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Thinking about and preparing well for your puppy's journey home firs the first time can have a huge impact on their emotional state when they leave the breeder and their family and arrive in their new home. We put a fabric crate in the boot of our car (fabric because it's noiseless and soft) and encourage Rio into the crate with a Kong stuffed with wet puppy food. this gave her something to do on the way home rather than focus on being in a strange, moving car. Of course, some puppies may be too scared to eat and the crate might be just too frightening, so give your puppy all the love and reassurance they need, even sitting in the back with them so they can have physical contact with you if they so need it. Ensuring they have something that smells of their mother and siblings with them is always comforting; a toy, blanket, bed or mat that they are familiar with may help them feel a little less scared. Placing the puppy on the floor to settle away from the moving world outside of the windows might also help them settle.

It's important that the puppy and resident dog are not just allowed to meet without safety measures being put in place. Even the most mild-mannered dog may feel his nose has been pushed out of joint by a tiny ball of uncontrolled energy in his own home. We allowed Rio and Obi to meet calmly through a baby gate to gauge Obi's initial reaction and this also allowed Rio to explore her now home fully without being distracted by Obi. See part 2 for the next step. Rio meeting Obi: here's how we did it! Obi was in the living room behind a baby gate. Paul went in with Obi whilst I took Rio out for a wee. Obi was allowed to see her through the French doors so it wasn't such a shock for him to have a puppy in his house. I brought Rio back in and they were allowed to greet through the baby gate. I put Rio in her crate with her Kong and some of her dry food in a snuffle mat so her full focus wasn't on Obi or getting out of the crate. Obi was allowed into the kitchen for them to get used to each other with her in her crate. Obi was taken for a little walk to reduce his emotions. Rio went exploring the garden and house. Rio went back in her crate and Obi returned. Both were given a chew to help reduce stress and excitement. When I felt everyone was calm and happy, Paul took Obi out into the garden for a minute or two and I brought Rio out for their first greeting, which went far better than I expected. Neither dog was that bothered by the other, which is perfect! This probably would have been a different story if we'd not given them time to get used to each-other calmly and under strict control for the first hour. Not every dog is as reliable around puppy or as passive and calm as Obi, so you will need to plan for your own resident dog. If I had a more boisterous resident dog who is likely to worry the puppy, jump all over her, growl, lunge etc there would be a MUCH longer, more involved process.

Even thought many would not see it, I could tell that Obi was not fully calm and was quite excited/ stressed about the little puppy in his home, so we kept them apart until I felt he was ready. It's unfair to expect a puyyp to be calm around a new adult dog: it's very unlikely and unrealistic, so making sure the adult dog is not overwhelmed and over-excited or stressed is fundamental to the first meeint gbe safe and a social success. Also, ideally we want them to have got bored of each other when we do let them greet for the first time, so it's imperative that the dogs get to know eachother from a safe distance before they are free to fully interact. Don't rush this step. See Step 3 Rio meeting Obi: here's how we did it! Obi was in the living room behind a baby gate. Paul went in with Obi whilst I took Rio out for a wee. Obi was allowed to see her through the French doors so it wasn't such a shock for him to have a puppy in his house. I brought Rio back in and they were allowed to greet through the baby gate. I put Rio in her crate with her Kong and some of her dry food in a snuffle mat so her full focus wasn't on Obi or getting out of the crate. Obi was allowed into the kitchen for them to get used to each other with her in her crate. Obi was taken for a little walk to reduce his emotions. Rio went exploring the garden and house. Rio went back in her crate and Obi returned. Both were given a chew to help reduce stress and excitement. When I felt everyone was calm and happy, Paul took Obi out into the garden for a minute or two and I brought Rio out for their first greeting, which went far better than I expected. Neither dog was that bothered by the other, which is perfect! This probably would have been a different story if we'd not given them time to get used to each-other calmly and under strict control for the first hour. Not every dog is as reliable around puppy or as passive and calm as Obi, so you will need to plan for your own resident dog. If I had a more boisterous resident dog who is likely to worry the puppy, jump all over her, growl, lunge etc there would be a MUCH longer, more involved process.

