The Christmas Puppy

If you are giving someone a puppy as a gift this Christmas, make sure you've done your homework. Does the person who will be receiving the puppy want a puppy? Do they have the time and resources to provide a good forever home for the puppy? If the puppy is for a child, is there a responsible adult who will care for it once the novelty has worn off and the child has lost interest?

Where should you get the puppy?

Lets start with where not to get the puppy. Avoid buying your puppy from pet stores. Puppy mills (click here to learn more about puppy mills) time their breedings to produce as many puppies during the holiday season as possible. They do not breed for health or temperament. They breed for greed. Puppies that come from puppy mills are often sick and/or have temperament problems. If the pet store sales clerk tells you that their puppies come from local breeders, demand to see proof. Quite often these "local breeders" are a puppy mill located somewhere in the Midwest.

Instead, find a reputable breeder if you are looking for a purebred puppy or adopt the puppy from a local shelter or rescue group. North Star Pet Assistance is a great website to start your search for a puppy to adopt.

When should you get the puppy?

Remember that puppies are infants. They require constant supervision and lots of care. Will you be able to tend to your holiday guests and still feed, water, potty (every 30 min), comfort and reassure your new puppy? In addition to being difficult for you, being removed from his mother and siblings and introduced to a new home is stressful for your puppy under the best of circumstances. Meeting his new family with all of the noise and commotion of a busy Christmas day would be traumatizing for your puppy. This type of trauma can have a negative and permanent effect on your puppy.

Instead of bringing your puppy home for Christmas morning, let him stay with his mother and siblings a day or two longer and bring him home once the bustle of the holiday season is over. You can give the promise of a puppy in a very special way that will delight his future owner.

1. Get an appropriately sized box with a lid and wrap them separately so that the lid can be lifted off of the box. Use beautiful wrapping paper and be sure to add a huge bow. Really make it look special.

2. Place items the puppy will need inside the box. Try to secure them so they don't move around inside the box. Be creative - you want it to look as special inside as it does outside. Some items to add could be two bowls (stainless steel or ceramic), a collar and matching leash, an engraved identification tag, some puppy toys and some safe chew toys, a high quality puppy food, yummy treats, a book on potty training , a book on dog training and a cozy dog bed. You can also add a stuffed animal dog - Toys R Us has lots of realistic looking dogs in many different breeds. Don't forget to place a "certificate" for the real puppy inside the box too.

The recipient of this gift will be thrilled with the gift, thrilled that they are getting a puppy and also have the added bonus of anticipating the arrival of their new best friend.