Buy list

[Mumofsend]

Hello,

Have had a break from owning a dog for 6 years as we aren't in a suitable home and I got rid of everything dog related after having several dogs for 20+ years.

We have a 5 month old rescue joining us next month and I realised I've not actually had to buy from scratch before.

Any must haves? I have bed/crate etc but it feels a bit like babies and buying for pets has become increasingly complex.

Weren't! We are now hence puppy.

Collar or harness (depending on preference), lead, tags. Chewy toys, antler. Really high value and quality treats, ideally an assortment so its like you have pick and mix. Simple solution pet accident spray and good quality kitchen roll.
Bowls and stand (if larger dog). Everything else you can work out as you go along depending on dogs preference.

It doesn’t need to be complex, things are just very well marketed these days. You can spend a fortune, but you don’t need to.

Off the top of my head, a basic list is:

Crate/bed
Bio accident cleaner like Simple Solution + decent kitchen towel
A couple of toys (Don’t get much or spend a lot until you find out what they prefer - we save up the inner cardboard tubes of foil/baking parchment/cling for pups as they love to shred them.)
A few chews and a kong or lickimat for quiet time
Food & bowl
Water bowl
Training treats
Collar & Lead
Longline
Travel/car crate or crash tested seatbelt harness
Biodegradable poo bags

Useful to have, but not essential:

Crocs or ankle wellies to keep by back door for toilet trips
Head torch or even better, beanie with head torch built in (for night toilet trips)
Hooded waterproof coat to go by back door for the same reason
I like to have a couple/a few beds dotted about so they can choose where to rest, as that’s a more natural way for dogs to sleep and particularly with rescues, they can choose their safe space to retreat to
Old towels for drying after wet walks and/or baths