List of basic things to buy
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List of basic things to buy
I still don't have a puppy but just wondered if there is anywhere on the forum where I can find out all the things I need to buy before I get one? I have looked around on here but not found a list. I know the obvious things like a collar and lead, although no idea what size that needs to be. I've got the "Shih Tzu for Dummie's" book on my kindle and it lists about 4 different types of brushes and says you should use a spray conditioner every day before you brush their coat, but have no idea if they sell those kinds of things in pet shops of if it's best to buy them online. Then there's all the different shampoos, some with stuff that whitens their coat, and sparkly powder stuff and it's all so confusing when you are used to a labrador that needs very little grooming. Last thing I want to do is go and collect a puppy, bring it home and then find out I haven't got all the things needed
Lyn
Lyn
Mercedes55- Challenge Certificate
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Re: List of basic things to buy
A lot of us on here prefer a harness as opposed to a collar. I do appreciate it does depend on the age of the puppy you get. If you were to have one of the 5 month old puppies you mentioned I would think that a harness would be ok. I have just bought my two girls new harnesses and as Mali is such a small one she has a 'Perfect Fit' one from dog-games.co.uk and Tasha a 'Fleece Harness'
not the cheapest but lovely and soft especially for a puppy.They aslo have an Ezy Dog harness for in the car when traveling that is attached to the normal car seat belt. You need a nice brush again most of us use the Mason Pearson brushes. I would not recommend a slicker brush-much too harsh for a puppy coat. An Anti Tangle comb is also very useful. A good grooming spray. Shampoo & conditioner Coat Handler15-1. A lot of other items depend on whether you intend keeping a long coat or whether you will clip him/her short and also will you clip or go to a groomer. Myself I prefer short because it suits our lifestyle but others do not like them short. It is entirely your decision. I used to pay around £25 a go to have tasha groomed , clipped etc but I then bought my own equipment and love doing it myself especially the savings now that my equipment has paid for itself. I will give you some links to buying the things you need.
www.petcetera.co.uk
www.groomers-online.com.
www.easyanimal.co.uk
not the cheapest but lovely and soft especially for a puppy.They aslo have an Ezy Dog harness for in the car when traveling that is attached to the normal car seat belt. You need a nice brush again most of us use the Mason Pearson brushes. I would not recommend a slicker brush-much too harsh for a puppy coat. An Anti Tangle comb is also very useful. A good grooming spray. Shampoo & conditioner Coat Handler15-1. A lot of other items depend on whether you intend keeping a long coat or whether you will clip him/her short and also will you clip or go to a groomer. Myself I prefer short because it suits our lifestyle but others do not like them short. It is entirely your decision. I used to pay around £25 a go to have tasha groomed , clipped etc but I then bought my own equipment and love doing it myself especially the savings now that my equipment has paid for itself. I will give you some links to buying the things you need.
www.petcetera.co.uk
www.groomers-online.com.
www.easyanimal.co.uk
Re: List of basic things to buy
Thanks for that info Sands. We used to have a harness on our labrador when she used to pull a lot, so will probably go for one of them if they tend to be the preferred thing to use. So much to learn
Lyn
Lyn
Mercedes55- Challenge Certificate
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Re: List of basic things to buy
As Carol says, definitely go for the 15-1 conditioner, it is more expensive to buy, but you dilute it and it lasts forever. I describe it as a wonder spray, because I use if Simba has a knot in his hair I spray it and leave for a few minutes, and the knot comes out easily. Again I agree with Carol that a Mason Pearson Brush is the best, and a rotating tooth comb is one of the most important things you can buy.
I assume you have the obvious covered, like bowls, toys and somewhere for your puppy to sleep. Another thing I would suggest is a clicker, so you can do clicker training from the start. Have a look at the clicker training section here and you will find it the easiest way to teach your pup.
Here is another company you may like to look at
http://www.hubintsecured.co.uk/acatalog/P_index.html
They are a bit more expensive than Petcetera, but the more places you know about the better as they all sell slightly different things!
Hope that helps a bit, any questions just ask away.
I assume you have the obvious covered, like bowls, toys and somewhere for your puppy to sleep. Another thing I would suggest is a clicker, so you can do clicker training from the start. Have a look at the clicker training section here and you will find it the easiest way to teach your pup.
Here is another company you may like to look at
http://www.hubintsecured.co.uk/acatalog/P_index.html
They are a bit more expensive than Petcetera, but the more places you know about the better as they all sell slightly different things!
Hope that helps a bit, any questions just ask away.
sujay- Supreme Champion
- Registration date : 2009-07-19
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Re: List of basic things to buy
Well I haven't actually got any bowls or toys yet, but I know at least toys I can get from Pets at Home and most likely bowls too. In the book I am reading they suggest a bottle for drinking, but really have no idea if people over here use them instead of water bowls. I'm guessing just a couple of small shallow bowls that won't be slipping all over the place and not plastic as I understand the plastic can sometimes stain their fur, although once again not sure how true that is. I use those beige ceramic dishes for our labrador, I'm sure they do small ones of those.
