Some things you should know before Bringing your puppy home

The day you bring your puppy home, and likely for a few days after, one feeling will dominate your puppy’s experience: stress. Regardless of the surfeit of love, attention, cuddling, and coziness you’re about to bestow upon them, anything and everything they experience is likely to be stressful, because change causes stress. Everything is about to change for them. A new place, new people, new smells, and the spotlight of attention. It’s true that some puppies make this transition easily and with minimal stress. If this happens, great. But err on the side of assuming that introducing your puppy to their new home will be very stressful. Give them three full days to adjust, three days in which you will cater to eliminating as much stress as possible.

Puppy Perspective 

Your puppy’s earliest memories are of their mother and siblings. To you, they’re beyond special. But back then, they were one of several littermates and not the center of attention. They were confined to a small area and never given the run of the place, so recognize that this state is their comfort zone. Your puppy feels much more comfortable in smaller spaces. Back in that penned-in area, only safe objects were permitted by the breeder, rescue, or shelter. Spurred by the innate drive to put their mouth on everything, they developed the notion that they can chew on anything and everything. While their mother was probably not around, since puppies are separated from the mother during weaning, your puppy’s earliest days were likely spent roughhousing with their siblings, jumping on their backs, tackling, and being tackled. It is this puppy who will be entering your home, expecting that everything is fair game when it comes to chewing, pawing, knocking around, and jumping. Things are about to get interesting.

Before You Bring Puppy Home 

To make puppy’s first day in your home as stress-free as possible, be sure to prep in advance.

Get everything in order: Go shopping. Prepare your home. Buy all your supplies (see Puppy Supplies Checklist) ahead of time, and get your home in order (see Puppy-Proof Your Home), because when you bring your puppy home your job is to eliminate stress.
Plan to go directly home: We’ve seen too many first-time puppy owners who stop at a pet supply store on the way home. Stops add unnecessary stress for your pup, so plan ahead. The same applies to stopping to visit your friends and relatives on the drive home to show off your adorable new pup. It’s so tempting, but resist the urge. You need to go directly home. Let everyone know they can meet the puppy in a few days. They’ll understand.
Collar and tag: When you get your puppy, they will either have no collar or likely a light ribbon or temporary collar. Remove any temporary collar and put on the collar you bought for them, with the I.D. tag already attached. It should be loose enough that you can fit a couple of fingers between your puppy and the collar, but not so loose it hangs like a necklace. They will probably be confused and scratch at it. Just ignore this. They’ll get used to it very soon. Expect for them to be confused and annoyed by it initially. 
Borrow some food: Before heading out to pick up your puppy, find out what kind of food they’ve been eating. You may have selected a different food, so you should prepare for this transition. If they’ve been eating something different, ask if it would be possible for the breeder, rescue, or shelter to give you a small portion. If they won’t, consider purchasing a small bag of the old food. During the course of the puppy’s first week in your home, mix a bit of the new food in with the old food. Each day, add more of the new food and less of the old food until after about a week they have fully transitioned to the new food. Refer to Puppy Supplies Checklist, for more information on adding variety to your dog’s diet.

Bringing Puppy Home 

These simple steps will ensure that your puppy is calm and safe on the ride home and that your car stays relatively clean.
Crate or harness: If your puppy’s crate is small enough to fit in your vehicle, you should anchor it with a strap. If the crate won’t fit, we recommend purchasing a safety harness for your puppy’s ride home. It’s not safe to drive with your puppy in your lap.
Bring a friend: If it’s at all possible, bring a second person with you when you pick up your puppy. One person needs to do the driving. The other should sit beside the puppy and pet them and speak to them reassuringly to help alleviate stress. Most puppies have never been in a car before.
Prepare your car: Cover your car seats with towels. It’s safe to assume your puppy will throw up during the drive. Bring extra towels to help with cleaning them and the car during the drive. Diarrhea is also possible, though less likely. Stress and motion sickness can cause both vomiting and diarrhea, and your puppy may also pee in the car.
Skip the treats: Some people ask us if they should bring treats to reward their puppy on the drive home, to teach them positive associations with being in the car. It’s a good impulse, and eventually yes, you will want to reinforce this. But not today. Today just get them home. They’re too nervous to enjoy the treats and might throw them up. The next few days are not a time for training, just adjustment.
For long drives: If it’s going to be a long drive, bring food, water, poop bags, extra towels, collar, and leash. If your drive is longer than one hour, plan a break at the halfway point to take them out to potty, drink, and, if they’ll eat, have a snack.
Arriving home: When you get home, carry your puppy inside either in their crate or in your arms. Your mission for the next few days is to keep everything as calm and peaceful as possible.

showing your puppy around

When you walk in the door, there’s no need to show your puppy around (this is your crate, here’s my bedroom, this is where we keep the paper towels). You’re not a bed-and-breakfast host. You should be doing these things instead: Go potty: Go directly to their designated potty area. We will go over this more in Potty Training. This might be out in your yard or inside where you’ve laid down puppy pads on the floor. Hang out with them until they’ve relieved themselves.
Hydrate: Next, take them to the area you’ve selected for their water dish. Let them take a drink.
Hang out: Lastly, enjoy your first hangout session with your pup. Select a confined area by closing doors or using puppy gates or a playpen. Think back to their time with their mother and stick to a limited space. Sit on the floor and chat and interact if your puppy needs to burn off a bit of energy. Remember they’re disoriented, lonely, and confused, so your love and attention are really valuable. And if you have other members of your household, this is a fine time for them to come say hello, too. Your puppy should meet all of their new family on day one.