Are you thinking of making a furry addition to your family? Do you know someone else who’s expanding their family in the canine capacity? Why not throw a puppy shower?
It’s a great way to show your support for people who have decided to adopt a dog and save a life. Unlike a baby shower, it doesn’t have to be all about gifts, but it is a fun way to introduce the pup to their new extended family and friends. Instead of gifts, we recommend games!
There are lots of traditional baby shower games to draw on, and they take only some minor tweaking to make them suitable for puppy showers. Here are some ideas to get you started.
Fun Puppy Shower Games!
Guess The Pup’s Weight
- Unlike a mom-to-be whose waist size is under scrutiny, the pup will never be offended. Best guess wins a small prize.
Who’s That Puppy?
- Guests with dogs can bring in pictures from their pooches’ puppy stages. Then, the person to match the most puppy pics to the right adult dog gets a prize. (This isn’t much of a challenge, as you know. You’re basically giving the other guests a chance to show off pics of their dogs when they were younger or before their fabulous post-shelter makeovers.)
Name Contest
- If you’re still searching for the perfect name for your pup, ask guests to come up with ten suggestions and read them aloud. Add rules if you’d like, such as incorporating letters from your own name or the names of other pets. Guests can vote on their favorites. Another important rule: You don’t have to accept the one they like best.
Hide & Seek The Treat
- This one’s for the doggy guests. First, stash treats around the room. Then, send the puppy and guest dogs off on a wild treasure hunt. However, this is one to avoid if any of the dogs have food aggression issues.
Round Robins
- Ask the guests to sit in a circle with the pup in the middle. One by one, the guests call the pup to them, and ask them to sit, lie down — whatever commands they know — before sending them on to the next guest. Then, whoever gets the quickest, crispest responses from the puppy wins.
Socialization Is Important!
A puppy shower isn’t just a chance to celebrate a new puppy. It’s also a chance to help with puppy’s early socialization training. Getting a dog used to new people and pets at a young age will help prevent aggression and anxiety later in life.
While a puppy shower isn’t a substitute for behavioral training, it can help your dog practice their lessons from puppy school.
Have you ever thrown a puppy shower? What games did you play? Let us know in the comments below!
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