Bringing a new puppy into your home is so exciting! You have a lot of fun ahead of you, but also a lot of work. Your new furry friend will, of course, need some supplies. It’s a good idea to get your puppy’s supplies ahead of time so that you aren’t running around at the last minute. If you already have a puppy, you may want to check out the list and see if you’re missing any helpful supplies. Below is a complete list of new puppy supplies. For some items, I have included links to specific brands that I like.
The Basics
- Food and water bowls – Simple metal bowls will work, but if you want to get more creative there are dog bowls in all kinds of cute designs and fun words.
- Collar – Any well fitting flat buckle will work. I think these collars with engraved buckles are cool because they also work as an ID tag for your dog:
- ID Tag – The tag should include your phone number and the dog’s name. If you decide to get a collar with an engraved buckle, you can put this information on the buckle instead of an ID tag.
- Leash – I recommend a 6ft leash (4 ft is very short and doesn’t give your dog much room to move). For some situations, you may want to have an additional long leash (10ft+).
- Crate – Refrain from adding any type of bedding at first. It should be big enough for your puppy to stand and turn around freely. A metal wire crate with a plastic bottom works well in most cases.
- Crate Cover – Most dogs seem more comfortable in their crates when they are covered. You can buy one in a color to match your home.
- Dog Bed – You will probably want to get a comfy dog bed for your new puppy. Some dogs really love their dog beds, while others seem content to lie on the floor or prefer sleeping on the couch. You can train your dog to go to the bed and lie down on cue.
- Poop Bags or Poop Scooper
- Pet Floor/Carpet Cleaner – Make sure whatever you use is an enzymatic cleaner designed for pet messes. You want to be sure the cleaner completely destroys the odor so that your puppy cannot smell the mess anymore.
Optional Training Equipment
- Treat pouch – You can simply put treats in your pocket, but a treat pouch is convenient for quickly reaching your treats. Treats in your pocket might get forgotten and end up in your wash. It’s definitely happened to me more than once.
- Bitter Spray – You can spray this on furniture legs and other items your puppy is inappropriately choosing to chew. In many puppies, the bitter taste will discourage chewing on inappropriate items while proper chewing habits develop. However, some puppies don’t seem to mind the taste!
Grooming Supplies
Some grooming supplies you should have on hand for any puppy, like puppy shampoo. Even if you plan on paying a groomer to bathe your dog, you will want to keep shampoo on hand in case your puppy becomes unexpectedly dirty. Some grooming supplies are only necessary if you plan to do things yourself rather than pay a groomer, such as nail trimmers. If your puppy will need regular haircuts and you plan to do the trimming yourself, you will want to get a set of hair clippers.
- Puppy shampoo
- Nail Trimmers or Dremel
Brush - Hair clippers
- Styptic Powder (like Kwik Stop) – If you plan to trim your dog’s nails yourself, you should also get some styptic powder to stop your dog’s bleeding in case you cut too far. It’s an easy mistake to make!
Toys
Your new puppy will of course need plenty of toys! You will need to get a variety of toys, including chew toys for your dog to chew on independently and toys for playing with you, like balls, rope toys, and water toys. It’s important early on to try out a lot of different toys so that your puppy has an opportunity for different types of play. Once you figure out which toys are your dog’s favorite, you can buy more of that type. You’ll want to buy several chew toys in whichever type your dog seems to enjoy the most. If your dog ends up being ball obsessed, you can buy a bunch of different balls for him. If he’s more of a tug fiend, you can get some nice rope toys.
When you figure out which types of toys your puppy seems to like best, you can keep several of them out for your dog to play with and keep several more hidden away in a drawer. Once a toy has been out for a while, you can put it away in a drawer and get out a new toy. Once the old toy has been unavailable for a while, your puppy will probably get more excited about it once you bring it out again.
As cute as it is to give your puppy a soft teddy bear toy, many puppies will eventually destroy soft, plushie toys. They seem to take much satisfaction in dissecting the toys, removing the squeaker, and strewing the stuffing all over the room. Plushie toys can be an appropriate outlet for destructive behavior (better the toy than your couch cushion), but plushie toys are absolutely not appropriate for a dog who will ingest any of the toy’s parts.
Some toys are designed to be stuffed with some sort of treat. These toys give your puppy extra incentive to focus their destructive efforts on toys rather than your valued possessions. One of the classic food stuffing toys is the Kong. For a puppy, you should get the Puppy Kong because it is softer and gentler on puppy teeth. If your dog ends up becoming a powerful chewer, you may want to get a tougher black Extreme Kong rather than the red Classic Kong. You can fill a Kong with wet food and kibble and freeze it for a longer lasting food stuffed toy.
Be aware of any toys your dog brings out into your yard. When you mow your lawn, you will want to make sure each toy is collected from the yard first. A Kong left in my parent’s yard broke a lawn mower and the back window of my mom’s car! The lawn mower broke when it sucked up the Kong, and the people who loaded the newly repaired lawn mower into my mom’s car didn’t secure it properly. The lawn mower rolled into the back window of my mom’s car and shattered it. Failing to retrieve the Kong before mowing the lawn turned out to be a fairly costly mistake!
If you ever plan to get your dog into the water, you will probably want some sort of floating water toy for your dog to play with in the water. My dog, Bella, loves nothing more on a warm day at the lake than to jump in the water to retrieve her floating stick toy over and over again. Of course, if I forget her toy we can use real sticks that we find by the lake, but she can much more easily see and retrieve her toy.
- Puppy Kong – for stuffing with treats and letting your dog work the treats out
- Nylabones – for chewing
- Ball Toy – for chasing
- Rope Toy – for playing tug
- Water Toys – for chasing in the water
Puppy Food
The food you feed your puppy should be made specifically for puppies. When you get your puppy, find out what type of food the puppy is currently eating. Ideally, you will be sent home with a small bag of the food to get you started. If you decide to switch to a different food, make sure to transition gradually by mixing in gradually greater amounts of the new food into the old food.
Training Treats
You should have on hand a variety of training treats your puppy likes. Give your puppy a variety of treats and watch his reaction to figure out which they like the most. Usually, some treats will be higher value to your puppy than others. Then, you can use the higher value treats for those times when you wånt to give your puppy a really awesome reward.
Your puppy’s kibble can be used as training treats if your puppy is willing to work for kibble. Try hand feeding your puppy some kibble. If he quickly eats it and seems eager for more, you may be able to use kibble as a nutritionally balanced and cost effective low value treat.
Treats Treasured Creatures Recommends
- Zuke’s are a great soft treat. They come in conveniently small pieces.
- Freeze Dried treats in general tend to be a favorite of most dogs (beef liver, salmon, chicken, etc.)
- There are plenty of other dog treats on the market, but you can also make your own homemade treats. Here are a few homemade treat recipes:
- Chicken jerky treats: https://fakeginger.com/homemade-chicken-jerky-dogs/
- Soft peanut butter and pumpkin treats: https://www.pinterest.com/pin/844493663347577/
- Crunchy peanut butter and sweet potato treats: https://www.mommalew.com/peanut-butter-sweet-potato-dog-treats-recipe/
- You can also give your puppy other things from your refrigerator or pantry, including natural peanut butter, baked or boiled chicken, and certain vegetables like broccoli and bell peppers. Important Note – Please make sure any food you give your puppy is not on the list of toxic or dangerous foods for dogs. These include, but are not limited to, chocolate, raisins/grapes, raw onions and garlic, macadenia nuts, and avocados.