How to Get Your Home Ready for a New Puppy: Supplies Checklist

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Most of what a new puppy needs is simple, but it all needs to be ready before collection day, because the first week leaves little time for shopping. This checklist covers the supplies to buy, how to set up a safe space, the puppy-proofing to do, and the first vet visit to book.

How we wrote this: the checklist follows PDSA’s new puppy checklist and its guide to making your home dog friendly, and Battersea’s guide to bringing your puppy home. We put their advice in our own words and mark our own tips with “in our view”. All were checked on 2 November 2026. We did not test any of the products named here ourselves, and we do not show prices or ratings.

The new puppy checklist at a glance

Between them, PDSA and Battersea list these supplies to have ready:

• A crate and/or a puppy pen, plus a bed and blankets
• Food and water bowls
• A collar, an ID tag, a lead and a harness
• A car restraint or a carrier for the journey home
• Puppy-safe chew toys
• Puppy pads, poo bags and an enzymatic cleaner
• A soft brush, dog shampoo, a dog toothbrush and toothpaste
• Baby gates for stairs and off-limits rooms

Both lists also include puppy food. We do not cover food on this site: ask your breeder or shelter what your puppy is eating now, ask your vet what to feed, and see our sister site In The Kibble for food guides. The sections below take the rest in the order you will need it.

1. A crate or pen, and a bed

PDSA says a crate gives a puppy a safe home base from which to explore, and that it can also help with toilet training. It advises placing it somewhere quiet where the puppy will not be disturbed or in the way, with plenty of blankets and bedding. Battersea lists a crate if you plan to crate train, a puppy pen, or both.

In our view, buy a crate sized for the adult dog and use a divider while your puppy is small, so you buy once. The MidWest LifeStages Double Door Folding Dog Crate comes with a divider panel and a leak-proof pan, according to its listing. Our best dog crate guide compares other options, and how to crate train a puppy covers the first days.

A pen gives a puppy a bit more room when you cannot watch it closely. See how to choose a dog playpen and how to get a puppy used to a playpen.

Battersea also suggests asking the breeder for a soft toy or blanket that smells of home, since a familiar smell can comfort a puppy in its first nights.

2. Bowls, kept apart from the bed

Battersea suggests non-slip bowls for food and water. PDSA says water should always be available, fresh and clean, with the bowl not too close to the bed in case it gets knocked over, and that the eating area should be in a different place from the sleeping area. In our view, a heavy or rubber-based bowl is harder for a playful puppy to push around the floor. For raised bowls, see are elevated dog bowls good for dogs.

3. Collar, ID tag, lead and harness

PDSA lists a collar and tag, a lead and a harness. Battersea is more specific: an adjustable, padded harness with a Y-shaped front, a flat collar, and a short, light clip lead rather than an extendable one. Both point out that in the UK a dog must wear a tag with the owner’s details in public; rules differ elsewhere, so check your local law. Our guide on what to put on a dog ID tag covers the wording.

In our view, a plain, light lead suits a puppy best. The Mendota Pet Snap Leash is a light braided rope lead with a snap clip, and our page on whether retractable leashes are bad explains why a fixed lead is the usual advice. Measure before you buy a harness (how to measure a dog for a harness) and recheck the fit often, because puppies grow fast. Our guide on how to get a puppy used to a collar and leash covers the first wear.

4. Something safe for the trip home

PDSA lists a car restraint, and Battersea suggests a soft crate or a secured carrier for the first journey. Battersea also suggests bringing a towel, a few puppy pads and wipes in case of travel sickness, some water and a bowl, and stopping at least every 1.5 hours on a long trip. It warns never to leave a puppy alone in a parked car, even for a few minutes. In our view, ask a second person to come along so one of you can sit beside the puppy.

5. Chew toys, and plenty of them

PDSA suggests lots of toys, and Battersea specifies puppy-safe chew toys, rotated to keep them interesting, as a way to steer chewing away from furniture. PDSA’s home guide adds that a dog should always have safe, dog-specific toys to keep it busy.

The KONG Puppy Dog Toy uses the softest rubber in the KONG range and is made for puppy teeth, according to KONG. In our view, pick a toy too big to swallow, check toys often for damage, and remove any that start to break up. Our best chew toys for teething puppies guide has more picks. Edible chews are covered on In The Kibble, not here.

