How to help my puppy during adoption time

How to help my puppy during adoption time

Steps to take to help your adopted puppy settle quickly

1

Use ADAPTIL Junior

A puppy experiences a lot of changes when they are adopted. ADAPTIL Junior provides your puppy with the appeasing pheromone which you cannot release yourself. It helps them feel comfortable and secure with their new family, as they did with their mother, during this period of change.

2

Prepare your home

Place a comfortable bed or blanket in a quiet, warm space where your puppy will feel safe and comfy

Leave an old T-shirt with the breeder so your puppy can come with this, bringing some familiar scent with them

Puppy-proof your home so that they are not going to get themselves into trouble!

3

Be patient and calm

For your puppy, adoption is a challenging time. They will experience a lot of new things in just a few days.

Give your puppy time to adjust and get to know you. Every puppy is different so let them settle in their own time.

It is very exciting but try and get everyone to remain calm around your puppy to avoid overwhelming them.

We recommend:

ADAPTIL Junior

Place the collar on your puppy right after adoption and keep it on your puppy's neck all the time.

Tips to help your puppy settle in

For the car journey home
Place ADAPTIL Junior on your dog before the journey. If possible, ask the breeder to place on your puppy a day or 2 before they come home.
Additionally ADAPTIL Transport spray can be applied to bedding or the car 15 minutes before your puppy gets into the car.
There are more tips in our  ‘How to help your puppy settle into their new home’ article.

Start as you mean to go on
Decide on the house rules, so that you can stick to these from the beginning, e.g. if your dog is not going to be allowed to sit on the sofa, play with them on the floor. Will there be areas of the house they are not allowed in?

When you first arrive home
The best thing to do is to take them to their toilet area outside first, especially if you have  a long car journey. Reward your puppy when they toilet in the right place!
Introduce your puppy to your home gradually, letting them explore a room at a time.
Make sure they know where their food and water is as well as their safe comfy bed.

On their first day
Try and keep to their usual routine and mealtimes. Offer lots of opportunities to toilet outside, but especially after mealtimes and naptimes.
Spend time together, whether that is just sitting together or playing. Make sure your puppy gets opportunities to nap - they are still growing and need time to process all the new experiences that are having!
Try and avoid having visitors for the first couple of days as your puppy settles into their new environment.