My Favorite Puppy Picks

If you follow me on Instagram you may know that we got a puppy last month. This was not exactly a pandemic puppy; you can check out the full story here! One of the things you hear people say that is 100% true is that having a puppy is a lot like having a baby, right down to obsessing about pee and poop, the joy of sleeping through the night, and also, all manner of crazy “must have” products being pushed at you. We’re 6 weeks in to life with James and I know so many people getting puppies (and a number of folks have asked me about gear) so I thought it would be helpful to pull together my favorite puppy picks; the stuff that has proved totally worth buying!

Just a heads up: most of the links below are for PetSmart, where I have done almost all of my shopping because OMG they have nailed socially distant curbside shopping and are so fast! As in, whenever I have placed an online order for curbside pickup it is ready in less than 12 hours (even when I have placed an order in the evening, after hours). Also, most of the links below are affiliate links, which means I will get a tiny commission if you shop the links (thank you in advance!) at no extra cost to you.

1. “Training the Best Dog Ever” Book

My friend KJ Dell'Antonia recommended Training the Best Dog Ever: A 5-Week Program Using the Power of Positive Reinforcement and we use it daily! It has been such a helpful resource; compact, direct, positively oriented. This book was co-authored by the trainer who trained the Obama family dogs.

Training The Best Dog Ever; image via Bookshop

2. Kurgo Enhanced Strength Tru-Fit Dog Car Harness

For puppies, it’s recommended to get a harness instead of a collar (to prevent choking) and the Kurgo Enhanced Strength Tru-Fit Dog Car Harness is great. It has both a back + chest clip (the latter is better for leash training) and it also comes with an additional clip so it can double as a crash-tested car harness.

3. Dog Tags

I ended up ordering dog tags from Love Your Pets because I was having trouble finding ones at PetSmart or Etsy that provided enough lines of text for contact information (weird!) and the shipping was super fast. It was fun to let Violet pick (she chose the red dog bone). I went ahead and ordered two so we have a backup.

4. Grreat Choice® Double Nylon Dog Leash

I went on instinct and bought this basic 6-foot Grreat Choice® Double Nylon Dog Leash and was relieved to read in the dog training book above that a standard 6-foot leash is preferable to one of those rip cord style ones.

Grreat Choice® Double Nylon Dog Leash; image via PetSmart

5. Grreat Choice® Wire Dog Crate

DEFINITELY GET A CRATE. According to the experts crate trained dogs are better behaved dogs (the crate will become its safe and happy chill out space) and it will give you enormous piece of mind to not have to follow your dog around! This Grreat Choice® Wire Dog Crate took me about two minutes to unpack and set up. No joke. We just drape a towel over the top and have a towel folded inside on the bottom to make it more cozy. Note: we bought a full sized crate for James and Jon put in a wooden divider to make the crate space smaller (you don't want the crate space to be big enough for the dog to soil one corner and have room to move elsewhere) and it has worked great.

Grreat Choice® Wire Dog Crate; image via PetSmart

6. Top Paw® Stainless Steel Dog Bowl

When I was first researching gear I thought it would be cute to get a side by side structured food + water bowl set but reviews said the side by side bowls were too small. I decided to buy two of these Top Paw® Stainless Steel Dog Bowls and it's great having these bowls be separate since we feed James in different places. *Note: I'm not making a specific recommendation for food in this post as we just went with what our breeder was feeding James. I definitely recommend staying consistent with food (one less variable!) so ask your shelter or breeder what they are feeding your pup.

Top Paw® Stainless Steel Dog Bowls; image via PetSmart

7. Pet Botanics® Chicken Mini Training Reward Dog Treat

These Pet Botanics® Chicken Mini Training Reward Dog Treat are my favorite because they are small, which is handy since training a puppy involves lots of repetition and lots of training treats.

Pet Botanics® Chicken Mini Training Reward Dog Treat; image via PetSmart

8. KONG® Puppy Toy - Treat Dispensing

The KONG® Puppy Toy - Treat Dispensing is apparently a universal puppy win; indestructible and also keeps dogs busy. James sure loves his!

9. KONG® Easy Treat™ Dog Treat - Puppy Recipe

This KONG® Easy Treat™ Dog Treat - Puppy Recipe reminds me of the squeeze can "cheese" of my youth. James goes nuts over this stuff. I bought it because I was confused by how kibble would not fall out of the Kong once loaded. You can use this on its own or put kibble in the Kong and seal it in with this stuff.

KONG® Easy Treat™ Dog Treat; image via PetSmart

10. KONG® Wobbler™Treat Dispenser Dog Toy

OK, this may rank as my very favorite puppy pick. It has been a GAME CHANGER! In the face of the extreme temperatures I was researching indoor dog activities and immediately ordered the KONG® Wobbler™ Treat Dispenser Dog Toy. It both provides mental stimulation since the dog needs to figure out how to move the wobbler around to get food out, and also because James eats SO FAST this is so fantastic in slowing him down. For breakfast we just hand feed him or feed him out of his bowl, but for other meals we use the Wobbler.

KONG® Wobbler™ Treat Dispenser Dog Toy; image via PetSmart

11. Only Natural Pet® Eco-Friendly Poop Waste Pick Up Bags

James actually mostly prefers pooping in our backyard so I literally can count on one hand how many times I've used a poop bag out on a walk, but when I do, I feel better using these Only Natural Pet® Eco-Friendly Poop Waste Pick Up Bags.

Only Natural Pet® Eco-Friendly Poop Waste Pick Up Bags; image via PetSmart

12. Rocco & Roxie Professional Strength Stain & Odor Eliminator

We thankfully have not had a ton of accidents indoors but after doing some research I picked up a bottle of this Rocco & Roxie Professional Strength Stain & Odor Eliminator early on and it totally does the trick.

Rocco & Roxie Professional Strength Stain & Odor Eliminator; image via PetSmart

13. Top Paw® Americana 4-Knot Rope with Tennis Ball Dog Toy

I have not wanted to get sucked into buying tons of dog toys. Most everything James plays with is out of the recycling bin (large yogurt containers, tennis ball canisters, cardboard boxes!) but this Top Paw® Americana 4-Knot Rope with Tennis Ball Dog Toy is the one thing I have bought and he loves playing with it. We're using it to work on teaching him how to fetch!

Top Paw® Americana 4-Knot Rope with Tennis Ball Dog Toy; image via PetSmart

14 + 15. Toothbrush + toothpaste

Not my favorite part of dog care but I use the TropiClean® Fresh Breath® Triple Flex Dog Toothbrush and Arm & Hammer Fresh Breath Enzymatic Dog Toothpaste - Chicken.

16. Fanny Pack

I was super resistant to the fanny pack because, well, FANNY PACK, but these have come back in fashion (thanks, Beyoncé!) and I love my stylish pink/gold fanny pack! This way I can carry poop bags, training treats, my phone, an extra mask, and keys hands free...which is perfect especially now when I otherwise have no pockets.