New puppy checklist
Well, its getting down to the wire now. Depending on a meeting being scheduled for Thursday morning, I'm either leaving between 2 and 3 am on Thursday or 2 and 3 pm on Thursday to drive to NJ. Once there, I'll kill time and meetup with Sujewel on Friday, and then its off to pickup Joey on Saturday before a rapid return to Hotlanta on Sunday.
Today was my "get prepared" shopping extravaganza. Here's what I got:
- Wire crate
- (borrowed) Hard sided crate for travel (thanks Rachael!)
- Food and water bowls
- Collar
- ID tag
- Food
- Food container
- Doggie bed (a nice one to give to Lucy and he'll get the hand-me-down)
- Retractable leash
- A play pen
Am I forgetting something? It feels like I am. But that could just be me freaking out.
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On a side note....I setup the playpen in my living room so Lucy would get used to it. Afterward, I gave her a bath and brushed her since she's been blowing coat like its her job. After a few minutes of Shiba 500s and a podie break outside, I put her in the play pen with a toy to test it out. She sniffed around for five seconds and then jumped out of it directly onto the couch! I guess that'll be a Joey only area. 
Comments
Chew toys, unless you have some left over from Lucy. Pee Pads maybe for housebreaking, unless you use something different. But other than that, I think you have everything covered. Im so excited for you!!! I can't wait to see pics and video's! You better whore him out to us like there's no tomorrow!
Good call on the blanket Rui. Last week I actually sent a towl and a toy that I'd been sleeping with so he could start getting used to Lucy and I. Should I bring another one? I was assuming the the toy and towel will have picked up his sister's scent by the time I get him so he will have that to comfort him when we take him away.
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Barbara, of course I'm bringing my camera. This is Joey's checklist.
You might want to stock up on caffeinated beverages for the trip.Some folks dig up an old wind-up clock because the ticking is supposed to keep the pups calm. I prefer to sleep right outside of the kennel till the little ones adjust. It's taken three weeks, but our new pup has finally gotten comfortable enough that she doesn't have to wake me unless she has to go pee. It's funny; the sleep deprivation reminds me of when our daughter was just a pup.
Ooooh, I used to have a wind up clock. I have no clue where it is now though.
I'm not going to bring to much in the way of caffeine since it'll be good for both Lucy and I to stop every few hours and get out of the car.
You should definitely bring a fresh, Dave & Lucy smelling towel for him to sleep with in the crate. I'm sad that I won't get to meet him this trip
As far as the toys go. We bought Mika baby and infant toys. Dog toys aren't well made and she is so destructive with her toys, that spending a few dollar's more on a Baby toy was worth the lasting power. She especially liked a baby blanket that had a crinkle toy on one corner, a squeeky on another corner and two corners with rubber for chewing, plus the center was Tigger's face. They're actually fairly inexpensive at Target.
And the teething rings that go in the freezer were good with her too. She preferred ice, but when she just couldn't chew, those rings were her savior.
Thanks for the suggestion Barbara, I'm sure I'll be buying him a lot of toys that I don't have yet!
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Heidi, the wire crate is for him to sleep in and be in when I'm not home. The hard sided crate (which I'll return to Rachael after we get back) is for him to travel in. Aside from the fact that his wire crate wouldn't fit in the back seat of my car, the hard sided one is safer for him if we were to get into an accident.
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Wish me luck, I'm leaving a soon as I can make myself a cup of tea!
Well, I'm here. Made pretty good time. Poor Lucy was pretty shook up when we left. She knew something was up because I packed the car last night and we got up at 2:45am. When I took out her harness and leash to get ready to go, she freaked out and hid behind the couch. I had to coax her out. For the first few hours of the trip, she stood in her copilot position and refused to relax. I finally forced her into the front seat where I had her blanket and the seat warmer on and she passed out for two hours. Once she woke up and got some food, she was back to her normal chipper self. She's currently cleaning the floor of my parent's kitchen. I hope there isn't anything bad down there.
I'm in that weird completely exhausted but not tired daze right now. I think a pizza and some burbon is in my future.
3:30 am is an early start. 14 hours in the car is pretty brutal.
*tsk tsk* on having a dog in the front seat.
Glad you made it safe though.
Dogs can always tell when something really different is going to happen. It's interesting to watch how they react. I always wonder what Nemo will be like when we move (hopefully we will move someday).
Thanks guys! In my defense, Lucy was buckled in tightly.
I'm wondering when Lucy is going to realize that driving up here isn't the only thing that is going to change. Tomorrow we'll get back on our normal routine with a long morning walk and an evening walk too. Then we'll hang out with Sujewel, her hubby, and Keigo so that could be interesting. Saturday is gonna be the real test when we actually go get Joey. I'm planning a very long morning walk, and then another walk around the breeder's neighborhood before we actually meet Joey. From there, I have no clue what is going to happen, but I'm sure its going to be an adventure!
She was buckled in but if you were to crash, the airbags would go off and she could still get injured.
I used to put Nemo in the front seat until I read about that. It's similar to putting a small child in the front seat.
I'm glad you made it safe... I'm sure your so stoked to get your new pup that you were pretty awake the whole way.
The second we take our luggage out all of our dogs freak. They know we are leaving as soon as the bags come out.
I'll do better than telling you about it, I plan to video tape the introduction so you'll get to see it! T-minus 28 hours and 17 minutes!