Preparing the house
Choose a comfortable resting place close to family life, where the puppy can sleep undisturbed. Secure cables, medicines, cleaning products, small objects and unsafe plants. Check garden boundaries and access to stairs. Agree on routines and handling with everyone at home. Arrange suitable transport and the first visit to your vet. Ask us about the food and routine your puppy already knows.
A bed, bowls, suitable collar or harness and lead, safe chew toys and a secure resting area are a useful starting point. We can discuss the details before your puppy leaves.
The first nights
Your puppy has left familiar people, its mother and its littermates. Keep a comfortable sleeping place near you at first, respond calmly and allow for night-time toilet breaks.
A consistent routine helps the puppy settle. Introduce short periods alone gradually as it becomes comfortable in the new home.
The first week
Make time for sleep, meals, toilet breaks and short periods of play. Keep visits manageable and allow the puppy to approach new people at its own pace.
For the first days, continue the food and feeding guidance you have received unless your vet advises otherwise. Keep fresh water available.
Movement and the home
Secure stairs and reduce avoidable falls or repeated jumps from furniture. Use surfaces that give the puppy a steady footing. Discuss suitable activity and any need for ramps with your vet, taking the puppy’s age and development into account.
Questions families ask
What do we actually need before the puppy comes home? Less than the shop suggests. A bed, an open crate or pen, two bowls, a lead, safe things to chew, a gate for the stairs. We talk the list through with every family before the handover.
Where should the puppy sleep on the first night? Near you, at first. We would rather a family add distance in week three than try to subtract fear from week one.
When does socialisation start? Before you meet. It begins here — the dogs are part of the family’s every day — and it continues with you. The veterinary behaviour bodies place the most receptive window in the first three months of life.
Early experiences
Introduce people, suitable dogs, sounds, surfaces and short journeys gradually. The first three months are an important period for socialisation. Your vet can help you balance early experiences with local infection risk and the puppy’s vaccination plan. AVSAB puppy socialisation guidance.
Your first veterinary visit
Bring the puppy’s documents, vaccination information and microchip details, together with any questions you have noted. Your vet will help plan ongoing care for the individual puppy.
Coming home with Wanhelsing
A puppy here is never simply sold. It is entrusted — with care and responsibility on both sides. Your puppy comes with a puppy kit, pedigree, microchip, health certificate, ownership transfer where applicable and feeding guidance. We remain available as you settle into life together.
How a puppy joins your family · Read about health and care · Ask us a question