Having a pet join you in your home is an exciting time in your life. You will be enjoying the companionship of a furry friend to cuddle, play with, train, and enrich your life. To make sure your pet gets the best chance at a long, healthy life, you’ll want to give them a great start.
There’s plenty of information about dog care on the Internet, but that doesn’t mean all of it is good or educated. To make sure that you and your dog create a good foundation for a long, happy life together full of play and joy, now is when you need to consider what your dog will need for the future.
These tips aren’t for any specific dog breed. Instead, they are to help you create the most positive experience for you and for your dog as you start your life together.
Bringing Home Your Dog
Whether you’re bringing home a wise senior dog or a joyous little puppy, you’ll want to make sure your home is prepared to welcome your new buddy. The first week you spend with your new dog is incredibly exciting, but it can also be a bit unsettling. Suddenly, you have another living being in your home who is also a little nervous and excited, and very curious about their new home.
Rescue dog or puppy
First, the rules for bringing home an older dog and a puppy are quite different. In general, older dogs often have the basics down. They’ll be housebroken, will understand a few commands, and be comfortable on a leash. However, that doesn’t mean they won’t be coming with some bad habits you’ll need to break or trauma you may have to work through.
Rescue dogs often end up in shelters for reasons beyond their understanding or control. When you bring a rescue dog into your life, you’ll have to be ready for a few weeks or months when your dog will have to adjust to their new life with you.
To help your shelter dog acclimatize to your home and their new life, try these tips:
Help them relax
While you may be pumped to have your new dog home with you (and we’re sure they’re pumped too!), this is also a bit of a scary time for them. They may bond very quickly to you, and it will make separation hard on them. To help your dog gain confidence in their new home and the stability of their relationship with you, start by leaving your home frequently for short periods.
Mini departures can be achieved by closing doors when you’re changing or showering so your dog gets used to briefly not seeing you.
Also, stay relaxed! Your dog can sense if you’re nervous, so take some deep breaths and stay positive!
Establish rules early
Dogs thrive off consistency and structure. If you share your home with more than one person, it’s essential that you all follow the same rules and commands when it comes to your dog. The more consistent you all are, the faster your dog will figure out the rules and how your home works.
Figure out feeding and exercise schedules early on and stay constant. Active dogs may need more exercise to avoid destructive behavior.
Encourage good habits
Your dog won’t know what it’s doing right unless you confirm. Do this with a positive reward system. Give your dog small treats when they’re lying down quietly by themselves when they wait for their food, or when they refrain from pulling when they’re being walked. Whatever positive behavior you see that you want to encourage, make sure your dog knows.
Mistakes are learning opportunities
Further to the above, when your dog makes a mistake, yelling at them is not what you want to do. Negative behaviors aren’t done to annoy you or hurt you, they’re done because your dog doesn’t know better, is scared or anxious, or is trying to cope with their new surroundings.
The best way to make sure your dog doesn’t make mistakes is to manage the situation. Dog-proof your home, watch your dog closely, and give them plenty of toys to keep them occupied. Also, understand what kind of dog you’re bringing home. High energy dogs like German Shepherds, Huskies, and terriers all need a generous amount of exercise to stay calm and collected.
Bringing home a puppy.
Bringing home a puppy will have you facing many of the same challenges as a shelter dog, but puppies are more malleable. Instead of breaking ingrained habits, you will be teaching them new habits.
Puppies are incredibly curious, which means they will want to get in everything. Be prepared and keep anything that might be dangerous to them out of the way. Use garbage bins with lids, keep baby latches on cabinets, and look closely at your yard for hazards.
You’ll want to be ready with a crate, grooming tools, and toys for your puppy so that they can start to feel right at home the second they get home. Like a shelter dog, you’ll want to establish a routine for your puppy. Show your puppy around their new home so they can find their food, water, and crate. Learn to introduce them to people with care. Too many new people can be overwhelming for a puppy.
This is also a great time to establish good habits that are tricky with older dogs. One big thing that is often neglected is brushing their teeth. It’s a weird experience for dogs to have their teeth cleaned, but it’s essential. Pet dental products are usually flavored to make it a bit more enjoyable for your dog, but it’s still easier to get your puppy to associate tooth brushing with a positive experience than teaching an older dog.
Becoming an ideal dog parent
Interacting with dogs is a magical thing. They can truly help us understand more about ourselves and the world around us. They give us unconditional love, compassion, and play and can help us be more compassionate, loving, and playful in return.
But providing a happy home for a dog and becoming a great dog owner is more than throwing a ball and laying down a bowl of kibble.
Learn your dog’s body language
Your dog can’t sit down across from you and tell you how they feel, which is why you need to learn to read their body language. Dogs give off a multitude of signals at all times of the day, letting you know exactly what they’re thinking. The issue comes when people try to interpret a dog’s body language without any research or further understanding. Now, we don’t expect you to become a professional dog trainer for this one. Instead, the key is to learn your dog’s body language so you can better communicate with them.
Learn all about their likes and dislikes
While there are certain things every dog likes and dislikes, your dog has a unique personality, and you should want to get to know them just as much as you’d want to get to know anyone else in your life that you care about. Recognize their triggers and what makes them tick. Understand their habits and idiosyncrasies. Once you know this, you’ll be on the right path to being the perfect dog parent. You’ll be able to see issues taking shape before they become a problem and anticipate future problems as well.
Training time is essential.
Training isn’t an option when it comes to having a happy, healthy dog. Training is everything from simple commands like sit, stay, and lay down, to more complex concepts like proper walking etiquette, recall, and how to meet strangers.
Good manners and self-control aren’t just about you having a happy home, they’re about you having a happy dog as well. A well-trained dog is a dog who understands the rules set out for them and what’s expected of them in their home. They don’t feel like they have to be the boss, because they know that you are the boss and are in control of the situation. This makes them happier and more relaxed.
Training should be a fun activity you and your dog enjoy. Instead of hour-long, marathon sessions, train for just fifteen minutes at a time, or five, or even one. Incorporate training into you and your dog’s day in every way you can.
That’s the key to getting a dog to respond to you every time. They should know that going towards you and listening to you means they will have more fun than if they run away or disobey. This is what is meant by positive reinforcement training. Your dog associates you with everything right in their life, so they enjoy listening to you.
Consistency is key
You and your dog’s overall success comes down to consistency. Lack of consistency in training is the number one reason most dog owners fail with their dogs. Have a vested interest in your dog and a long term plan for where you want your dog to end up, while still having realistic expectations of what you and your dog can achieve. A family dog shouldn’t have to respond like a police K-9, and they don’t need to for them to still be a wonderful, obedient, and happy companion.
