Puppies, not for Christmas

Was tweeted from someone who said she wasn’t happy her relative was planning to get a puppy for Christmas. I replied as long as she knows it’s not Just for Christmas. She replied it’s just not how you should get a pup.

Thought about it for a while and didn’t really understand what she meant; but then realised that it probably is too busy a time. Since I’m not very social at Christmas my first thought wasn’t about chaos in the home. After researching further, I found very compelling reasons not to do it.


3 key points are:

• New people and noise in the house can create unnecessary stress and anxiety.
• There is a general lack of time and attention for proper training.
• Lots of extra things for puppies to get into (ie. ribbons, tinsel, decorations, Christmas trees, poisonous mistletoe & poinsettias)

Now if you have already committed to a puppy; here are some suggestions to help with the transition:

• Don’t invite too many people over; or let the puppy be handled by guests

• Have a quiet place set aside for the puppy to sleep; buy a crate and put it in a room away from the noise.

• Make sure the puppy gets plenty of exercise and start training immediately. Some puppy training info

• Don’t feed the new addition any table scraps.

• Keep decorations to a minimum; or supervise the puppy when in the presence of dangerous items.

Remember to always make sure the puppy has proper vaccinations and a health check from the vet, when bringing a new animal into your home.


Thanks to 321Viv for making me aware of something I never really thought about before.