What to Buy Before Bringing Home a Puppy or Rescue Dog

Welcoming a new puppy or rescue dog into your home is an exciting - and often quite hectic - time for all the family. There’s the inevitable naming debate to contend with as well as critical decisions to make; including whether they will be allowed on the couch, whether to crate train, and tha daily schedule for feeding and walks. There’s also quite a bit of stuff you’ll need to buy in advance to prepare their new home for them before they arrive.

Beyond this, you’ll need to make sure everyone in the family understands the ground rules because this will make training so much easier. Puppies need consistency to learn how to behave correctly, and if one of you is going against the rules and feeding the pup scraps from the table or letting them on the couch when no one else is looking, then your hard work can quickly be undone.

Here at ACME, we’re proud to play an important role in helping our furry friends to find happy forever homes. Our dog training whistles and clickers are renowned for being the very best in the market, and are the preferred choice of owners all over the world, and indeed professional trainers, due to their reliability and durability.

Training is just one part of the bigger picture, of course, so we’ve put together a short checklist detailing a few things you might want to think about as a first-time new dog owner:

New Dog Essentials Checklist

First and foremost, your puppy will spend a lot of time sleeping, so you need to get them a suitable bed. Something soft is best, especially if it has soft, supportive sides. Try not to choose something that is much too big because most puppies love to feel cosy - especially if they’re missing their littermates. Some puppies will chew, so buy high-quality materials and check the bed’s integrity often. You may also want to think about how easy it will be to wash the bed - and how quickly it will dry - as there may be a few little ‘accidents’ as your new puppy or rescue settles into their new home.

Food is also a necessity. Preferably you will want to opt for the food that the puppy is already used to eating to avoid an upset stomach. If you're going to feed them something different, you’ll need to introduce it slowly and try to do so once they’ve settled in to avoid causing stress.

One of the most beneficial activities to enjoy with your new best friend is a nice walk. You’ll need to decide whether you’ll use a collar and leash or a harness and leash, or try both options to see what suits you best. Once they’ve had their vaccines, you can start taking them for short walks - aim for 5 minutes of walking for each month of age, up to twice per day. For example, if your puppy is six months old, you can take up to two 30 minute walks per day without stressing their developing joints.

Toys are a must; just make sure they suit your puppy’s age and size. Teething puppies are notorious for chewing, so give them plenty of dedicated chew toys to stop the legs of your couch or your slippers (or your hands, or clothes, or whatever they can get their teeth on) from looking so appealing. Try to leave them with chew toys available all of the time, but switch them out weekly to keep them interested. Some toys, like soft plushies, can pose a choking hazard or can cause digestive issues if parts are swallowed, so keep those for supervised playtimes and discard them as soon as they lose their integrity.

You can start training your puppy once they’ve had some time to settle in, so start with housetraining and teaching them their name. The recall skill is one of the most important things to teach, and whistles for dogs are a useful tool for this. Just like young children, dogs thrive when they have boundaries.

Training a dog to be more obedient is not solely for your own sake, but for theirs too. Most dogs are eager to please, especially when they are puppies, and they will quickly learn to see training as a fun game, with opportunities to earn rewards and quality bonding time with their humans. The rewards can be fusses, praise, treats, or even just attention - every dog will respond differently, and training will give you that insight into their personality.

We have a comprehensive range of dog whistles that are perfect for training your puppy or rescue. Each has a different pitch and tone, so you can choose the one that works best for you and your dog. We even offer engraving and luxury models so you can treat your pup and yourself to something extra special.

ACME dog training whistles

One of the most iconic dog training whistles in the world, our Acme 535 ‘silent’ dog whistles are a firm favourite. They are not genuinely “silent”; if they were, then your dog wouldn’t be able to hear them. Instead they produce a sound that is well within your dog’s range of hearing and is considered less intrusive than other kinds of whistles. While it may be easy on your ears, your dog will be able to hear it from up to 1.5km away.

If you prefer a louder sound, you might want to look at the Acme 210 TM or the Acme 210½ TM. Both have a high pitch and are great all-rounders, the only difference being the 210 has a pea whoch makes the note 'trill' whereas the 210½ is pealess and therefore creates a more solid tone. The similar-looking ACME 211½ TM is also pealess and has a more medium pitch which is great for distance training. You may need to experiment to find the perfect pitch for your dog.

Our Acme Pro Trialler 212 is another customer favourite. It too has a medium pitch and is a great all-rounder - perfect as your pup’s first training whistle. It’s especially popular for gundogs and working breeds such as pointers, setters, retrievers and terriers, and for use in heavy cover situations. It has also proved to be a very successful whistle for dogs who are hard of hearing.

We produce a comprehensive range of dog whistles with various pitches and tones for all dogs in all situations. They are highly recommended for training young dogs because even if you are getting frustrated during training, this will not come across in the whistle, which will always remain neutral, ensuring you build a strong and positive relationship with your pup while they learn to behave.

Browse our Dog Training range today.