2014 started off with a very exciting event, The Boyfriend and I adopted a puppy on New Years Day! Her name is Hailey’s Comet (we just call her Hailey, and yes we know it’s spelled wrong!) and she was brought into our local animal shelter as a stray. We don’t know exactly what she is a mix of, but German Shepard, Beagle, Terrier, Doberman, and Rotweiller have all been suggested. She’s already almost six months old, and weighs 27 pounds. As with any new puppy, it’s been both exciting and exhausting!
Of course, with a new dog comes a bunch of stuff. A crate, beds, toys, treats, and paperwork. I wanted to organize the dog’s paperwork in a way that kept it together but also portable, in case we need to take anything to the vet, doggy day care, etc.
Look at that face! Her eyebrows are fantastic.
Our vet gave us a nice expanding file folder full of coupons. I thought I could repurpose it and use it for all of Hailey’s important info.
Using my Silhouette Cameo, I made a label for the front. I also picked up an “in case of emergency” sticker from the vet. We show everyone who might take care of the puppy this folder, so they know who to call if something happens (paranoid pet parent? Yes!).
The sections are labeled:
- Vet – vet bills and records of visit.
- Meds – any medication she might be on, plus the last date of her flea medication
- Insurance – we received a free month of insurance, and actually had a claim! We’re not sure if we’ll continue it or not.
- License – county dog license and chip information
- Caretakers – dog walker and doggy day care information and bills
- Adoption – her original adoption paperwork
This was a simple project that really helped us get a handle on all of Hailey’s paperwork. We feel so lucky to have such a great little pup in our lives, she’s a super curious, brave and creative little thing and we can’t wait to see her grow!
Clearly, she’s made herself at home. This was about an hour after we adopted her 🙂
Yes, this post is really more about showing off Hailey’s cuteness…. but the folder really was a good project! I’m interested to know, how do you organize your puppy’s paperwork?
People camp with pups and dogs ALL the time. Is there anyone who has camped with a rabbit? Our 20 year old has a dwarf bunny and feels uncomfortable leaving him for several days with just having someone coming in once or twice a day. However, there are so many dogs where we camp as well as, coons and chipmunks that we really hesitate to take the bunny. Anyone ever camped with one before or have any ideas?
My dog has a 3 ring notebook; with 3 tabs. ID Chip information and emergency contacts are the first sheet, in front of the tabs.
The first is “Medical” and every receipt or instruction the vet provides goes under that tab with the newest on top. The license is included in the Vet paperwork since it comes with the rabies vaccine each year. RX records are included too. I can usually keep medication in a zipper pouch in the front of the notebook.
The next tab is “Gear”, and receipts and guarantees, etc. for everything purchased in clear sheet-holders, newest on top; (if they don’t like an item and i get rid of it, keep the sheet and put a big “NO” so I don’t buy it again).
The last tab is “Training” – Obedience, Therapy Dog, whatever — the training is documented and reminder notes included because even if the dogs don’t have to review… *I* do. The training place is also the boarding place, unless it is a friend who “sits” for me. My hope is that my newest dog will be able to go everywhere with me, since she will be training to be my support dog. (She’s only 10 weeks old!)
I’ve never had pet insurance before; if I were smart, I’d have a “Health Care” savings account but fortunately, my pets have been healthy until they reached ripe old age.
At times when I had more than one dog, each dog had a set of tabs for medical.