So you have decided on what Pug to get, and you are about to bring him or her home. What should you do?
First Things First – Do You Have Everything You Need?
You can’t just bring a Pug (or any dog/pet) home without being prepared. You must think about:
- where it will sleep and if you will use a crate,
- Dog food & what it will eat,
- What you will use to walk it with (hint: get a harness!)
- check if you have things for medical emergencies with your new dog
- toys for it to play with
- And more (see here)
It is also important to dog proof your home! Check out our guide of things to get and do before you take your dog home: Read our full checklist of things to get here (includes tips on ‘Pug Proofing’ your home!)
Bringing him in!
Bringing a dog home isn’t too hard, but to make it easier we recommend doing it when you will be at home all day (if you work during the week, then bringing the dog into your home at the weekend would be best!)
This lets you keep an eye on your new Pug for all your waking hours, instead of leaving him to his own devices in your house/apartment while you work/go out.
(Plus, playing with a new Pug is fun!)
Make your new Pug feel comfortable
If possible you should try and bring something familiar from his old home, so he will have something that he feels safe near. A blanket he slept on or a toy he likes to play with is ideal.
Taking your new Pug out for walks
If your new Pug is old enough and able (i.e. had his shots) to go outside then once he has gotten over the excitement of the new house, you should spend some time with him and take him outside. It is also a good chance for him to go to the toilet!
Because of their small size and breathing problems you should get a harness instead of a normal dog collar. See our guide: See our guide for harnesses and leashes/leads for Pugs
What not to do
Introduce your new Pug to the people who live in the house, but don’t have new people over to come see your new pet until he has fully settled into his new home.
Crate Training
If you decide to crate train your Pug (it seems a bit horrible at first, but dogs like the knowledge of knowing their crate is a safe area, and it makes toilet training dogs much easier) then you should introduce your Pug to his crate soon after he arrives at your house/apartment.
You can place a nice treat for your Pug to eat in the crate so that he or she will naturally go into the crate of his own accord.
For more details on how to crate train your dog please follow this link: https://www.pet.co.nz/feature/puppy-crate-training
Start house training your new Pug!
You are going to have to do it one day, and the longer you wait the more mess you will have to clean up!
It is very related to crate training, so please see the link above for a guide on crate training.
Introducing other pets to your Pug
Please check out some of these guides on introducing your new Pug to other pets and dogs:
- Introducing a new dog to a resident dog
- Introducing a puppy to your older dog
- Introducing Small Dogs to pets
We will have our own full guide coming soon!
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