What are your tips for someone who's just got a dog?

[Deb/Pugglepup]

They need plenty of time to start with !!

[labradork]

1. Patience (lots of)

2. A sense of humour

3. Try not to be too house proud

4. Work on general obedience as much as possible (especially recall and lead pulling!)

5. Set realistic expectations taking into account your dogs breed (or cross) and age

6. Educate yourself on exercise, health and nutrition as applicable to your breed

7. Don't neglect the importance of mental stimulation

8. Be positive - dogs thrive on it!

9. There is no such thing as too much socialization - it is an ongoing thing

10. Most importantly - have fun

[pippam]

. Don't bother if your house proud and garden proud both will be damaged, though dogs can be trained not to wreck stuff.

. You will need a crate life will be difficult without one if your first time dog owner.

. Get some good books on training and K9 care

. Good quality lead and harness (propper fitted when its old enough to go on walkies))

. A secure garden, tripple check their are no gaps in the fence or the gate you will be shocked at what a puppy can get through check your garden fences on a regular basis as fences can become damaged and you may not nottice till its too late.

. A whistle

. Card board box's and fizzy drinks bottles are more interesting to a dog then any expensive toy you get froma pet store

. Don't get a whicker bed your puppy will most likely chew it anyway

. Rawhide for puppies ((probably for later on))

. A kong for when you go out for a couple of hours

. Never assume it wont happen it probbably will

. Some trainers (Animal behaviorists)) do pre puppy courses and can prep you for puppyhood which can be a very stressfull time if your not sure what to do in the first place no amount reading can propperly prepair you for your new addition.

[ClaireandDaisy]

Buy at least three dog books (one of which must be The Culture Clash). Read and compare - then make your own mind up.

[nickmcmechan]

you will get bucketloads of advice, but always follow your heart

[pippam]

.Read up on rage syndrome (once known as cocker rage but the name was changed since the condition has been found in a lot of other breeds too)) It's a very rare symptom all new dog owners should educate themselves about this.

.Ive heard of a lot of puppy owners like myself who went through puppy aggression it's no fun and very stressfull but keep your cool and educate yourself, be sure to get a 121 trainer if the problem persists never result to using physical punnishment to correct the problem it will only make things worse.

. Learn all you can about teething

. Learn all you can about nutrition so you can pick what is best for your puppy. Many dog foods are like tv dinners but their are many good ones out their you may even want to go raw/barf feed

. You can never learn too much about dogs

[rueben]

Get all the info you need then more.
Be firm but fair.
Start as you mean to go on.
Be consistent in what you want and expect from your dog not to cause any confusion.

[WhichPets]

I deal with people with new puppies all the time at work and I think the majority only take in so much so my most important ones would be:
- Buy a good book
- Teach your dog to heal before it learns to pull
- Only say things once - do not add words to motions before they understand
- Make sure the reward matches (or exceeds) what you are asking so there is no reason not to listen
-Make recall the most exciting thing in the world
-Socialise the puppy loads, and then some more
-Do not get frustrated, enjoy puppyhood whilst it lasts and try to understand the puppies point of view
-Join a good training class (and Dogsey!)
-Play with and enjoy your dog

[Fernsmum]

Expect your first two to three weeks to be exhausting but the effort you put in at the beginning will be worth it .