Puppy prep.

[RedLimoncello]

Hi all,

I'm (hopefully) getting a miniature schnauzer pup in the coming months all going well. If not it'll be back to waiting, but either way I'd love to get some advice on puppy preparation.

I've been hanging out on here and have gotten some great book recommendations and am watching kikopup on YouTube to get an idea about training, but I'm a bit stumped when it comes to crates. Specifically what size to get.

Is it better to get a little puppy crate and then buy a larger one as the pup grows, or get a standard crate for the grown-up dog size and use a divider? Even with a divider the recommended mini schnauzer size crate (30inches long (76cm) ) looks big for a tiny puppy!

I'm also looking at what bedding to go with. Is the vet bed fleece the way to go for puppyhood? And are you generally advised to stick with the crate as their safe haven throughout their lives or could I transition to a standard dog bed at some stage?

Many thanks to anyone for advice. These are the detailed questions that make me seem overly obsessive when I wrestle aloud with them to DH (so I need to sound them out to equally obsessive people).

A new puppy yay exciting

Everyone does if differently but I get a little crate for the puppy .It is easier to move around the house and if you have it upstairs at nightime then you can move it downstairs for daytime. I use a bigger crate when they need one.

I do not use crates forever in the house and they can move onto beds if you and they want to.

I always use vet bed (way cheaper off the internet than pet shops) It is warm, easy to wash and lets moisture through it. It can be chewed but not all dogs chew it. Dont get the rubber backed vet bed for puppies just in case. The green backed is fine.

No question about dogs is ever overally excessive -you have met your people

Yay! I'll check the vet bed stuff I was looking at to be sure it's not rubbery and have a look at small crates. Hadn't thought about ease of carrying up the stairs but that makes a lot of sense for the early days.

Thanks!