Your Irish Wolfhound Puppy's First Night Home

By Gayle Curtis

Preparation for puppy's first night starts well before puppy comes home. If it's possible, send a blanket or toy to the breeder for the new baby. Don't send a new blanket but rather one you've had for quite some time. Sleep with the blanket a night or so to make sure your scent is on it. If you send a toy, wear it next to your body for an afternoon. This will allow whatever item you send to the breeder to have your scent and the scent of your house. By sending the item to the breeder, the pup will smell you and your surroundings but the whole litter will have a chance to put their individual scent on the blanket or toy while playing or sleeping. You will bring the item home with the puppy and hopefully the familiar scents will help the puppy adjust a bit more quickly.

The house should be puppy proofed before puppy comes home as well. When was the last time there was a puppy in the house? Chances are it's been a few years and you've forgotten more than you remember about puppyhood. Get on your hands and knees and look around with a fresh eye. What will the puppy see? Shoes in the corner are an invitation to chew. Great Aunt Ida's antique chair, yum! Any type of electrical cord is a danger and should be moved. While organizing cords, this is a good time to put outlet covers on any exposed outlets. Many house plants are poisonous; make sure yours are put where they cannot be chewed. Scatter rugs should have a non-slip backing, why chance an injury on a loose rug. Does the cat have a ready escape route? Puppies love to chase. Is the cat box where the puppy can possibly get to it? Clumping cat litter, any cat litter, is a danger to your puppy's life. Where are the cleaning supplies? Can all the cabinets be securely latched? Do you have a coffee table or low knick-knacks? A coffee table is the perfect puppy chew height, standing or sitting. Any low items, and by low I mean anything up to four feet high is fair game for puppy to grab and chew. Do you have throw pillows with fringe? Not for long once puppy comes home. A well puppy proofed house will help make the transition easy for puppy and keep you from pulling your hair out.

Are you going to use a crate? Make sure you get one big enough to hold an adult, many crates can be divided to accommodate smaller pups and made larger as puppy grows. A crate can keep your puppy safe while you are not able to supervise, but puppy should not be in the crate hours on end. A puppy needs ample time to romp and play. Is the pup going to be allowed on the furniture? Another personal decision to make before puppy comes home. I do suggest that you establish a definite pack order before allowing puppy on the furniture. Upstairs? Stairs are a tricky thing for puppies. One slip can blow an elbow or knee, cause back damage or a number of other injuries. I suggest stairs under supervision only for quite some time. Is the yard secure, puppy secure? Walk the fence perimeter looking for any loose wire, dips puppy can squeeze through and sticks or branches poking into the yard, take care of all of those iffy places now so puppy will have a safe play yard.

Puppy day arrives! Resist the urge to have a welcome home puppy party. This is not the time for extended family and friends to come meet the puppy, as this can be an overwhelming time for the baby. Remember that your pup has been taken from everything he has known and put in an unfamiliar place, with people he doesn't know well, if at all. Give the pup a day or two before people come to the house to meet him. Show puppy where the water is located and his safe place as well as the toy box. Speaking of toys, resist the urge to buy every toy available. Puppy needs no more than five, a teether or two, a soft stuffy, etc. Stay away from rope toys, the strings do unravel. If you provide puppy with too many toys there will be no distinguishing between puppy toys and furniture, shoes, towels, kids etc. Everything becomes puppy's toy.

This is the time to establish ground rules. It is not ok for puppy to jump on you for anything. It may be cute now, but one day, sooner than you expect, puppy will weigh over 100lbs. and will still be jumping on you. This is not safe for you, puppy or any unsuspecting visitor. Don't allow puppy to do anything now that you won't allow a year from now. Sit on the floor and invite pup over for a snuggle and a bit of quiet time. This is a good time to familiarize yourself with your puppy. Play with puppy toes, gently squeeze puppy's toenails, look in his mouth, check his ears etc. this way puppy becomes accustomed to your handling of him. When was the last time puppy went outside? It may be time to take puppy outside and start house training. Go out with puppy and praise when puppy goes. Your new puppy can hold his bladder, on average, his age plus one hour (three months old equates to having to relieve himself every three to four hours). Take your puppy outside after a nap, after he eats, after he has a drink and especially in the middle of and after playtime. Praise puppy for every successful trip outside. If you see puppy go outside, you will have fewer accidents inside.

The day has sped by and it's now time for bed. Where is puppy going to sleep? Keep in mind that puppy is used to sleeping with his siblings, puppy piled and warm. Don't expect puppy to sleep alone in a strange place without protest for a few nights at least. This is where your blanket or toy sent to the breeder weeks ago comes into play. It won't stop a lonely puppy from whining, but it will help. If pup can sleep next to your bed, you can keep an eye on him as he will probably need to go outside at least once in the night. If pup is going to sleep somewhere other than in the same room as you, you may want to consider staying in that room at least part of the night with the pup. If there are two adults in the household, you can swap babysitting overnight. This night time babysitting can be decreased so that everyone is sleeping in their proper beds in a couple of weeks. Give puppy time to be comfortable in his new surroundings, remember, even though puppy may weigh 35 lbs or more, he is still very much a baby. You will never have a better bonding opportunity than the first week puppy is with you, use this time to your advantage. Be patient with puppy, but be careful not to coddle a whiney baby. This may encourage the whining to continue.

Enjoy this time with your new baby. It can be trying, but a year from now you will look around at your now Irish Wolfhound decorated house. It's amazing how much clutter one can lose when a wolfhound enters your life, whether by choice or happy tails. Great Aunt Ida's chair never looked better, even if there are now a few extra 'scratches' on the lower rungs.