The moving in of my first own dog
I remember our first contact as if it was yesterday. With the head first and 383 grams on the ribs, you were not only the fattest of the whole litter, no, for me you were also by far the most beautiful puppy.
Your nickname "the fat one with the blue collar" stayed with you the first four weeks until I gave you your name. El Carlos. From then on I drove twice a week from Hamburg to your birthplace, which was about 2 hours away, to see you. With 8 weeks and now almost 7 kg body weight I was finally allowed to take you to your new home.
The first own dog is always something very special. Especially if you have the chance to get to know and love it from a very young age. The puppyhood is not only super cute, exciting and unforgettable - it is the most formative time in a dog's life. Here love, trust and in the best case also already a certain understanding for the house rules grows. With a puppy you need one thing above all at the beginning: a lot of patience. This is best achieved by preparing yourself and your own four walls well for the new situation. To make sure that this succeeds perfectly, we have 6 helpful tips for you.
6 Tips to make the moving in of your puppy a success too
Creating a puppy-safe environment is not so easy. Anyone who already has children is trained in this discipline and knows that things that were previously taken for granted can suddenly become a danger.
1. Beware of poisonous houseplants:
The houseplants have been celebrating a comeback for some time now! The living rooms are becoming greener again and natural materials such as untreated wood, jute or rattan are returning to the interior design. Since 2020, house plants are not only a trendy decoration element, but are also increasingly appreciated for their air-purifying properties. Caution is advised here: Because some plants, like ivy, the Dieffenbachia or Amaryllis are highly poisonous for our four-legged friends. Especially puppies like to take small taste samples of everything they can find and unfortunately some indoor shrubs also smell super tempting. Before a puppy moves in you should check all available plants on the internet for their non-toxicity.
El Carlos was actually never particularly interested in my houseplants, but he always liked to nibble on dandelions in the garden - luckily they are even healthy for our four-legged friends.
2. Make Cables and sockets puppy safe
Oh, it chews so wonderfully on plastic. Especially when the little biters cause pain when changing teeth, chewing on rubber-like objects can be a real relief for the puppies. Unfortunately, power cables are also made of similar material, with a dangerous electrical voltage inside. Where there are cables, sockets are not far away. If these are unfavorable, one should install a child safety device as a precaution. Cables can be combined and elegantly hidden with the help of cable ducts. This not only looks nicer and tidier, but also reduces the danger for your little darling. Thank God - el Carlos always found cables rather unexciting and preferred to chew on my roommate's high heels ;-)
3. Open stairs - dangerous for pups
" Mommy, mommy, where are you going? Mmh, I'll just follow you!" and bang it happened. The new four-legged friend climbed the stairs. This time it might have gone well, but in general stairs for puppies belong to the dangerous category - especially when they are open. Puppies are not only small and easily fit through the steps, but they also have bones as soft as rubber. That makes them clumsy, flexible and absolutely unsuitable for stairs. So if you have an open staircase, you should bridge the puppy phase with a barrier - don't worry, it's not forever.
4. Store medicines safely
Although in most cases medicines are not stored on the floor, they are still a sensitive issue. Unfortunately, the round pills can slip out of your hand very easily and hide in small grooves or under the kitchen counter. There they are hard to reach for us, but not for our curious puppies. Puppies also see it as their personal duty to immediately soak up anything potentially edible on the floor - sometimes you can't see that fast. Medications should therefore be kept out of reach and taken without the dog being present. Here, too, I speak from experience. No - El Carlos fortunately did not swallow any pills. When I was 4 years old I once decided to taste the funny pink heart pills of my great-grandmother, which were on her bedside table... - Don't worry, I am fine again, I think.
5. Simply clean out - tidying up according to the principle of minimalism
Everyone knows the problem. Over the years an unbelievable amount of small stuff accumulates. It ends up in the basement, in the corners, in baskets and bowls - in the worst case in the mouth of your puppy. The arrival of the new family member is the perfect opportunity to clean out the mess and bring a new order into your own four walls. Less is more. In recent years, a minimalist lifestyle has established itself and, at the latest since Marie Kondo showed us on Netflix how to clean up simply and effectively, there are no excuses anymore. Minimalism means concentrating on the essentials, only surrounding yourself with things that you really need and that you enjoy. It also means one less source of danger for your young animal roommate. By the way, thanks to Ms. Kondo, I have not only brought structure into my closet, but also arranged my dog collars and leashes so that I can see all the variations when I open the drawer. Since then, I no longer simply reach in, but deliberately switch between my beautiful William Walker collars.
6. The puppy's first equipment - before moving in is after moving in
If you have everything together before, you will have less stress afterwards. In the center of the initial equipment should always be the dog sleeping place. Puppies need much more sleep and rest than adult dogs. They like it soft and fluffy. Quiet, but not isolated. Ideally you place dog beds and co in the living room a little bit apart, e.g. next to the sofa, facing the room and with a wall in the back. The dog bed becomes thereby inevitably an element of the interior decoration. Therefore I personally, no matter if dog bed, dog pillow or plaid, do not only focus on highest comfort, but also on a design that does not go beyond the spatial structure. All products of our Sleep Collection fit seamlessly into almost any living ambience thanks to their subtle colors. Our round Dogbed Comfy Cloud is especially designed for our youngest four-legged friends and convinces with maximum fluffiness. What is more important than any optical aspect, especially for puppies, is the possibility of a comfortable cleaning, as well as a robust fabric. Since the house-cleaning of puppies usually takes some time, all William Walker Sleep products are of course easy to clean and machine washable. The puppy initial equipment of course also includes bowls, excrement bags, cuddly toys, toys, brushes, medical utensils, such as tick forceps and claw cutters, but of course also accessories for the first dog walk. Our Collars and leashes are also available especially for the young and small dogs from XXS.
Followed all tips? Then nothing stands in the way of the puppy moving in. One last piece of advice I would like to give you on the way: Enjoy the puppy time to the fullest! Because before you know it, it's already over and your little buddy is suddenly already really grown up. For me it feels like the blink of an eye when 383 grams suddenly turned into 30 kilograms.
Do you have any other tips? Are there any products you would like William Walker to provide you with for a meaningful first fitting? We are looking forward to read your comments!
By Louisa Knoll
