Preparing your puppy for a trouble-free transfer into your household life

I have previously written about the crucial role a competent breeder plays in the rearing of the litter before sale. Dam and sire should be fit and healthy and of good breeding. The mating should be planned in advance and only for the purpose of producing the desirable traits in the offspring to carry on work, sport or the advancement of the line.

Some breeders put in more work than others, but this work should not stop at weaning.

These young puppies will be a little stressed no matter how good the breeder, so care must be taken to continue a well-structured and balanced approach to setting that puppy up in its new household.

The new owner should already have a plan in place, and the breeder should have checked the quality of the lifestyle that puppy will be going into.

Buying a puppy on a whim, or taking on a puppy from a dubious breeder, should be avoided at all costs. It will end badly, and unfortunately the party who comes off worst is the puppy.

What equipment matters before bringing the puppy home

I would say that the equipment should be purchased well before, and advice can be given by the breeder on what the puppy will come with. It will be too late if the new cage or pen you've purchased doesn't actually fit in the room it's going into. Set it up so the household knows where it is, to avoid falling over it or having to move it for access constantly. Other dogs in the household should also be allowed to get used to it.

Some breeders will send the puppy home with food and toys or bedding. For example, my puppies leave with 10kg of the food they were weaned on, and a toy that has been in with the litter for a few weeks. This avoids a change in diet, which can be problematic, and gives the puppy something familiar in his new surroundings.

Some of the essentials

Cage or pen

I am a total advocate for cage rearing a newly purchased puppy. It has so many uses and will make the owner's life so much easier.

For one, the puppy will be where you left him, not heading out the back door or trying to get into the washing machine.

A cage teaches boundaries from day one. The puppy has his space, and the owner has theirs, and each should only enter the other's space with care and consideration.

Talk to your puppy when you approach his cage or pen. He'll be pleased to see you. Make sure you don't drag him out of his cage, or, likewise, let him charge out. You are inviting him into your space, so don't leave him alone. Take him out for toileting, have a play, a treat or dinner, and pop him back in his cage to rest. Likewise, his space is his space. Don't take his bedding out or his toys, unless to clean them — his possessions are his. This makes boundaries over possessions clearer. He has his toys, bed and blankets, and the owner has theirs — the house and everything in it.

Gradually you can make the cage or pen bigger, so he gets a little more space but still has his boundaries in place.

A cage or pen will help with the basics

• House training. A puppy will very rarely toilet where he sleeps. So if the cage or pen is big enough for him to sleep in and stand up and stretch, there won't be much space to toilet anywhere that isn't his bed. Take your puppy outside to toilet — I've already discussed how much I dislike puppy pads. Don't teach your puppy to toilet inside and then expect him to learn to toilet outside. Take him outside every couple of hours (yes, through the night) and reward him for toileting outside. Once he's used to this, and his bladder gets stronger, you can increase the size of his pen. Think of it like this: every time a puppy toilets inside, he has just learnt to toilet inside. It becomes a behaviour. If your puppy is never allowed to toilet inside, he won't learn to.

• Recall training. So easy. When you go to release your puppy from his cage, stand right in front of the door as you ask him to come out. Take him in your arms and tell him what a super puppy he is for coming to you straight away. It's foolproof recall that sets your puppy up to never fail at recall as the distance gets longer.

• Food control. I don't like it when dogs graze feed. They aren't anatomically designed to. Yes, older or ill dogs may need much smaller portions, more often, but a puppy should eat all of his food in one go — whether that's three or four times a day. The correct amount of food should be measured out and the bowl put inside the cage. Walk away. Remember, what's in your puppy's cage is his. Let him eat in private — no other dogs or children around — and if you stay in the same room, don't watch your puppy eat. It's important that he trusts he can eat in peace. Once he's finished, remove the bowl and let him rest. Tell him what you're doing and how super he is for eating all his dinner. If he hasn't finished, take the remains away too. Sometimes a puppy won't eat full meals just after moving to a new home. This is normal — don't rush him or force-feed him, or put cheese on it to make him eat. Do not put your hand in his bowl and take his food away. This is so detrimental to a puppy — he will lose trust in you, and it serves no purpose at all.

