Thinking of getting a puppy? What to consider first

A puppy is one of the biggest decisions a household can make, and it deserves more thought than most people give it. It's easy to fall for a photo online or a friend's litter of eight-week-olds, but the dog you bring home will need you, in one form or another, for the next ten to fifteen years. Getting the decision right at the start makes an enormous difference to how happy that whole relationship turns out to be, for you and for the dog.

None of the questions below are meant to put you off. They're the same questions reputable rescue charities ask adopters, and the same ones a responsible breeder should be asking you. If you can answer them honestly and the answer is still yes, you're in a good position to give a puppy the life it deserves.

This guide walks through the practical, financial and lifestyle realities of puppy ownership, from the real cost of keeping a dog to how to avoid the puppy farms that still supply a shocking number of UK pets. Take our Pet Ownership Quiz if you want a quick, honest gut-check before you read on.

Why this decision needs real thought

Dogs Trust puts it simply: your dog may be with you for fifteen years or more, and their health and happiness will be your responsibility for the whole of that time. That's a very different commitment to a goldfish or even a cat. A puppy can't be left alone for hours at a time, can't tell you when something's wrong, and can't choose a different home if the fit turns out to be wrong. The RSPCA's own guidance opens with exactly this framing: before anything else, think honestly about whether a puppy suits your lifestyle and family circumstances, not just whether you'd like one.

It helps to imagine the dog at two years old, not eight weeks old. A lot of the appeal of a puppy is the puppy stage itself, which lasts a matter of months. The dog you're really taking on is the adult it becomes, shaped heavily by the breed, size and temperament you choose now.

The lifestyle questions to answer honestly

Dogs Trust suggests working through a set of core questions before you commit, and they're worth sitting with rather than answering quickly:

• Time - your dog can't be left home alone for hours at a stretch, especially as a puppy. Can you realistically be home enough, or afford daycare or a dog walker to fill the gaps?
• Flexibility - are you willing to plan holidays, weekends and even spontaneous plans around a dog's needs, rather than the other way round?
• Patience - house training, chewing, separation anxiety and adolescent testing are all normal. Do you have the temperament to work through them calmly, and the willingness to get professional help if needed?
• The whole household - does everyone actually want a dog, and is it clear from day one who's responsible for walks, feeding and vet visits?
• The long view - will a dog still fit if your circumstances change: a new baby, a house move, a change of job, an elderly relative moving in?

Space and exercise matter too. The RSPCA points out that a large or energetic breed needs a home and garden to match, along with daily exercise that some lifestyles simply can't provide. Our Dog Walking Calculator is a useful reality check for how much daily exercise different breeds and life stages actually need, before you fall for a breed that doesn't match your routine.

The real cost of a puppy

This is the area most new owners get wrong. PDSA's cost-of-ownership research puts the lifetime cost of keeping a dog at a minimum of £6,200 for a small breed, rising to £18,800 or more for a large breed, once you account for food, insurance, routine vet care, and equipment across their whole life. That's before anything goes wrong.

PDSA breaks the ongoing costs down further:

• Initial setup: roughly £415-£560 depending on size, covering a bed, crate, bowls, collar, lead and initial vet checks.
• Monthly running costs: around £69 for a small dog, £83 for a medium dog, and £116 for a large dog, covering food, insurance and routine care.

These figures assume nothing goes wrong. They don't include emergency treatment, dog walking, boarding while you're away, or training classes. The purchase price of the puppy itself, anywhere from a few hundred pounds to several thousand depending on breed, is often the smallest part of the total bill over a dog's lifetime.

Most new owners underestimate this figure badly - work out your own numbers before you commit, not after.

Insurance is worth budgeting for from day one rather than treating as optional. Both Dogs Trust and the RSPCA recommend taking out a policy as soon as your puppy comes home, since accidents and sudden illness don't wait until you're financially ready for them.

Choosing where your puppy comes from

How you source your puppy matters as much as whether you get one. The RSPCA is blunt about this: puppy farms still treat puppies as little more than a commodity to be bought and sold, bred with no regard for the health or temperament of the parents, and around 87% of calls to their puppy trade concerns line relate to animals bought over the internet. A puppy bought this way is often taken from its mother far too early, poorly socialised, and at higher risk of both physical and behavioural problems.

If you're not adopting, look for a responsible breeder and be prepared to ask questions rather than simply pay and collect:

• Always see the puppy with its mother, in the place it was actually born and raised. Refusal to allow this is one of the clearest warning signs of a puppy farm or dealer.
• Ask for health screening certificates for both parents where the breed has known inherited conditions, and ask the breeder to talk you through what the results mean, not just that testing happened.
• Check for signs of inbreeding, such as repeated matings between close relatives shown on the pedigree paperwork.
• Be wary of meeting puppies away from home, such as in a car park or a so-called neutral location - a classic sign the pups weren't bred where you're told they were.

