Bringing Home Your Adopted Dog

Bringing home your new best friend

In order to have your dog successfully adjust to your home is having the right supplies and a lot of patience. Depending on the environment and dog the adjustment period can range from two days to a few months. Use these helpful tips to help both you and your new adjust to its new forever home.

Home Preparation

Pet Supplies

Make sure you have everything your dog will need upon arrival. This can include a leash, collar, crate, food and water bowls, comfy pet beds and toys to play with. Ensure you have an ID tag as soon as possible in case your new friend escapes. You might opt for a scannable smart tag. A high-tech tag means you can be reunited with your pet faster than if the pet has only a registered microchip (still critical!)

Home Rules & Routine

Make sure you establish your dogs daily schedule with all of the members of your home. Identify who is responsible for walking schedules in the morning, afternoon and night. When will they eat and who will feed them? Are they allowed on the furniture during the day or your bed at night? Are there areas in your home that your pet should stay away from?

Arrival Schedule

Make sure you plan for a weekend or extended time when you can be home with your new pet. Use this time to learn your pets behaviors and spend quality time with them and other members of your family. Try to socialize your other pets and family members as well. They want your time so don’t forget about them.

House Training 101

Your pet may not be house trained and you should expect this upon arrival. There are many factors to a pets house training abilities, this is an area that requires a variety of techniques and patience to work with your pet. You can review some of our other blog posts related to house training your new pet here, or join WagtopiaMD that provides 24/7 access to a licensed veterinarian - you can ask medical and behavioral questions anytime of day or night!

Pet Health

If you have pets already living in your home make sure they are all current on their shots and overall health before introducing a new pet in the home. While most adopted pets will have updated shots they may not have everything current and they could spread viruses to your other pets. Ensure you get the latest paperwork for your pet and schedule an appointment with your vet the first week after adoption. Your vet will provide you with the best recommendations and health assessments.  You may find pet insurance very valuable to minimize unexpected costs due to vet bills.

Crating

It may seem like a crate for you dog is something they would hate, but over time your dog will use its crate as a den and a personal safe zone. Crate training is an essential part of your dog’s training regiment and makes your house and obedience training much easier. You want to make the crate a positive experience for your new pet and over time your pet will love having its own room to relax. 

Pet Training

Your dog is looking for direction and order. They are pack animals and they need a leader in the home to establish order. You are the pack leader and need to correct any wrong behavior immediately during the time they misbehave. Rewarding good behavior is just as important. Research local dog training resources and review your options to train your pet. Having a well trained pet makes everyone happy. Our partner K9 Training Institute has a Free Workshop that will help you train your dog to behave like service dog!

Exercise

Your dog needs exercise and you need to provide opportunities for your pet to go out and play.Your dog will love to go running, walking, playing fetch, tug of war with you. Find activities that you like and bring your new friend along for some fun.