• Bedtime routine. In the first few days it's very important to lay down the rules around bedtime — and this includes bedtime at night, but also rest periods during the day. It's essential that your puppy learns that being alone is normal, good, and time to rest. He needs time to rest, sleep, and absorb and process all the stimuli around him. Several times a day he should have time out and be left in his cage. When you leave him, make sure he's had time to toilet, and pop him in his cage with a small treat. If he has safe toys and chews too, that's a good idea — these stay in his cage as his "bedtime" toys. Walk away after telling him he's a clever puppy, close the room door, and don't go back until it's time for toileting again. He may cry, but this is for attention, and if you go back to him straight away, you can guarantee you'll end up with a puppy with separation issues and attention-seeking behaviour as an older dog. Even if you just leave him for fifteen minutes, that's fine. Wait until he's stopped crying, then walk into the room and, for the first thirty seconds, ignore the cage and puppy — pretend to mess around with the door or pick up some books. Then turn, face your puppy with a big smile and say "oh my goodness, what a beautiful puppy you are, shall we go outside for a play?" Take your puppy outside and make a big fuss of him for toileting and play. By taking the time to put this short piece of owner behaviour in, the puppy learns that being ignored while you're busy is totally fine and positive. Once you've finished your "tasks", the puppy becomes your number one focus and gets your attention. After a few days of this, most puppies will have learnt to stay quiet when left, be accepting of solitude, and understand that when your attention is on them, it's a really good thing.

Travel is very important if the breeder hasn't taken the puppies out several times in a car or van. If they haven't, it's crucial to get the puppy used to travelling, and to being put into and out of the car — possibly even being left for a short time too. The puppy should have a secure place to be, whether a cage or an area behind a dog guard. Not on the seat, in the footwell, or on someone's knee — a 20kg dog hitting the back of the driver's seat in an emergency stop at 30mph will quite likely go over the top of the seat and through the windscreen, and cause major damage to the driver too.

Take the puppy nice places. Let him see the world. He may not have had all his vaccinations yet, but you can still carry him round the park, round a shop car park, or past a farmer's field. The puppy can see plenty of the world from the safety of your arms or the car — make travel a rewarding activity.

Other animals in the household

If there are other animals in the household — dogs, cats, hamsters and so on — the puppy should be carefully introduced. Avoid letting other dogs crowd around the cage, as this will make it feel like a less safe place. Take the puppy into the garden or living room and always supervise introductions. Little and often is the key. Don't leave them all alone together, as you won't be able to control each party, and it's very important to keep every meeting positive and happy.

This goes for other family members too. Take time to let the puppy meet and greet. If there are relatives who don't visit often, try to get them to meet the puppy while it's still young, if possible. Make sure you stick to the boundaries of the puppy's cage or pen.

A very useful tip is to make yourself the first and last thing your puppy sees. Ideally your puppy will be in a different room, or partitioned off, so he learns that being in his own space is normal and acceptable. When you go to greet the puppy, make sure no other animals get to him first. Aim for a positive welcome both ways. Eye contact matters — talk to your puppy and tell him how great he is. The same applies when you leave the room. Be the last thing your puppy sees, and again, eye contact and being spoken to gently and happily will help him settle better.

Going to work

Hopefully the owner will have already organised the routine for the working day.

I'm not a fan of taking time off to welcome a new puppy into the house, as this then means a further change to routine once the owner returns to work — which can confuse the puppy again, as the pattern it was used to changes once more.

Either way, the puppy shouldn't be left alone for more than three to four hours (three initially, if possible).

Set out the routine from day one. Are you using a dog walker? Is family staying at home? Do you intend to return from work a couple of times a day?

If using a dog walker, they should be happy to do a home visit at this stage. They can meet the puppy and spend some time with him outside.

Have the routine ready to roll out so the puppy doesn't settle into one pattern only to have it changed again. Make sure everyone involved knows the feeding regime and how to treat the puppy regarding cage time and outside time.

Remember, a puppy is like a sponge — he absorbs information and stimuli constantly, but he can't always process it as fast as an older dog. Set him off as close to the lifestyle he'll be getting as an older dog as you can. Every time this changes, the puppy has to relearn the new routine and unlearn the last one.

He will accept the life he's given, so make sure it's the best possible life for him, and one that's easy for him to understand.

— Kate