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Getting your home and the essential kit ready
Choosing and welcoming my dogPart of · Choosing and welcoming my dog

Getting your home and the essential kit ready

9 min read

Before your dog arrives, prepare two things at once: the right kit (bowls, a bolster bed, a long line, a flat collar or harness, identification, food that suits their age, chew and enrichment toys) and a home made safe, with cleaning products, medicines, antifreeze and toxic plants well out of reach.

Why you sort everything out before, not after

A puppy or a rescue dog turns up having left their whole world behind in one go. If the house is already set up, you can let them discover the place at their own pace while you keep an eye on them, instead of dashing out for a bowl you forgot. Safety works the same way: a dog explores with their mouth and swallows fast, sometimes something poisonous, without you noticing a thing.

The essential kit

The bare essentials come down to very little.

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Ready before the big day

Three measurements with a soft tape measure, dog standing and calm, are all you need to get the size right.

1

Height at the withers

Measure from the ground to the highest point of the back, just above the shoulder blades: that is your dog's height, the one manufacturers' size ranges refer to.

2

Neck girth

Measure at the base of the neck, where the collar sits. The two-finger rule: you should be able to slide two flat fingers under the collar, no more and no less.

3

Chest girth

Measure around the ribcage, just behind the front legs: that is the measurement that matters for a harness.

Making the home safe, room by room

Making the home safe does not mean hiding everything away. Remove what is dangerous for your dog and leave the rest in plain sight: that way you can show them what they may and may not do, and redirect them to the right behaviour when needed. Do not hide all your shoes, teach them not to take an interest in them instead!

Kitchen
  • Put a lid on the bin, or keep it behind a closed cupboard door under the sink: bones, fatty leftovers, onion and grapes are dangerous for your dog.
  • Keep cleaning products and plastic bags up high or locked away.
Bathroom and cupboards
  • Keep human medicines out of reach: paracetamol, ibuprofen and aspirin are toxic to a dog.
  • Put away essential oil diffusers and plug-in mosquito repellents: swallowing them causes irritation, and some oils are downright dangerous for your dog.
Living room
  • Bundle up or protect electrical cables; only leave them visible when you are there to supervise, so you can teach them that these are off limits.
  • Pick up small objects they could swallow: batteries, elastic bands, string, thread.
  • Move toxic plants up high, out of reach.
Balcony, stairs, windows
  • Fit a stair gate at the top of the stairs for the first few weeks.
  • Make the balcony safe: a puppy will slip under a railing.
  • Carry a large-breed puppy up and down long flights of stairs until they are 3 months old: a 2012 study showed that climbing stairs too early raises the risk to their hips, which are still fragile at that age.
Garden and garage
  • Lock away antifreeze, rat poison and slug pellets: antifreeze has a sweet taste that attracts dogs.
  • Keep spring bulbs and toxic plants out of reach.
  • Close the compost bin and the garden waste.

Put away anything that poisons, and pick risk-free plants wherever your dog has access.

To keep out of reach

Cleaning products and causticsThey burn the mouth and the oesophagus: never leave them lying around on the floor.
Human medicinesParacetamol, ibuprofen and aspirin are toxic to a dog, sometimes fatally so: it is the dose that poisons, and the dose that relieves a human can be enough to poison them.
Antifreeze (ethylene glycol)It has a sweet taste that attracts dogs; a very small amount is enough to seriously harm their kidneys.
Rat poison and slug pelletsRat poison causes internal bleeding, sometimes several days later; slug pellets cause seizures, in a matter of hours.
Highly toxic plantsOleander, lily of the valley and yew (that dark hedging conifer) attack the heart; dieffenbachia and philodendron burn the mouth; spring bulbs cause severe digestive upset.

Plants that are safe where your dog has access

Chlorophytum (spider plant)
Calathea, maranta, peperomia
Areca palm, aspidistra
Rose bush (only the thorns prick)

This list is not exhaustive: treat any unfamiliar mushroom or wild plant as a risk, and remove it at the slightest doubt.

  1. AVSAB — Position Statement on Humane Dog Training (tools and methods) (2021)
  2. ASPCA — Animal Poison Control Center: household plants and toxins
  3. Pet Poison Helpline — Antifreeze (ethylene glycol) and household toxins
  4. Krontveit et al. — Surfaces, stairs and the risk of hip dysplasia in large-breed puppies (2012)
  5. Compulsory dog identification (microchip, tattoo, national register), Service-public.fr / I-CAD

Read next

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Frequently asked questions

What do you need to welcome a dog?

The essentials: two bowls, a bolster bed, a long line (and a short lead for later), a flat collar or a harness, up-to-date identification, the same kibble as the breeder, chew toys and poo bags. Plus a home made safe. For the first three days, bowls, food and a travel crate are enough.

What do you need to buy for a dog?

Budget around 150 euros for the essentials (bowls, bed, long line and lead, collar or harness, toys, travel crate). No need to buy it all at once: the bare essentials first, the rest comes along with the dog. Steer clear of gadgets and of any coercive collar (choke, prong, electric).

Which bed should you choose for your dog?

Choose a bolster bed (the raised edges reassure), sized for your dog, and as comfortable as possible. For a puppy, go for washable plastic at first: it stands up to chewing; you can move on to something soft once they have stopped destroying things. Put it in a quiet corner, never in a thoroughfare.

How do you choose a lead for your dog?

Get a short lead of about 1.20 m, in leather or light nylon that will not slip through your hand, with a solid clip. Avoid chain (heavy, it weighs on the neck) and retractable leads (no control). For the first few weeks and for recall work, what you really need is a long line (5 m, then 20 m), not a short lead.

Collar or harness for my dog?

A plain flat collar suits plenty of dogs. For a dog who pulls or who is already reactive, a front-clip harness is better: the lead attaches at the chest, which is kinder to the neck. On a very young puppy, neither is urgent: the long line is enough. Never a choke, prong or electric collar.

How do you prepare the home before a dog arrives?

Put away cleaning products, medicines, antifreeze and small objects they could swallow; protect cables; make the bin, the balcony and the stairs safe; and move toxic plants out of reach. If something is swallowed, call your vet or an animal poison centre (a national phone number you can reach from anywhere), and never, ever make your dog vomit yourself.

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