Adoption is always worth considering as an alternative. Rescue charities including the RSPCA, Dogs Trust and Battersea regularly have puppies and young dogs looking for homes, and adoption comes with the benefit of a health check, initial vaccinations and behavioural assessment already done.

Health considerations before you choose a breed

It's tempting to choose a breed purely on looks, but the RSPCA is clear that many popular breeds carry health problems built into their body shape. Flat-faced breeds such as French Bulldogs and Pugs can struggle to breathe properly, especially in heat or during exercise. Breeds with very long backs are prone to spinal problems. Breeds with heavy, floppy ears are more prone to ear infections. The RSPCA notes that all of the fifty most popular dog breeds carry at least one physical trait capable of causing them some degree of suffering.

This doesn't mean avoiding these breeds altogether, but it does mean going in with your eyes open: researching the specific health issues associated with any breed you're drawn to, and choosing a breeder who actively screens for them rather than one who doesn't mention it at all.

What your puppy needs from day one

Once you've decided to go ahead, a few things need to be in place before the puppy arrives, not after:

• A vet practice - register with a local practice in advance and check whether they offer out-of-hours cover, or who covers it for them, so you're not searching for help in an emergency.
• Microchipping - this isn't optional. Under the Microchipping of Dogs (England) Regulations 2015, every dog in the UK must be microchipped and registered on an approved database by the time it's eight weeks old, and the breeder is legally responsible for this before the puppy goes to its new home. Owners who don't keep this up to date risk a fine of up to £500.
• Insurance - arranged to start the day your puppy arrives, not after the first vet visit.
• A puppy-proofed home - cables, cleaning products, house plants and anything chewable moved out of reach, plus a quiet resting space away from noise and foot traffic.
• Basic supplies - food (ideally the same the puppy is already eating, to avoid stomach upset), washable bedding, bowls, an appropriately sized collar and lead, and enzymatic cleaner for the inevitable accidents.

Our Pet Calorie Calculator can help you get portion sizes right from the first week, since puppies are easy to under- or overfeed on packaging guidelines alone.

Training, socialisation and the first few months

A puppy arrives knowing nothing about the rules of your household, and it's down to you to teach it, patiently and consistently. Dogs Trust stresses that puppies need plenty of company, mental stimulation and ongoing, positive training, especially in the first few months, and that professional help is worth seeking early if things aren't going smoothly rather than waiting for problems to become established habits.

Socialisation matters just as much as house training. The window for a puppy to safely and positively experience new people, dogs, sounds and environments is relatively short, so this needs to start as soon as your vet confirms it's safe to do so, usually shortly after the primary vaccination course.

Common mistakes to avoid

• Buying on impulse - a puppy seen and bought the same day, without checking the breeder or the paperwork, is one of the most common routes into supporting a puppy farm.
• Underestimating the cost - research consistently finds that most owners haven't worked out realistic lifetime costs before getting a dog, and unexpected costs are one of the leading reasons dogs are later given up.
• Choosing a breed on looks alone - without checking exercise needs, grooming demands or known health issues.
• Skipping insurance - then facing a large unexpected vet bill in the first year, when puppies are at their most accident-prone.
• Assuming a puppy will settle down without training - most behavioural problems get harder to change the longer they're left unaddressed.

When to see your vet

Book your puppy's first vet check as soon as possible after you bring them home, ideally within the first few days, even if they seem perfectly well. This first visit confirms they're healthy, gets their vaccination course underway if it hasn't started, and gives you a chance to ask about worming, flea treatment and microchip registration in one go. After that, stick to the vaccination and health-check schedule your vet recommends, and don't wait if your puppy seems unusually lethargic, isn't eating, or has persistent vomiting or diarrhoea - young puppies can deteriorate quickly and are best checked early rather than late.

*This is general guidance, not a substitute for advice from your vet, who can assess your individual pet.*

Sources

• PDSA - the cost of owning a dog (pdsa.org.uk).
• Dogs Trust - should I get a dog? 10 questions to ask yourself (dogstrust.org.uk).
• Dogs Trust - puppy checklist: what do you need for a puppy (dogstrust.org.uk).
• RSPCA - what to consider when buying a puppy (rspca.org.uk).
• RSPCA - choosing a puppy, which puppy is right for me (rspca.org.uk).
• GOV.UK - get your dog or cat microchipped (gov.uk).