How to Puppy-Proof Your House in 8 Steps

Puppy-proofing is the practice of making sure your house is safe and appropriate for a new puppy. It includes both safeguarding your puppy from objects or areas that might harm them and protecting your home and items from your puppy’s curious (and potentially destructive) behaviors.

Puppy-proofing is beneficial for you and your new pet. It can:

1. 1. Help your dog feel safe and secure: When you keep a new dog away from dangerous or off-limits items, they’re more likely to relax and feel at home in the house. On the contrary, if your puppy feels as if it’s consistently getting into harm’s way or getting in trouble, it may feel unsafe and uncomfortable in its new situation.
2. 2. Prevent accidents: With new puppies, accidents will always happen, whether they eat a mouthful of a houseplant or relieve themselves indoors; as a dog owner, it’s essential to minimize and prevent these accidents whenever possible. By reducing accidents and being proactive with your puppy, you can increase their safety and your peace of mind.
3. 3. Protect your home: During obedience and house training, puppies will engage in several destructive behaviors, including chewing, biting, and relieving themselves. Puppy-proofing your home limits these behaviors by giving your puppy access to fewer objects or areas of your house.

Here’s a puppy-proofing checklist to make sure your home is ready for your new pup:

1. 1. Avoid electric shock: From lamp cords to phone chargers, most homes are full of electric cords that may seem innocuous to you but can be a chewing delight for curious puppies. Keep all electric cords concealed or out of reach behind furniture or in off-limits, dog-proof rooms.
2. 2. Decide what rooms are off-limits: It’s crucial during training that you’re consistent with your commands to avoid confusing your new pet. Before you bring your puppy home, decide which rooms of the house your puppy can enter and focus on making those as pet-friendly as possible. Consider puppy gates, baby gates, closed doors, or other barriers to keep them out of dangerous rooms until they get the hang of the rules.
3. 3. Establish a safe space for your puppy: Just as humans like to have a home base, dogs enjoy having a private area to call their own. Set up a dog crate, kennel, playpen, or cozy corner for your puppy so they know where they can retreat to when they need a bit of alone time. Spend time crate training, so your new pup knows this is their safe place.
4. 4. Move small items: Teething puppies can be notorious for carrying off any small objects they can lift, including purses, rubber bands, paper clips, books, knickknacks, and shoes, and chewing on them in a private spot. To prevent this, consider the size of your puppy and remove any tempting or dangerous items (especially sharp objects and choking hazards) that fall within their reach while they’re still learning. Store these items on a high shelf or keep them in cupboards with childproof latches.
5. 5. Provide dog-safe toys: To redirect chewing behaviors away from furniture, offer your pet a few puppy-safe chew toy options. Toys provide necessary stimulation and help keep your puppy’s attention away from furniture, walls, or unsafe objects.
6. 6. Store food out of reach: Puppies have strong noses, and they can scope out any food within their reach, so store kibble, wet dog food, dog treats, bones, and other dog products somewhere out of reach. In addition, keep human foods off the ground and away from them; puppies and adult dogs have sensitive stomachs that can’t handle the fat, salt, and sugar content of many human foods.
7. 7. Reduce the chance of interactions with toxic substances: If you have any houseplants that are toxic to dogs, put them out of reach on tall shelves. Keep cleaning supplies, sprays, medicines, and items that can be choking hazards out of reach, and secure toilet lids and trash cans.
8. 8. Remember outdoors spaces: In addition to puppy-proofing the inside of your home, make sure your yard is safe for your puppy as well. Fence your outdoor areas in to prevent your puppy from running into the street, fence off any dangerous areas like firepits or swimming pools, and remove any low-growing poisonous plants. Keep hazardous products—fertilizers, pesticides, insecticides, outdoor cleaning products, and antifreeze—out of reach or locked in sheds.

Your dream of having a dog who understands words like “sit,” “stay,” “down,” and—crucially— “no” is just a MasterClass Annual Membership away. The only things you’ll need to train up a well-behaved pup are your laptop, a big bag of treats, and our exclusive instructional videos from superstar animal trainer Brandon McMillan.