for the puppy to stand up, turn around and lie stretched out. A crate with a divider can grow with the puppy.
- A bed or washable bedding, plus spares for accidents.
- Food and water bowls, heavy enough not to tip over.
- The food your breeder uses, enough for at least the first two weeks.
- A collar or harness, a leash and an ID tag with your phone number. Check the microchip registration is in your name once the transfer is done.
- Safe chew toys: hard rubber toys are a good start. Soft toys and tennis balls are for supervised play only.
- Small, soft training treats.
- Grooming basics for the coat type: a suitable brush or comb, nail clippers, and a dog toothbrush and toothpaste.
- Cleaning supplies: paper towels and a cleaner made for pet accidents, so the smell does not draw the puppy back to the same spot.
- One or two baby gates to close off stairs and rooms.
Leave the rest for later. Expensive beds get chewed, and you will know much more about what your puppy needs after a month together.
Make your home safe
Get down on your hands and knees in every room the puppy will use and look at it from puppy height. Puppies explore with their mouths, and most accidents in the first months involve something within reach that nobody thought about. Put away or protect:
- Electrical cables and phone chargers, which puppies love to chew.
- Shoes, socks, hair ties, children’s toys and anything small — see puppies and swallowed objects for why these matter.
- Medicines, vitamins, cleaning products, and bags left on the floor, which often contain gum, sweets or medication.
- Kitchen and bathroom bins, and food on low tables.
- Foods that are dangerous to dogs, listed by the ASPCA: chocolate and caffeine, grapes and raisins, onions and garlic, macadamia nuts, alcohol and raw dough, and anything with the sweetener xylitol.
- Houseplants: check yours against a list of plants toxic to dogs, and move any doubtful ones out of reach.
- Stairs, balconies and open doors to the street or yard.
Outside, walk the fence line and look for gaps, loose boards and places to dig under. Store garden chemicals, slug and rat bait, fertilizer and antifreeze where the puppy cannot reach them, and check the yard for plants and mushrooms. Keep pool and pond covers in mind too. A puppy cannot be expected to know what is dangerous; the job of keeping it safe is yours.
Where will the puppy sleep?
Decide before the first night, because changing your mind at 2 a.m. is much harder. Many families start with the crate or pen in or next to their bedroom, so the puppy can hear and smell them and they can hear when it needs to go out. A blanket from the breeder helps. Set up a small, safe “home base” for the daytime too: a pen or a closed-off area with the bed, water and toys, where the puppy can rest without being disturbed. Puppies sleep a great deal, and children in particular need to learn that a sleeping puppy is left alone.
Agree on the rules and the routine
Sit down as a household before the puppy arrives and agree on the basics: is the puppy allowed on the sofa or upstairs, where is the toilet spot, which words will you use for “sit” and “toilet”, and who is responsible for meals, the last trip out at night and the first one in the morning. The AKC recommends agreeing on who is responsible for what and making a schedule. A puppy learns fastest when everyone does the same thing, and a written plan stops the same task being done twice or not at all.
In practice
A couple collecting a puppy in two weeks spends a Saturday morning on the floor of their apartment. They find two phone chargers behind the sofa, a basket of shoes by the door and a sago palm on the balcony, a plant that is highly toxic to dogs. The chargers go into a cable box, the shoes into a closet, and the palm goes to a friend without pets. They ask the breeder for the feeding plan, buy the same food, set up a pen in the living room and a crate by the bed, and write the morning and evening routine on a sheet on the fridge. When the puppy arrives, the only new things it has to deal with are the people and the place.
(Illustrative, composite scenario.)
Book the vet and plan the first weeks
Choose a veterinary practice and book a check for the first few days after the puppy comes home. Ask how the practice handles emergencies out of hours, and save its number, the nearest 24-hour emergency clinic and a pet poison line in your phone — the signs that mean you should call are in when to call the vet. Think, too, about insurance before you need it, and about the first weeks of your calendar: try to be at home as much as possible at first, and plan how the puppy will meet new people, sounds and places safely while its vaccinations are still being completed. The American Veterinary Society of Animal Behavior notes that the first three months are the most important period for socialization, so a plan for those weeks is worth making now.
Finally, check with your breeder that you know what the puppy pack contains, how the microchip transfer works, and how to reach them with questions. A good breeder expects to hear from you.
Work on it
A few minutes here will teach you more than re-reading the article.
Ask yourself
- Have I looked at every room the puppy will use from puppy height?
- Does everyone in the household know where the puppy sleeps, where it goes to the toilet and who does what?
- Do I know which food, how much and how often, in writing, from the breeder?
Find out & check
- Ask your breeder what the puppy pack contains and what the puppy is used to, before you buy anything.
Do one thing
- Write your puppy’s first-week routine on one sheet and put it on the fridge.
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Sources & further reading
- American Kennel Club — Preparing for a New Puppy. akc.org
- The Royal Kennel Club — Picking Up Your New Puppy. royalkennelclub.com
- ASPCA Animal Poison Control — People Foods to Avoid Feeding Your Pets. aspca.org
- ASPCA — Emergency Care for Your Pet. aspca.org
- American Veterinary Medical Association — Pet First Aid (client brochure, 2025). avma.org
- American Veterinary Society of Animal Behavior — Position Statement on Puppy Socialization. avsab.org
Where evidence is limited, recommendations rest on established practice and expert judgment, and may be updated as knowledge develops. Follow your breeder’s written plan for food and routine, and ask your own veterinarian about vaccinations, parasite control and anything to do with your puppy’s health. This is general information and does not replace advice from your veterinarian.