Puppy Essentials

You’ll need to go shopping before you bring your puppy home. There are many, many adorable and tempting items at pet supply stores, but these are the basics.

• Food and water dishes. Look for bowls that are wide and low or weighted in the bottom so they will be harder to tip over. Sturdy crock bowls are very good for JRTs. They are easy to clean (plastic never gets completely clean), difficult to tip over, and tough for your puppy to pick up and carry off to who-knows-where. Avoid bowls that place the food and water side by side in one unit—it’s too easy for your dog to get his water dirty that way.

• Leash. A six-foot leather leash will be easy on your hands and very strong.

• Collar. Start with a nylon buckle collar. For a perfect fit, you should be able to insert two fingers between the collar and your pup’s neck. Your dog will need larger collars as he grows up.

• Crate. Choose a sturdy crate that is easy to clean and large enough for your puppy to stand up, turn around, and lie down in.

• Nail cutters. Get a good, sharp pair that are the appropriate size for the nails you will be cutting. Your dog’s breeder or veterinarian can give you some guidance here.

• Grooming tools. Different kinds of dogs need different kinds of grooming tools. See chapter 7 for advice on what to buy.

• Chew toys. Dogs must chew, especially puppies. Make sure you get things that won’t break or crumble off in little bits, which the dog can choke on. Very hard plastic bones are a good choice. Dogs love rawhide bones, too, but pieces of the rawhide can get caught in your dog’s throat, so they should only be allowed when you are there to supervise.

• Toys. Watch for sharp edges and unsafe items such as plastic eyes that can be swallowed. Many toys come with squeakers, which dogs can also tear out and swallow. All dogs will eventually destroy their toys; as each toy is torn apart, replace it with a new one.

Where Not to Get a Jack Russell

Backyard breeders and pet shops are not the best places from which to get a dog, nor is someone breeding a litter so their children can see “the miracle of birth.” These folks are not the best guardians of the breed.

Backyard Breeders
Backyard breeders are those who have bred their dogs but do not have the knowledge (or desire, or energy, or finances) to do what is necessary to produce the best dogs possible. This could be someone who has a female Jack Russell Terrier and wants puppies, and so breeds the female to a friend’s male down the street. No health checks were done, no studies of genetics or background checks were done, and in many instances the dogs may not have been registered, either.

A backyard breeder may also be someone who hasn’t spayed the female and then doesn’t keep her safe when she comes into season and is bred by a wandering male. The puppies may or may not be purebred; the male (or males) may not even be known.

Most such people are not breeding for the future health and soundness of the breed. They have not looked over pedigrees and studied what stud dog would improve the qualities of their bitch and have not done all the appropriate homework and preparation for a litter of puppies. They likely have not had the bitch tested or even registered. Most such breedings are due to any convenient stud dog.

Why Not Buy from a Pet Store?
The only advantage to buying a JRT from a pet store is that you can have a puppy the day you walk in. There are many disadvantages. A pet store does not sell adults or rehome abandoned dogs. Many times the pups are taken from their dam and littermates way too early for their well-being.

Pet shops frequently buy their puppies from commercial breeding facilities (sometimes known as puppy mills) where there is little thought or care for the well-being of the puppy. JRTs in puppy mills are generally not registered with the JRTCA and there may be no way of verifying their pedigree—if, indeed, a pedigree is offered. Most puppy mill dogs come without pedigrees. You’ll also pay a lot more than you would from a breeder, you won’t be able to see where or how the dog was raised, you’re unable to meet the dog’s relatives to see if they are the kinds of dogs you would want to have, and you won’t know the dog’s health history. Pet store employees won’t be able to show you how to groom your dog and won’t be able to answer any questions you have as the years go by. And if you have to rehome the dog, a pet store will never take her back. A reputable breeder will.

Pet shops are selling Jack Russells strictly to make a profit. Dogs bred only for dollars are the worst possible choice.