What do I need to buy?

[AtSea1979]

Getting a rescue dog and have nothing but a crate as yet.
Don’t want to look like an idiot in front of rescue place but so many contradictory things on google. Can someone point me in direction of what’s recommended, not recommended in terms of collars and leads, beds, toys, treats to help with training etc

A shopping thread

• Collars - a traditional "flat" collar is the one to go for. That just means one that doesn't do anything like tightening when the dog pulls. It may fasten together with a buckle or clip.

• ID tags - a legal requirement, attach to collar, should have your surname, phone number and street address. Microchips are not a replacement for ID tags.

• Leads - not a flexi / extending lead, as they can cause injuries and if the brake fails at an inopportune moment, the dog can end up under the wheels of a bus. For street walking, you want a standard 3' lead. For recall practice, use a long line. For safety reasons (i.e. not allowing the dog to get up large amounts of speed and then suddenly being stopped by the neck) a long line must be attached to a harness.

• Harness - fundamentally all that's really needed is one that (a) fits, and (b) doesn't tighten when the dog pulls (which is how the "no pull" harnesses "work"). There are cheap ones on the market if you only intend to use it for a short period, but Perfect Fit harnesses are pretty much the gold standard - but you can't buy one until you have a dog to measure up!

• Poo bags and holder - attach to your lead!

• Beds - err, my dog sleeps on my bed. His own bed was a cheap thing off Amazon. Basically it needs to be big enough for the dog to stretch out on... others will have more info!

• Toys - impossible to fully advise until you've met the dog and know preferences (e.g. mine's a ball junkie, others couldn't care less), though a classic Kong is always an excellent place to start. Our favourite brands include Kong, Chuck It and Nina Ottosson. A rope toy for tug of war is always a good one as the game promotes bonding. Join the Canine Enrichment facebook group for ideas.

• Treats - we use a variety - Tubidog liver pate from Zooplus.co.uk is the highest value treat as far as PestDog is concerned. Primula cheese is also good. Treats2Sit4.co.uk do a variety of good dried offal type treats at sensible prices. I always go for treats and chews that are high meat content - so often this means things like dried tripe, pizzle sticks, dried liver, dried lung, dried trachea... you get the picture. I avoid treats made by companies like Pedigree because when you read the ingredients they start off with things like "cereals, meat and animal derivatives (4% beef)" which is a sure sign of a really low quality product.

• Food - keep the dog on what it's currently eating for a short while, and then slowly switch to your preferred food. allaboutdogfood.co.uk is an excellent website for finding good dog foods.

• Bowls - literally anything. Mine has a metal water bowl from Poundland.

• Car restraints - bear in mind that it's illegal to have the dog running free around the car. Some use crates in the boot. I prefer to use a harness + car seat belt tether.

Do you know if the dog has already been crate trained? Do look at crate training so you understand what it is (and isn't). Personally I've never crated my own rescue dog.

Some rescues regime with collar/harness. Ours is on a folded duvet until we see what bed they like. What sort of dog is it?

Rehome!! (Not regime!)