I'm still not sure what to get bed wise as I was going to get a crate and I keep reading up about them. Our labrador has one of those oval waterproof beds with a nice thick mattress inside but I am thinking from some of the posts I have read that the igloo type of beds are maybe better for a little puppy
Lyn
I'm still not sure what to get bed wise as I was going to get a crate and I keep reading up about them. Our labrador has one of those oval waterproof beds with a nice thick mattress inside but I am thinking from some of the posts I have read that the igloo type of beds are maybe better for a little puppy
Lyn
Mercedes55- Challenge Certificate
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Re: List of basic things to buy
Mercedes55 wrote:Well I haven't actually got any bowls or toys yet, but I know at least toys I can get from Pets at Home and most likely bowls too. In the book I am reading they suggest a bottle for drinking, but really have no idea if people over here use them instead of water bowls. I'm guessing just a couple of small shallow bowls that won't be slipping all over the place and not plastic as I understand the plastic can sometimes stain their fur, although once again not sure how true that is. I use those beige ceramic dishes for our labrador, I'm sure they do small ones of those.
I'm still not sure what to get bed wise as I was going to get a crate and I keep reading up about them. Our labrador has one of those oval waterproof beds with a nice thick mattress inside but I am thinking from some of the posts I have read that the igloo type of beds are maybe better for a little puppy
Water bowls my girls have the Road Refresher Bowl -as seen on Dragons Den and in the White House- yes I mean Washington, Barach's pad. They have one in the house and one in the car. You can get them at PAH but are very expensive there. I think I got mine from Chemist Direct, about £8.95. Don't get a deep bowl for feeding they don't seem to like putting their heads right in. Hope this helps. Carol xx
Lyn
Re: List of basic things to buy
When I first got Mali I bought her a soft round bean bag bed which she could snuggle into. I have given you a link to the one I got her below. As she got older I got her an igloo which she loves because she treats it as a den. When Tasha came a long she had the 'nest' and then progressed to an Igloo for the same reason. The 'nest' is now in my car for when they go out, so nothing gets wasted.Funnily enough Mali's Igloo is a little smaller than Tasha's and Tash is a big girl compared to Mali but they swap igloo's like no-bodies business, which I think is ok. I also put a mat in their to or I will try and get some photo's on here of them in the beds for you later. When will you know whether you will be able to have one of the 5 month old puppies? Last night it was so funny when they went to bed Tasha got into Mali's 'house' as I call them and when Mali went up to her to say'hey that's my'house' Tasha gave out a little growl. So I said to her 'you cheeky monkey it's not even your 'house'.
http://www.balafactoryshop.co.uk/pages/sizesnest.htm
http://www.seapets.co.uk/products/dog-supplies/dog-beds/soft-dog-beds/danish-design-dog-beds/puppy-first-dog-bed-and-igloos/danish-design-pet-house-small.html
http://www.balafactoryshop.co.uk/pages/sizesnest.htm
http://www.seapets.co.uk/products/dog-supplies/dog-beds/soft-dog-beds/danish-design-dog-beds/puppy-first-dog-bed-and-igloos/danish-design-pet-house-small.html
Re: List of basic things to buy
The breeder is away till next weekend, so I will keep my fingers crossed and hope she hasn't sold her to someone else in the meantime. Don't really want to start buying lots of things and then find out she isn't available after all. I could kick myself now, I should have made my mind up before she went away
Lyn
Lyn
Last edited by Mercedes55 on Sat Aug 11, 2012 1:22 pm; edited 1 time in total
Mercedes55- Challenge Certificate
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Re: List of basic things to buy
Mercedes55 wrote:The breeder is away till next weekend, so I will keep my fingers crossed and hope she hasn't sold her to someone else in the meantime. Don't really want to start buying lots of things and then find out she isn't available after all. I could kick myself now, I should have made my mind up before she went away
I would say you made the right decision to wait until the breeder returned from her holiday. It is not like buying something in a shop it is a huge change to our lives bringing another life into your household.I would think it is unlikely she would have sold her if she is away, depending how long you saw the puppies before she went. But if she has been sold, at this time of the year there are plenty of choices around. Finding the right breeder is the hardest part.
Carol
Re: List of basic things to buy
I phoned her the day before she went on holiday and the puppy was still available then, so hopefully still will be when she gets back
Lyn
Lyn
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Re: List of basic things to buy
Mercedes55 wrote:I phoned her the day before she went on holiday and the puppy was still available then, so hopefully still will be when she gets back
I think she should be still there when she gets back, which can't be too long now. If she knows how interested you were before I am sure she would let you know if someone else was interested in her.
