Bringing Home a New Cat or Dog: The Complete Preparation Checklist
Everything to prepare before a new cat or dog arrives: the shopping list, pet-proofing your home, a calm first-day plan, introductions and the first vet visit.
Bulut Veterinary Clinic Medical Team
Reviewed by Mücahid Çiftçioğlu, DVM
The decision is made: a new cat or dog is coming home. The excitement is real — but a few hours of preparation before those little paws cross the threshold largely decide whether the first weeks feel stressful or joyful. A well-prepared home is a safe harbor for the newcomer, and for you it's freedom from the midnight realization that nobody bought a food bowl.
In this guide we've gathered every preparation step in one place: the shopping list, pet-proofing, a first-day plan, introductions to resident pets, and the first veterinary visit. Whether you're adopting from a shelter or bringing home a young puppy or kitten — you bring the excitement, we'll bring the list.
The shopping list: what you actually need
On a first trip to the pet store, everything looks 'essential'. In reality, the first-week list is shorter than you'd think. The goal isn't to buy a lot — it's to have the right things ready in advance:
- Food and water bowls — stable and easy to clean; for cats, wide and shallow bowls that don't squash the whiskers work best
- A small bag of the exact food they've been eating — an abrupt diet change is one of the most common causes of diarrhea in a new arrival
- For cats: a litter box and litter — stick with the litter type they're used to at first; the practical rule for multi-cat homes is 'one box per cat, plus one'
- A comfortable bed and a hiding spot such as a covered box; for puppies, an appropriately sized crate can double as a den and rest area
- For dogs: a collar or harness and leash; attach an ID tag from day one
- A carrier — keep it open at home with soft bedding inside so it never becomes 'the scary box that only means the vet'
- A few age-appropriate toys, a scratching post for cats, and sturdy chew toys for teething puppies
- A brush or comb for coat care and pet-specific nail clippers
Pet-proofing your home
A young cat or dog arriving is a lot like a crawling toddler moving in: nothing goes unchewed and no corner goes unexplored. Before arrival day, scan the house once from their perspective — about knee height and below:
- Bundle up cables or run them through protective covers; a chewed phone charger is a classic puppy accident
- Remove toxic houseplants: lilies (especially dangerous for cats), dieffenbachia, philodendron and bulb plants top the checklist
- Move cleaning products, medications and the trash bin into closed cabinets
- Clear away swallowable small objects — hair ties, string, needles, toy parts; string and thread are a serious swallowing hazard for cats
- Make windows and balconies cat-safe; screens or protective netting are lifesavers in upper-floor apartments
- Store toxic foods out of reach: chocolate, grapes and raisins, onion and garlic, and anything sweetened with xylitol
- Keep washing machine and dryer doors closed — cats adore warm, dark hideouts
The first day: a calm welcome
The golden rule for day one: what feels like a long-awaited reunion to you is, to them, being dropped into a world full of unfamiliar smells. Introducing the whole family at the door, passing the newcomer from lap to lap and touring every room is well-meaning — and exhausting.
Instead, prepare a single room as the 'base camp': food and water bowls, the bed, the litter box for cats and a box to hide in, all in one place. Open the carrier door and let them come out at their own pace. Cats may choose to hide for the first hours — even the first few days — and that's not a problem; it's a healthy coping strategy. Puppies usually warm up faster, but crying on the first night and searching for mother and littermates is completely normal for them too.
Keep visitor traffic light in the early days and plan short, gentle sessions with children. The three things most worth watching are appetite, water intake and toilet habits — together they're the best early indicators of both adjustment and health.