Obi was getting a bit frustrated and over-aroused by being shut in the living room away from one of us, so we put Rio in her crate with a stuffed Kong and treats in her snuffle mat as well as toys to keep her occupied whilst we let Obi out to roam around. All of this is done to try to keep arousal levels down and let them get to know each other before even thinking about letting them interact fully. Rio meeting Obi: here's how we did it! Obi was in the living room behind a baby gate. Paul went in with Obi whilst I took Rio out for a wee. Obi was allowed to see her through the French doors so it wasn't such a shock for him to have a puppy in his house. I brought Rio back in and they were allowed to greet through the baby gate. I put Rio in her crate with her Kong and some of her dry food in a snuffle mat so her full focus wasn't on Obi or getting out of the crate. Obi was allowed into the kitchen for them to get used to each other with her in her crate. Obi was taken for a little walk to reduce his emotions. Rio went exploring the garden and house. Rio went back in her crate and Obi returned. Both were given a chew to help reduce stress and excitement. When I felt everyone was calm and happy, Paul took Obi out into the garden for a minute or two and I brought Rio out for their first greeting, which went far better than I expected. Neither dog was that bothered by the other, which is perfect! This probably would have been a different story if we'd not given them time to get used to each-other calmly and under strict control for the first hour. Not every dog is as reliable around puppy or as passive and calm as Obi, so you will need to plan for your own resident dog. If I had a more boisterous resident dog who is likely to worry the puppy, jump all over her, growl, lunge etc there would be a MUCH longer, more involved process.

Rio meeting Obi: here's how we did it! Obi was in the living room behind a baby gate. Paul went in with Obi whilst I took Rio out for a wee. Obi was allowed to see her through the French doors so it wasn't such a shock for him to have a puppy in his house. I brought Rio back in and they were allowed to greet through the baby gate. I put Rio in her crate with her Kong and some of her dry food in a snuffle mat so her full focus wasn't on Obi or getting out of the crate. Obi was allowed into the kitchen for them to get used to each other with her in her crate. Obi was taken for a little walk to reduce his emotions. Rio went exploring the garden and house. Rio went back in her crate and Obi returned. Both were given a chew to help reduce stress and excitement. When I felt everyone was calm and happy, Paul took Obi out into the garden for a minute or two and I brought Rio out for their first greeting, which went far better than I expected. Neither dog was that bothered by the other, which is perfect! This probably would have been a different story if we'd not given them time to get used to each-other calmly and under strict control for the first hour. Not every dog is as reliable around puppy or as passive and calm as Obi, so you will need to plan for your own resident dog. If I had a more boisterous resident dog who is likely to worry the puppy, jump all over her, growl, lunge etc there would be a MUCH longer, more involved process.

Please do ask if you would like a written guide to introducing your puppy to a resident dog if this is something you would like more information on. I will stress again, the only reason this worked is because they had a lot of time to get to know each-other in a controlled, calm manner. Allowing your puppy to jump all over a resident dog without any prior calm greetings could result in a negative experience.

I don't use puppy pads as I feel that this only doubles your work and confuses the puppy. What do I do? 1. Religiously take puppy out every half an hour - set an alarm if you have to! 2. Stand outside and do not interact with puppy at all: no eye-contact, not talking, just say the cue you want to teach the dog to understand what you would like her to do, e.g 'wee-wees' 3. When she does her business, wait for her to finish, click or say your marker work and feed her a treat EVERY single time so that she associations toileting outside with a positive reward and is more likely to begin to understand that this is where you want her to toilet. Consistency is key here. If the puppy does toilet in the house, so not punish this or even look disappointed as this may make the puppy seek a more hidden place to go to avoid being told off. IT just means that they are not fully house-trained yet and you weren't quick enough to get them outside!