10 Items To Buy For Your New Puppy

First off, I’d like to say congratulations on your new puppy!!! Getting your first puppy is so exciting. I remember when Chandler and I found Diesel. We were so excited to welcome him into our lives and knew that we would have many fun adventures together. 

Knowing what to buy for your new puppy might feel a bit overwhelming if it’s your first puppy. But don’t worry, I have created a first time puppy owner shopping list that has 10 quick and easy puppy essentials that will have you prepared and ready to welcome home your new family member!

P.S. Also check out my New Puppy Checklist in my Amazon Storefront for my tried and true must-have items!

1. Puppy Bed & Blanket

Puppies sleep a lot, and they like to snuggle up in cozy little spaces. Especially if your puppy came from a litter of puppies, odds are they’re used to sleeping all cuddled up together. I personally like to get dog beds that are soft and fluffy. 

Pro Tip: Check out a few cat beds. They tend to be super fluffy, are the perfect size for puppies, and sometimes they’re cheaper!

For blankets, I like to get super soft and inexpensive blankets from Walmart or HomeGoods. These are great to put in their crate but limit yourself to $10 max. Depending on the puppy, they may tear it up. 

2. Teething Keys/Bones

To prevent your puppy from chewing on your favorite pair of sneakers or expensive home furniture, puppy teething keys/teething bones are a must-have. Puppy teething toys are designed to provide comfort to their teeth and gums as they are growing. They also help prevent destructive behavior and provide oral hygiene. 

Want to learn more about puppy teething symptoms and how to help your puppy during the puppy teething stages? Check out my full post, 3 Stages of Puppy Teething for helpful tips, puppy teething toy suggestions and more! 

3. Puppy Food

Having puppy food on hand for when your new puppy comes home is important. Make sure to request at least a sandwich size bag of the food they are currently eating from the shelter or breeder. Since the food you will have bought will be different from what they were eating, you’ll want to slowly transition them from their old food by mixing the two foods together until they are only eating the new food.  

I currently use Purina’s Smartblend puppy food. I have a full post coming soon on how to choose the right food for your new puppy. Stay tuned!

4. Adjustable Collar & Lightweight Leash

Finding collars for puppies can be a bit challenging because they don’t always fit them perfectly, and that’s okay! You want something that’s adjustable that they can grow into but not so loose or big that it will easily come over their head when walking.

A good rule of thumb to know if the collar fits well or is too tight is to put one to two fingers between the collar and their neck. If you can fit them, it’s not too tight. If there’s too much room, adjust the collar smaller or go down a size.

For leashes, you don’t want something to thick or bulky because they’re not used to having something on their neck. If you have a thicker leash that weighs more, odds are it will be too much for them.

To find the best fit, I recommend going to a dog store like PetSmart, Petco or PetSupermarket to try out a few collars. 

5. Food & Water Bowls

Food and water bowls are easy! You want something washable and durable. My preference is stainless steel. It can easily go in the dishwasher, they can’t chew through it, and it won’t break!

6. Puppy Toys

This will probably be the favorite part. Buying puppy toys are so much fun. It’s like buying clothes for a new baby haha! I recommend only getting a few things to see how they act. Some puppies are destroyers and others aren’t. If they are, you don’t want to be out too much money from the beginning.

My favorite puppy toys are:

• Lamb Chop – Something soft and plush for them to snuggle up with, especially if they’re used to sleeping with litter mates.
• KONG Wubba Puppy – Stronger material than the lamb chop toy that has a squeaker and arms for fun playtime!
• KONG Classic Puppy – The perfect crate training and teething toy. 

7. Dog Crate

For dog crates, you don’t want to buy a crate that fits their current size. You want to buy a crate that they will grow into. I don’t have any brand preferences, but I do prefer metal crates that come with bottom trays. The metal crates can’t be chewed through and they fold up nicely when needed to be stored away. 

8. Puppy Car Harness

Car safety is so important for dogs, especially puppies. Teaching them how to be safe during car rides from the beginning can be easy with the help of a car harness. The harness straps on to the puppy like a regular walking harness but these have a spot for the seat belt to go through, helping them to stay in place. 

We use these to prevent the puppy from running around in the car, getting into dangerous areas like the gas or break pedals, or being thrown. 

I purchased this Top Paw Travel Dog Harness from PetSmart and it worked perfectly! Your puppy will be able to sit or lay down while wearing this harness. It comes in sizes small through X-large and was one of the more inexpensive options.

9. House Cleaner For Potty Accidents

There are going to be many potty accidents until your puppy is fully potty trained. Luckily there are many cleaning products out there that can help keep your house sanitary and smelling fresh during this training period.

Some of my favorite cleaning products/brands are:

• Sprinkle and Sweep Pet Mess Cleaner – By far the best pet mess cleanup product I’ve ever found!!! This product deodorizes and cleans up messes like pee, vomit, diarrhea and more on hard floors and it smells fantastic. Plus, they also have their Sweeper Set that pairs perfectly with it. You can get it individually or they have an awesome Bundle Deal with both that’s cheaper!
• Sprinkle and Sweep also has a phenomenal Stain and Odor Spray! This works so well on carpet, upholstery and other materials. I’ve also used this on household stains like removing coffee out of carpet in addition to cleaning pet messes out of carpet!

10. Oatmeal Shampoo

One of the first things you are going to want to do within the first week with your new puppy is to give them a bath. Oatmeal based shampoos have known to be the gentlest on dogs of all ages. I purchased the Earthbath Puppy Ultra Mild Shampoo and it is by far my favorite! Earthbath also has an Oatmeal and Aloe Shampoo and Conditioner set (which they pair the conditioner with the puppy shampoo!) You don’t need much when you wash them, so the bottle should last you quite some time!

Be sure to double check that all soap has been rinsed off from their coat to prevent itching or irritated skin. When you think you have washed it all off, rinse them again. 

Thanks for reading my post about 10 items to buy for your first puppy. I hope this new puppy shopping list was super helpful and I’m so excited for all the fun you’re about to have with your new family member! 

If you loved learning about these new puppy essentials, check out some of my other posts about puppy tips and puppy training tips like:

• 3 Stages Of Puppy Teething 
• What To Know Before Getting A Puppy
• How To Potty Train A Puppy
• How To Crate Train A Puppy
• How To Puppy Proof Your Home & Yard

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