The Puppy Guide: From First Contact to Week Twelve
The road to your puppy, step by step: contacting breeders, visiting, pickup day — then week by week through the first three months. Sourced, with review dates.
What this is about
This guide walks you through the whole puppy purchase — not as advertising, but as a toolkit: what to ask, what you must see, what to walk away from, and what actually matters in the first twelve weeks at home.
- Five stages to moving-in day: contact, first call, the visit, the starter kit, pickup.
- Then twelve weeks, each with its own focus — from the first night to teething.
- Every page names its sources and the date it was last reviewed.
- Legal and veterinary passages are written for orientation and don't replace individual advice.
The road to your puppy
The five stages before moving-in day
From the first message to the drive home — in the order it will happen.
Stage 1
Contacting the Breeder: How to Write Your First Message
Good breeders receive more enquiries than they have puppies. Your first message decides whether you get a reply — and what kind.
Stage 2
The First Call: Questions Worth Asking the Breeder
The first phone call isn't a formality before the visit — it's the moment to ask the questions that a puppy in your arms will later make impossible.
Stage 3
Visiting the Breeder: What You Really Need to Look For
The visit is where almost everything is decided — and exactly where judgement fails, because eight puppies are tugging at your shoelaces at once. This guide is your handrail.
Stage 4
Puppy Starter Kit: What You Actually Need
Pet shops have an entire shelving system for a puppy's arrival. Astonishingly little of it is needed — and two of the most important things cost nothing: time, and a puppy-proofed home.
Stage 5
Pickup Day: Contract, Handover and the First Ride Home
Pickup day is paperwork and a racing heart at the same time. The good news: if you know what belongs in the contract and the handover folder, the paperwork takes half an hour — and the rest of the day belongs to the dog.
After moving in
The first twelve weeks with your puppy
Each week has its theme: settling in, house-training, staying alone, vaccinations, puppy school — at the pace your puppy needs.
Ready to start looking?
On HonestDog you'll find puppies from kennels with an open profile — breed, region, and the details this guide teaches you to check.
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