Excited, nervous, happy, curious, anxious \u2013 these are the feelings you will experience after you have purchased a dog and the dog will feel the same. Whilst it will be an emotional experience it is important to try and control these feelings for your sake and the dog’s. The dog will be leaving everything it knows and going with strangers, the last thing the dog needs is to pick up on your anxiety. This blog post should help you get started and get the dog settled in.<\/p>\n
If you know you are definitely going to be buying a dog <\/a>you can always buy items such as; toys, food bowl, drinking bowl, leads and a dog bed before you purchase the dog, just make sure the items you buy will be suitable for the dog breed you are purchasing.<\/p>\n Next, you need to make sure you have a plan for collecting the dog. Have you got a safe space in your car? Any covers to protect the car from any doggy accidents? Before attending to collect the dog it may be worth calling ahead and asking the breeder what treats you can bring for the dog as you introduce yourself to them. You can use this phone call to ask what food they have been feeding the dog and if possible when you pop to the shop to pick up the treats you can then pick up the same dog food. Puppies normally have a sensitive stomach and changing food too quickly can give them loose stools, this is the last thing you need when trying to house train. When you arrive to collect the dog try to remain calm, do not run straight over to the dog and if you have got your children with you make sure they don’t get over excited and end up running over to the dog. If the dog is happy to approach you and start sniffing around you then let them do that, they are discovering you after a little while slowly bend down to give the dog some attention, this is the perfect opportunity to give the dog one of those treats you brought with you. If the dog does not come over to you allow the breeder to bring the dog over and introduce the dog to you. If you are buying a fully trained dog from one of the companies advertising on our site, then the dog trainer will guide you through getting to know your dog and making sure both you and the dog are happy together and compatible.\u00a0 The dog trainer will also train you how to control your dog.<\/p>\n Be sure to ask the breeder or the trainer any questions you have, don’t be afraid to ask questions, a reputable dog trainer and reputable breeders will happily answer any questions you have and encourage you to ask them, after all they want what is best for everybody. The current dog owner should provide you with all of the paperwork and current vet information, it is perfectly acceptable to ask for a receipt if one is not provided by default.<\/p>\n Once you bring the dog home they may want to explore their new surroundings and have a good sniff at everything, this is perfectly normal and you should allow the dog to do so. Once they have finished exploring they will come back to you and you can give them some attention. If you have bought a puppy your fun of house training can begin, if you have purchased a fully trained dog<\/a> you will still need to teach them where they can go and how to signal to you they need to go toilet, but it is a much easier and quicker process than training from scratch.<\/p>\n When the dog has explored their new surroundings and met all the humans in the house, you can slowly begin to introduce them to any other pets you have. You should do this slowly and in a controlled manner, having treats available for both pets so they see the situation as a happy situation should help. If any pet shows signs of distress you should stop and try again after a while, be patient this process can take hours or even days and should not be rushed. There are too many ideas to put them all in here on how best to introduce pets, some methods work for some pets and others work with other pets there is no one size fits all every time, so you may have to try a variety of ideas. You are always welcome to ask for advice in our forums and if you continue to struggle with introducing your pets together you should contact a professional who can attend your property and assist you.<\/p>\n You should register with a vet as soon as possible and have the records transferred over from the current vet. It is always worth taking the dog to your vet to get them checked over, if they aren’t already microchipped then your vet can do this for you. If the dog is already microchipped make sure you have all of the information updated to your name.<\/p>\n