You have officially reserved your puppy and now its time to prepare! This may be your first puppy in awhile or your first puppy ever, so we wanted to offer a suggested list and some tips to help our families gather the essentials to help transition their new Aussie puppy from our home to theirs!

PLEASE BE SURE TO ACTIVATE YOUR 30 DAYS OF FREE TRUPANION PET INSURANCE THE DAY OF OR BEFORE PICK UP. We will provide the needed information to you, you are not required to carry it past the 30 day period! But this ensures your puppy is covered medically during their highest risk period. <3

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Recommended Supplies:

1. 36" High Exercise Pen - this can have multiple uses! Its great to contain your puppy to a small appropriate area if your need to be gone longer than they can hold their bladder for a crate stay in the beginning or overnight. They can have their litter pan to use while you are away making those first few months a little less messy! Its also good to use outside to designate a "potty area".  Once they go, they can come out and play in the yard with you or come inside to play! This routine helps establish a potty first rule and helps keep them from being too distracted to go when they are give free run of the whole yard and doing it once they come back in the house!

2. Crate- We recommend a small puppy crate 24" or 28" to start out and move to a wire crate as they get closer to their mature size!

3. Bed- A bed for your puppy's area is great! We don't recommend placing anything in their crate until they are closer to year. Early on they may potty on it and later they may chew/eat it and possibly develop a habit or worst case an obstruction. 

4. Litter Pan- great for those first few months to use in their exercise pen for a place to go potty. We use pine pellets for out litter pans! https://www.tractorsupply.com/tsc/product/petmate-basic-jumbo-litter-pan-2424420?cm_mmc=feed-_-GoogleShopping-_-Product-_-2424420&gclid=EAIaIQobChMI25GF6rfU6QIVD9bACh3tyQV7EAYYASABEgKk1PD_BwE

5. Puppy Toys- Go crazy! Try different types to figure out your puppy's favorite! 

6. Puppy Safe Shampoo and Grooming Tools- We love Earthbath and Burt's Bees brands! For combs we recommend a greyhound comb, pin brush and a slicker brush. Watch a few YouTube videos on line combing to best care for you new friends coat and keep shedding to a minimum.

7. Harness and Lead (slip lead preferred)- We recommend a XS harness for 5-10lb until your puppy is a pro on the lead. This will reduce them slipping their collar and possibly injuring their necks. A collar is ok for displaying those cute tags but remember to remove them for crating so they don't get caught and possibly strangle your puppy. We actually recommend a slip lead for training your puppy to lead as it does not encourage pulling and is comfortable for your puppy as well as easy to adjust as they grow all the way through adulthood.

8. Bowls- Another area to go crazy! Pick whatever suits your fancy!

9. NuVet Vitamins- an essential supplement that you should order ahead of time to continue their regimen from our home to yours! This wafer holds a boost for their overall health and immune system as they continue through the coming months of growth and development!

10. KIBBLE- Last but not least, what to feed your puppy. We will send your puppy home on a kibble called Purina One Puppy that our puppies have done exceptionally well on and we recommend through 5-6 months of age. They should be offered kibble 2-3 times a day and be allowed to eat their fill. Once they leave the bowl or stop showing interest, pick up their bowl until the next feeding. At around 6 months, our puppies are switched to Purina One or Purina Pro Plan Sport 30/20 or another all life stage kibble and are fed by weight twice daily. We do not recommend grain free formulas as they are linked to DCM. If you would like to switch your puppy to a different kibble, we recommend a kibble with a nutrient profile that is 26-28% protein and 18-20% fat for the first six months. Higher ratios can cause bowed joints and loose stools, and less can impact their growth. Please feel free to ask questions if you need.

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PICK UP DAY!

Your puppy is ready to come home! We recommend bringing a towel or puppy pads and a crate for your puppy for the trip home! You should take your puppy STRAIGHT HOME. No matter how far your drive is, do not take your puppy out for potty breaks. Public areas are a cesspool of diseases that your puppy is not yet fully protected against. It is much better to throw out a few soiled puppy pads along the way than to possibly expose your baby to something that could make them ill.

Remember when you pick them up, your puppy is a baby who has been alive for 2 months. This is their first time away from the only home they have known and their siblings. Give them time to take in all the new smells and faces! Some may not miss a beat others may take a day or two to fully open up but remember they are babies. And with having babies comes worry! And you should keep a watchful eye on them. But don't be concerned if their heart rate and breathing rate are higher than an adult dog when they are asleep, its normal for babies. As long as they are active when they are awake and they are eating and drinking normally try not to worry. Noticing these things means you are an alert puppy parent and is 100% ok. We are always here to answer questions too! Enjoy your new puppy and soak in all the moments, they go by so fast!

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