Skip to main content
Department of Agriculture, Environment and Rural Affairs Department of Agriculture, Environment and Rural Affairs An Roinn Talmhaíochta, Comhshaoil agus Gnóthaí Tuaithe Depairtment o' Fairmin, Environment an' Kintra Matthers

Main navigation

  • Home
  • Topics
  • Publications
  • Consultations
  • Contact

Translation help

Translate this page

Select a language

  • Arabic — عربي
  • Chinese (Simplified) — 中文简体
  • Chinese (Traditional) — 中文繁體
  • Dutch — Nederlands
  • Filipino — Filipino
  • French — Français
  • German — Deutsch
  • Hungarian — Magyar
  • Irish — Gaeilge
  • Italian — Italiano
  • Latvian — Latviešu
  • Lithuanian — Lietuvių kalba
  • Polish — Polski
  • Portuguese — Português
  • Romanian — Română
  • Russian — Русский
  • Slovak — Slovenčina
  • Spanish — Español
  • Ukrainian — Українська
  • Buying and caring for a puppy - a guide

    Topics:
    • Animal Health, Welfare and Trade, 
    • Animal welfare

    Date published: 4 December 2018

    Deciding whether to get a puppy or dog is a big decision. It is advisable, before purchasing a puppy, to give it proper thought and to carry out some research. Anyone who decides to get a dog becomes responsible for that animal and will need to know about the legal requirements of owning a dog.

    The contents are laid out as follows:

    Part 1 (Decisions to make) of this reference document (pages 4 to 8) sets out information on:

    • the importance of research, before deciding to buy a puppy/dog
    • finding the right dog breed
    • deciding where to get your new puppy/dog
    • finding a healthy, happy dog
    • collecting your new dog and bringing it home
    • helping your new dog settle-in to its new home
    • understanding dog behaviour

    Part 2 (Responsibilities of dog owners) of this reference document (pages 9 to 11) sets out responsibilities that dog owners have, regarding:

    • licensing the dog
    • keeping the dog under proper control
    • meeting the welfare needs of the dog

    Documents

    • A guide to buying and caring for a puppy Adobe PDF (498 KB)

    Help viewing documents

    Share this page Share on Facebook (external link opens in a new window / tab) Share on X (external link opens in a new window / tab) Share by email (external link opens in a new window / tab)

    Department footer links

    • Crown copyright
    • Terms and Conditions
    • Privacy
    • Cookies
    • Accessibility
    • The Northern Ireland Executive
    • The Executive Office
    • Department of Agriculture, Environment and Rural Affairs
    • Department for Communities
    • Department for Education
    • Department for the Economy
    • Department of Finance
    • Department for Infrastructure
    • Department for Health
    • Department of Justice
    • nidirect.gov.uk — the official government website for Northern Ireland citizens