I recently broke my own rule and made the semi-impulsive decision to adopt a puppy. The rule against having a puppy stems from recognizing that being in my early 50’s means sleep is incredibly important. As an empty-nester, however, I knew that my college-aged youngest and I wanted to add a new dog to the family before her summer break started. We saw a little guy’s face on a county shelter’s site, received preapproval, met him, and took him home.
This puppy joined our almost 8-year-old black lab, Lily, who has been down since our dog, Gibson, passed away in February. We had had Gibson, also a rescue, since 2012. We joked that Gibson was a cat, wrapped in an old man, wrapped in a dog. He was small, not much for playing games, and loved his naps from day one. Not necessarily a great playmate for Lily, but they developed a love-hate relationship and she mourned his passing.
We lucked out and adopted Liam, a lab shepherd mix with a great disposition and a nice set of listening ears. After two months, he’s finally sleeping through the night and I am too! Because the decision to adopt was not an impulse one, but the actual adoption day was, we found ourselves without some important things. Namely, everything the puppy needed to seamlessly become a member of our household.
Thank God for online shopping options. Pet parents know that shopping by phone can make life much easier. Some items we ordered online worked, some were wastes of money. I thought it might be helpful to toss out what worked for us in case you decide a puppy is in your future.
Our Best Recommendations for Your New Friend
First, you must ensure you are ready for any type of canine bodily fluid coming in contact with your floor, furniture, clothing, etc. I highly recommend an enzymatic cleaning like Nature’s Miracle. We tend to rely on the stain and odor remover variety of Nature’s Miracle and buy a large refill to reduce the number of spray bottles we purchase. The scent is not overwhelming and is appreciated when you have to be on your hands and knees wiping up a mess.
Next, you want to select a high quality food for your new friend. We have tried any manner of fancy dog food including the kind that comes in monthly subscriptions from smaller companies. We have also tried dog food that contained high-grade protein and few fillers. What we learned is that some of the smaller boutique dog food brands did not produce an ideal blend of nutrients for our dogs. Similarly, the supercharged high-grade/low filler brands were too rich for their systems. We ended up with digestive issues and wonky bloodwork. Our vet recommended we use Hill’s Science Diet and it has been fantastic. For Liam, we opted for the large breed puppy formula. We moved Lily to the large breed healthy mobility variety. She is certainly in need of mobility assistance since Liam runs her around the yard several times each day.
Although something all dogs can benefit from, if you have a lab or a dog who is lab-adjacent, you will want to use slow feeder bowls with them. Hoovering down food is dangerous for many reasons, but as larger breed dogs become older, their esophagus can become a bit floppy. That coupled with faster-than-recommended eating can end in disaster. Our chocolate lab, Henry, who passed when he was around 12, did so because of gastric dilatation-volvulus (GDV) or “bloat”. This happened because his stomach filled with air and then twisted. It was a horrible emergency situation and we made the decision to humanely put him to rest. To help alleviate that possibility and to slow our labs down as they eat, we like slow feeders like those we found on Amazon at the UPSKY store.
Because I knew Liam would likely enjoy car rides, but also need assistance staying still and safe, I opted for a vehicle harness that can double as a harness for walks. It easily hooked into the car using the seatbelt and although Liam was not a huge fan at first, he quickly became used to it. I also purchased a reflective collar and leash combo. I am horrible at sizing so I had to return the set for a larger sized collar. Amazon made the process super easy and I had my refund quickly. I have not had a leash like this before and I am a fan of the padded grip. Liam has done exceptionally well on the leash so far–I’m thinking of having him give Lily lessons.
I also tried my luck with two separate metal exercise play pens. One was too short (again, I’m telling you my visualization skills are awful) and the other was too tall and unwieldy. I was trying to find something I could use in my living room to keep Liam in a general area and to give Lily some space from him. I think if I had needed something for outdoor use, a play pen like this would have been much more useful. I also appreciated the variety of sizes offered and the products were sturdy. I find that the Amazon Basics products typically are great values.
Stay tuned for recommendations on favorite toys and treats!
