Here are a few things we suggest you get in preparation for the arrival of your puppy. The links on this page are to products we have found to be useful. We don't receive anything from the companies for supplying links to their pages.
  • Crates
    • House - Midwest Model 99N and 99N-PAN. Yes it is a big crate, but your puppy is going to be a big dog one day. This crate will give your puppy plenty of room to stretch out when fully grown. Be sure to get a crate divider too - Model 99DPN. This can be used to reduce the amount of area the puppy has in the crate while potty training. Read Why Crate Train and How to Crate Train.
    • Vehicle - Midwest makes a Model 608SS for vans and SUVs. An alternative is their Model 1642. In recent years many states have enacted laws that require dogs to be restrained from being able to get in the front seat area.
    • Travel - If you plan to fly your puppy, you'll need a medium airline approved travel crate.

  • Leads and Collar
    • Flexi Lead - At parks, on walks or just out in the backyard, this lead will allow your puppy to run around.
    • Limited Slip Collar (large) - This collar won't cut or break the coat, or cause the hair around your dogs neck to be flattened. The collar is loose around the neck while the dog is not pulling, but when the dog pulls, the collar tightens so the dog cannot pull out of the collar. This is not a chock type collar. In addition these collars won't stain or dye your dogs coat. We use these collars exclusively with all of our mals.
    • Lead - This lead is best when you want more control of your dog - going to the vet, on walks, going between your house and vehicle. The lead is soft on your hands and your dog.

  • Water and food bowls
    • We recommend using Stainless Steel. Puppies can't chew them! Some malamutes have a reaction to plastic, causing pigment loss.
    • In crate - The 2 qt with hook is idea for in a crate. In your house crate you can fill it up to give your dog plenty of water for long periods. In your vehicle an inch or two of water won't spill out. Be sure to get a couple Double Ended Bolt Snaps for securing the handle to the crate. This will help to keep the pail from being knocked over.
    • In yard and house - The 6 qt works well in the house, yard or kennel. Make sure to get some snaps too, so you can attach the handle to the side of a crate or to a fence.
    • Away from home, on walks, hiking, biking, jogging, ... a collapsible bowl is a great way to keep your dog hydrated.
  • Bedding
    • Old sheets and blankets - Lots of people buy expensive crate pads or beds, only to find their puppy has torn it to shreds. Malamute puppies will tear apart just about anything, especially while teething. So save your money! Puppies and even older dogs will often shred and eat the foam in crate pads. Sheets and blankets can be tossed in the laundry and will come out looking the same, but clean. Crate pads don't usually come out looking the same. They get lumpy.

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  • Toys
    • Toys are an important part of training your puppy. There are two types of toys - Supervised and Unsupervised.
    • Supervised - Things that your puppy can tear apart. Squeaky toys fall into this category especially. Malamute pups and even older ones will want to get the squeaky. They will dissect the toy. Some till eat the stuffing. These types of toys should only be given to your puppy while you are able to keep an eye on him. Rawhide bones and pigs ears are also toys that should be supervised. We do not recommend hooves or non-cattle bones as they can splinter. Anything such as soft rubber or soft plastic should be a supervised toy. That said - young pups 2 to 4 months can have many of these toys unsupervised as their jaws are not yet strong enough to cause problems.
    • Unsupervised - Nylabones are great unsupervised toys! Galileo Bones are especially good for older dogs. Jolly Balls are also another great product for Malamute pups. Note that some adults may want to kill and eat the Jolly Ball, in which case it should become a supervised toy. The 4 and 6 inch sizes are great play toys for pups. Older Mals like the 8 and 10 inch sizes.

  • Fencing/Kennel/Dog Houses
    • If you have not fenced your yard yet, do so today. Malamutes are wanderers and explorers! Without an enclosure, you can be sure to be receiving calls from Animal Control or your neighbor. Keep your puppy safe by fencing your yard, or build a kennel.
    • Fencing - We strongly recommend using 6 gauge vinyl coated mesh. Malamutes have strong jaws! They can and often will chew threw anything less than 6 gauge vinyl!
    • Kennel - We strongly recommend using welded wire panels. Behlen Country makes nice welded wire kennels. We recommend a minimum size of 10' x 20'.
    • Dog House - Doskocil makes nice dog houses and are available at many pet stores, farm stores and department stores. We recommend the Large or Extra Large.

  • Exercise Equipment
    • If you plan to exercise your dog on a bicycle, you must get a Springer. We use them on our bikes. A Springer will keep your dog from pulling the bike out from under you. One of our girls tried to go for a rabbit on the side of a bike path by jumping over the guard rail. The Springer kept her from going over the rail. I hardly noticed she the had tried to jump the guard rail.