Good morning,
Your puppy crate is the first piece of equipment that you will need to buy. They are going to grow a lot this first 6 months and so you will need to decide how to provide for your puppy. There are two choices really. You can buy a crate sized for your puppy now and the next several months or you can buy an adult-sized crate that comes with a partition so you can ‘cut it down’ to the size of your puppy today. Both are acceptable.
While buying a crate that you may only use a few months will seem a wasteful expense these are not overly expensive items and can be resold on craigslist, facebook, or eBay to recoup half the cost when the time comes - total outlay may only be $12-$15 in this case. I have used and recommend both of these crates:
PetMate Compass Plastic Kennel
Midwest Homes for Pets
The second option is to buy a crate that is sized for your adult dog and then limit the available space so that your puppy can feel comfortable in it as they grow. While I have used both of the above-mentioned crates, I have used crates from Midwest Homes for Mocha this past 3 years, am very happy with it, and think a great deal of them. They come with one or two doors and thus can be configured depending on your placement and use. The partition comes as part of the purchase and they are well made, of sturdy and coated construction.
Your puppy is already used to being crated and is comfortable with the idea of crating. I strongly encourage working with your puppy to build on this foundation so that your puppy comes to think of his or her crate and their home and safe retreat. While Puppy Culture covers this for those who choose to follow this video series, there are a number of other good books written on the subject.
11 days to go and we will should have puppies!
Comments