Collecting a puppy. Advice?

[M3ax]

It seems as though I may be collecting a puppy later this week. (12 week old) Its a 2-hour drive away and I wondered what the collective advice is so to speak.

I'll be going on my own so I thought maybe one of those cage things on the seat and wrap the seat belt around? Blanket or something comfortable. Water, for a rest stop (i figure 2 hours in the car is a long time for a youngster).

Is there anything I've missed? Or any other advice?

Its happened a bit faster than planned and I haven't bought anything else yet. I'm sure I'll be back asking what I need for home.....

Thanks in advance.

[Pesty]

Both ours slept solidly in car on way back about two hours so you might be lucky

A little travel crate from eBay or wherever might be a good idea


Remember don’t stop and let him out for a wee as it hadn’t had all its jabs yet.

[cornet]

I collected our 8 week old puppet on my own. I removed the parcel shelf and had a small cage in the boot (wedged so it couldn't slide around) with some vetbed in it and a small blanket that smelled of her mum.

Did the whole trip in one go (just over 2 hours) but it was December so didn't need to worry about the heat and couldn't really let her out of the car if I stopped since she had her full vaccinations.

She howled non stop for the first 30min then fell asleep for the rest of the journey.

[Shaw Tarse]

[Xcore]

Picked up my pup 2 days ago, she was good as gold in the car, wrapped her up in a towel that smelt of her litter

[Johnnytheboy]

Any tips on introducing a new puppy to an incumbent dog?

[mids]

M3ax said:

Or any other advice?

The book 'The Perfect Puppy' by Gwen Bailey is well worth a read. Lots of sensible advice.

Also have a read of http://www.thepuppyplan.com/ especially 'The Science' section which explains why the first 16 weeks are so important.

[wjb]

I brought mine home in a pet carrier on the back seat with a seatbelt through the handle.

My second slowest drive ever after taking my son home from hospital

Make sure you get all the stuff you need before picking the pupper up. You'll need plenty of one 2 one time when you bring him/her home so don't wanna be going out for bowls, puppy pads, blankets, toys, food etc

Edited by wjb on Tuesday 1st May 08:42

[M3ax]

Thanks everyone. Looks like I’ll be doing some shopping today! I’m kind of on “gardening leave” until mid June so it’s a good time I think. Originally we were waiting for the summer break but this works out better. Will post pics when I get them.

[M3ax]

mids said:

The book 'The Perfect Puppy' by Gwen Bailey is well worth a read. Lots of sensible advice.

Also have a read of http://www.thepuppyplan.com/ especially 'The Science' section which explains why the first 16 weeks are so important.

Thanks, book arriving tomorrow!

[Gary29]

As well as all the above advice, try to talk to it as much as you can on the way home, it'll help getting used to your voice.

[Jasandjules]

Johnnytheboy said:

Any tips on introducing a new puppy to an incumbent dog?

All depends on the dog. What is the personality like? For example, one of my boys loves puppies to the extent he will drool and wash them for hours if you let him...... One of my other boys couldn't care less about other dogs, he will just ignore them..

[Johnnytheboy]

Jasandjules said:

All depends on the dog. What is the personality like? For example, one of my boys loves puppies to the extent he will drool and wash them for hours if you let him...... One of my other boys couldn't care less about other dogs, he will just ignore them..

We have a 1yo bulldog male and are getting him a little sister. He is extremely friendly but somewhat boisterous.

Edited by Johnnytheboy on Tuesday 1st May 14:59

[Jasandjules]

Johnnytheboy said:

We have a 1yo bulldog male and are getting him a little sister. He is extremely friendly but somewhat boisterous.

Edited by Johnnytheboy on Tuesday 1st May 14:59

Ok at the moment then I would just take it easy and basically you will have to see if he is calmer knowing it is a puppy (they do know) or still a muppet. If you had a stairgate I would also keep them apart that way for a bit so they can sniff etc.. and see if is he over excited or not.

As your current dog is only a baby himself it should help as well...

Then a couple of walks together so they can get to know each other as well and just take it slowly IMHO until you know your lad is calm enough not to squash the pup.

[nickwilcock]

I took my girl friend to collect a beautiful little Maltese puppy last Summer, although we had to take public transport.

The little poppet fell asleep with her toys as soon as she was in the transport carrier. We had to walk 5 min to the pick-up spot arranged with the taxi, then wait 20 min, then off to the railway station and a 10 min wait for the S-bahn. About 30 min back to Frankfurt Sudbahnhof, during which time the ticket inspector fell in love with little Willow, who was as good as gold throughout. Then a 10 min wait for the tram and finally home after a further 15 min. 90 min in all, with lots of strange noises and smells, but she never even squeaked or cried - just snoozed or enjoyed being petted.

Sadly that was the last I ever saw of the little sweetie. My girl friend's Frenchie wouldn't bond with her, so eventually she had to go to a new family, who utterly adore her...

[M3ax]

Another question, this one slightly random.
If you had the choice between 2 puppies of the same breed/mix and one was just 8 weeks and the other 12 weeks, which would be a better choice?
Would you prefer either way? Or would it not really make a difference?
I know puppies grow up fast so is their an advantage to having the older one? Or is it a case of the younger the better for various reasons?

[AdiT]

The 8 week puppy. 8 to 12 weeks is when they're most receptive to socialisation. You're limited in what you can introduce them to in that period as they won't have had all their jabs. However you can do a lot of basic training. It takes progressively longer from 12 weeks to get stuff to stick.

[M3ax]

Ok thanks. I’m sure I’ll be back for training tips ...

[WindyCommon]

A cardboard box in the passenger footwell (where I could see and speak to him) worked well for me. Blanket that had been in with his mum for a few days. No trouble.

[mids]

WindyCommon said:

A cardboard box in the passenger footwell (where I could see and speak to him) worked well for me. Blanket that had been in with his mum for a few days. No trouble.

That's exactly what I did. Blanket with mum's scent provided by the breeder and a snugglepuppy