Everyone on here knows how much I would like another but my husband has put his foot firmly down and said 'two is enough'. It doesn't stop me looking at them. though!!!
Lyn
Re: List of basic things to buy
Mercedes55 wrote:I phoned her the day before she went on holiday and the puppy was still available then, so hopefully still will be when she gets back
Lyn
When is she due back? Could you phone and leave an answer machine message for her, so she picks it up asap?
sujay- Supreme Champion
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Re: List of basic things to buy
You must have read my mind! I did ring her number last week in the hope that I might be able to get a message to her. I left a message to say I would like to buy the puppy and thought maybe she might remotely pick up her messages as I know some people do that. However being on holiday she may just want to be enjoying herself. I will wait till next weekend and try to catch her then
Lyn
Lyn
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Re: List of basic things to buy
Mercedes55 wrote:You must have read my mind! I did ring her number last week in the hope that I might be able to get a message to her. I left a message to say I would like to buy the puppy and thought maybe she might remotely pick up her messages as I know some people do that. However being on holiday she may just want to be enjoying herself. I will wait till next weekend and try to catch her then
Lyn
Let us hope she does pick up the message as soon as she gets home and you may be right she wants to enjoy herself. Unless of course she is abroad in which case it is costly to check e mails and messages. Me I want to know exactly what is going on back home ( I run a business) so I take my laptop with me to pick up my e mails or divert my calls to my mobile if it we're in the uk. But not everyone is as technically saavy as me.
Re: List of basic things to buy
I really don;t like harnesses for this breed especially when they are puppies as their shoulders are quite loose sometimes and harnesses can pull the front legs out of kilter. Soft rounded leather collars are best as they don;t interfere with the coat and another thing harnesses encourage dogs to pull (that is why they are used on sled dogs and NOT collars )Mercedes55 wrote:Thanks for that info Sands. We used to have a harness on our labrador when she used to pull a lot, so will probably go for one of them if they tend to be the preferred thing to use. So much to learn
Lyn
Re: List of basic things to buy
simbalove wrote:I really don;t like harnesses for this breed especially when they are puppies as their shoulders are quite loose sometimes and harnesses can pull the front legs out of kilter. Soft rounded leather collars are best as they don;t interfere with the coat and another thing harnesses encourage dogs to pull (that is why they are used on sled dogs and NOT collars )Mercedes55 wrote:Thanks for that info Sands. We used to have a harness on our labrador when she used to pull a lot, so will probably go for one of them if they tend to be the preferred thing to use. So much to learn
Lyn
I prefer the look of a lead and collar as it just seems to be more natural to me. Have to say although we used a halter on our labrador I didn't find it made much difference and I did take it off some time ago and put a normal collar and lead on her and she walks just fine with that.
Lyn
Mercedes55- Challenge Certificate
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Re: List of basic things to buy
I still prefer a harness my dogs have never pulled on the harnesses. They still need a harness in the car (yes I know Lesley puts her dogs in a cage in the car) As hubby's car is a saloon with leather seats he was never going to allow a cage in his new car. A collar would not be a good idea fastened to the seat belt as in the event of pulling up suddenly it could have allsorts of consequences, a harness would have a chest plate as in the Ezy Dog harness to protect them from coming to too much harm.Mine are also protected by a hammock and lie on a soft duvet bed so they cannot go far. Another reason I got mine into a harness was when Mali was small she slipped her collar and went tearing off down the high street, with a harness that is not so easy to do.
Re: List of basic things to buy
Our labrador currently always sits on the floor in the footwell of our estate car which isn't ideal. Like you we have leather seats and not keen on getting them scratched. We used to put her in the back bit of the car but she hated being so far away from us
Mercedes55- Challenge Certificate
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Re: List of basic things to buy
Mercedes55 wrote:Our labrador currently always sits on the floor in the footwell of our estate car which isn't ideal. Like you we have leather seats and not keen on getting them scratched. We used to put her in the back bit of the car but she hated being so far away from us
We have a Hammock which goes up the sides of the doors and so protects the those as they are leather too. the one they make for the car was over £200 and this one does the job perfectly at £39 although we got it in their sale it is from Zooplus. It is on sale again at £39.90 it is good I did give it a good review January last year.
http://www.zooplus.co.uk/shop/dogs/dog_cages_carriers/car_bed/car_seat_mats/13596
Re: List of basic things to buy
sands-62 wrote:
We have a Hammock which goes up the sides of the doors and so protects the those as they are leather too. the one they make for the car was over £200 and this one does the job perfectly at £39 although we got it in their sale it is from Zooplus. It is on sale again at £39.90 it is good I did give it a good review January last year.
http://www.zooplus.co.uk/shop/dogs/dog_cages_carriers/car_bed/car_seat_mats/13596
I like those
Lyn
Mercedes55- Challenge Certificate
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