Introductions to resident pets
If a cat or dog already lives in the house, don't rush. The common feature of introductions that go well is that they go slowly. 'Put them in a room together, they'll sort it out' occasionally works — but undoing one bad first encounter can take weeks:
- Full separation for the first days: the newcomer stays in their own room while the animals learn each other's scent without visual contact
- Scent swapping: exchange blankets and bedding between them, and pair the new scent with something positive like food or treats
- Progress to under-the-door meetings, then short visual sessions through a cracked door or baby gate
- Keep the first face-to-face meetings brief and reward calm behavior; dogs should be on a leash at this stage
- Multiply the resources: separate food bowls, separate beds, and separate litter boxes for cats — less competition means faster acceptance
- Hissing and grumbling are normal distance-keeping signals; with persistent chasing or aggression, take a step back and slow the process down
The first vet visit: within the first days
Even if your new companion looks perfectly healthy, plan a veterinary check-up within the first few days of arrival. This first exam is far more than a disease screen — it's where the health roadmap for the years ahead gets drawn: a full physical, a fecal check and parasite prevention plan, an age-appropriate vaccination schedule, and a microchip check. In Türkiye, microchipping and registration of cats and dogs in the national PETVET system is a legal requirement, and after adoption the record needs to be updated in your name.
This appointment is also your first chance to talk through nutrition, the right timing for spaying or neutering, and socialization. With adult animals adopted from shelters, prior records are often incomplete; in that case the vaccine and parasite plan is simply rebuilt from scratch based on the exam findings. Our clinic is open 24/7, so you can book that first check-up at any hour that suits your schedule — and ask us anything that comes up in those first days, even at midnight.
Building a routine in the first weeks
Cats and dogs both draw confidence from predictability. Fix meal times, toilet breaks for dogs, and play sessions at roughly the same hours each day; as the routine settles, so does their confidence. If a diet change is needed, transition gradually by mixing old and new food in shifting ratios over 7-10 days.
For puppies and kittens, the first months are the golden window for socialization: gentle, positive exposure to different sounds, surfaces, people and handling (ears, paws, around the mouth) makes future vet exams and nail trims far easier. And remember — there is no such thing as perfect preparation. Patience, observation, and the habit of asking your veterinarian when in doubt are the three most important items on any checklist.
Frequently asked questions
My new cat is hiding and not eating — should I worry?
Hiding and a reduced appetite in the first 24-48 hours are a normal adjustment response in cats. A quiet room, a box to hide in and a pressure-free approach are usually all it takes. But complete refusal of food beyond 24 hours, not drinking at all, vomiting or lethargy shouldn't be waited out — prolonged fasting is dangerous surprisingly quickly in cats, especially kittens, so contact your veterinarian.
When should the first vet visit happen?
Even with no visible problem, we recommend a first exam within the first few days of arrival. If there's diarrhea, eye or nose discharge, poor appetite or any sign of illness, move it up. The first visit covers the physical exam plus the parasite and vaccination plan, and a check of microchip and registration status.
My puppy cries all night — what should I do?
Crying is normal for a puppy freshly separated from mother and littermates. Moving the bed close to your bedroom, and tucking in a warm (not hot) water bottle and a soft toy usually helps. Rather than picking the puppy up at every cry, offering attention when they settle speeds up the routine within the first week.
My resident cat hisses at the newcomer — will they ever get along?
In the first weeks, hissing is not a declaration of war; it means 'keep your distance'. If you stage the introduction gradually — scent first, then visual contact, then short supervised meetings — most cats come to accept a newcomer over time. With persistent attacks, ambushing, or one animal hiding so much it can't eat, slow the process down and ask your veterinarian for guidance.
The animal I adopted has an unknown history — can I trust its vaccines?
Rather than trusting an unverifiable vaccine history, the safest route is for your veterinarian to rebuild the vaccination and parasite program based on the exam. This adds no meaningful risk, and it's the standard approach international vaccination guidelines recommend so that protection never has gaps.
Related services
From the first exam and vaccine schedule to microchip registration, our clinic is open 24/7 — let's give your new companion the right start from day one.
This article is for general information only and is not a substitute for a veterinary examination. Always consult your veterinarian about decisions concerning your pet's health.