6. Toilet training kit

Both charities list puppy pads for the early days and poo bags. Battersea adds an enzymatic cleaner for accidents, noting that regular cleaners are not enough. In our view, the reason is smell: if a spot still smells of urine to your puppy, it may go there again.

An enzymatic spray such as Nature’s Miracle Stain and Odor Remover is made for dog urine and other messes; our best enzyme cleaner for pet urine guide compares others. For using pads as a step towards going outside, see how to use puppy pads for house training. PDSA stresses reward-based toilet training and never punishing a puppy for an accident.

7. Grooming basics

PDSA lists a brush or comb, dog shampoo, and a dog toothbrush with dog toothpaste. Battersea suggests a soft puppy brush and nail clippers, or asking your vet or groomer for guidance on nails. In our view, the point at this age is getting your puppy used to being handled, with short, gentle sessions. Our best dog brush guide matches brushes to coat types, and how to brush a dog’s teeth covers the toothbrush.

8. Puppy-proof the house and garden

Battersea compares a puppy to a curious toddler: if it can reach something, chew it or knock it over, it probably will. Before your puppy arrives:

• Cables and small items. PDSA suggests keeping cables up high or using cable covers. Battersea says to tidy away anything small enough to swallow. PDSA adds shoes, children’s toys and remote controls to the list.
• Cleaning products, medicines and human food. Battersea says to lock all of these away. PDSA suggests a locked cupboard for cleaning products and child safety locks to keep a dog out of food cupboards; Battersea names foods that are poisonous to dogs, including chocolate, grapes and raisins, onions and xylitol.
• Stairs and off-limits rooms. Both recommend baby gates. PDSA notes that a gate lets a puppy still see you, which can help it cope with time alone. Battersea suggests keeping stairs off-limits for now to protect growing joints. See best dog gate and how to get a dog used to a baby gate.
• Floors and windows. Battersea suggests rugs or mats on slippery floors, closing low windows and blocking balconies.
• The garden. Check fences and gates for gaps a puppy could squeeze through or dig under, cover ponds, and remove toxic plants. Battersea names lilies, yew, foxgloves, daffodil bulbs and azaleas among them.

PDSA also reminds owners that a puppy grows quickly, so things out of reach on day one may not be for long. If you think your puppy has eaten something it should not have, call your vet straight away.

9. Register with a vet and book the first visit

PDSA suggests finding a vet before your puppy arrives, and visiting once your puppy has settled for a check-up and any vaccinations and treatments still due. It also says to keep microchip details up to date and to diary future vaccinations and worm and flea treatments. A puppy should be fully covered by its vaccinations before it walks outside or meets unvaccinated dogs; your vet will tell you when.

In our view, call your vet promptly if your puppy stops eating, has vomiting or diarrhea, seems very quiet, or has trouble breathing. Young puppies can go downhill fast, so do not wait it out.

The first night

Battersea says some crying is normal: the puppy has just left everything it knows. It suggests putting the crate or bed near the spot where your puppy will sleep, giving calm reassurance without too much picking up, and planning to be up every three to four hours for toilet breaks. Keep those breaks boring, with low light and no play. PDSA adds that a steady routine for meals, play and bed helps a puppy settle.

FAQ

What do I need to buy before bringing a puppy home?

The basics are a crate or pen with a bed and blankets, bowls, a collar with an ID tag, a light lead and a harness, a car restraint or carrier, chew toys, puppy pads, poo bags, an enzymatic cleaner and a soft brush. Food is the other essential: ask your breeder what your puppy eats now and ask your vet before changing it.

Should a puppy wear a collar or a harness?

Battersea suggests both: a flat collar to carry the ID tag, and an adjustable, padded harness with a Y-shaped front to clip the lead to.

Where should a new puppy sleep on the first night?

Battersea suggests putting the crate or bed near where the puppy will sleep, which can be your bedroom or another room. Expect to be up every three to four hours for quiet toilet breaks.

More for new dog owners: how to crate train a puppy, how to use puppy pads for house training and best chew toys for teething puppies.