Adopting a Puppy
Thinking about adopting a puppy, or maybe you already have; this guide will lend you a hand! Are you thinking about getting a puppy soon? We can help you find the right breed, size, vet and more!
Owning a dog is an extremely big responsibility and takes a lot of time, money and effort from you and your family. Pet City recommend you do thorough research about different breeds before buying, and make sure you consider the personality traits, grooming requirements and energy levels of each breed before choosing a dog.
Is a Dog Right For You?
Read these below questions carefully and if possible, right down your answers somewhere that you and your family can review together.
- How will this affect your family?
- How will a new pet go with your current pets?
- How will this affect your holidays?
- Are you planning on moving overseas where you might not be able to take the animal?
- Do you have disposable income to spend on vet bills, good food and enrichment?
Choosing the Right Breed
Each breed have unique needs that need to be considered, like temperament, grooming and exercise requirements. For example, Chihuahuas are loyal and make great companions, however aren't always great with children; while the Jack Russell is high energy and need active owners to keep up with their energetic lives.
Four things need to be considered when choosing a breed:
- Energy Levels (low/high)
- Adult Size (small/medium/large)
- Grooming Requirements (low/high)
- Social Temperament (friendly/moody)
Choose one answer from each point. While this is just a rough guide and the personality of each individual pooch is different, this should help kickstart your journey in finding the perfect dog.
Buying A Dog
This most important part of dog ownership is ensuring you are sourcing your pooch from an ethical place. Firstly you need to decide whether you are adopting from a shelter or from a breeder. Shelter dogs are generally older - which is great for those who do not want to experience the puppy phase. A puppy is 10x the work of an adult dog, as you need to toilet train, socialise, do obedience training and in general spend time and money in order to raise the dog correctly. However, a puppy's behaviour or more maluable and they often adapt easier to new things compared to an adult dog.
If you wish to buy from a breeder, it's important to ensure the puppies come with pedigrees to state on paper you are buying exactly what they say you are. If your breeder specialises in mix breeds (ie the Cavoodle) its vital that you are buying a Cavoodle that has already had several generations of breeding. This means the parents of the puppy is not a Poodle and a Cavalier, but two Cavoodles. The more generations of breeding Cavoodle to Cavoodle (for example) means they are able to refine certain traits and produce higher quality dogs.
In terms of ethics, this can sometimes be hard to judge. An ethical breeder will have no trouble allowing you to here home to meet the parents and other siblings. They tend to not have a 'store front' which stops you from seeing what happens behind closed doors. Pet City highly recommend lots of research of individual breeders, using dog fancier groups and other online sources to find the right breeder.
Preparing For Your Puppy
Many things need to be considered before bringing a new puppy into your home - such as:
- Where will the puppy be sleeping?
- What vet will you attend?
- What puppy school are you going to?
- Have you booked in desexing, vaccinations and other appointments?
The first year of owning a puppy is extremely important, as this time period is when the young dog learns how to behave. A puppy preschool is vital for a dog to learn how to socialise with other dogs, people and pets. In this stage of a dog's life, every interaction and experience it has will directly affect the dog's behavior when it is grown.
