A puppy you bring home is like a baby who’s learned to crawl: they’re ready to explore, curious about everything, and are prone to using their mouths to play, chew, and investigate their surroundings. It’s cute when puppies are young, but if you don’t know to expect this behavior — or how to stop your puppy from continuing to bite when they’re older — it will require more intensive training to resolve. Puppy preparation is what you need. Your life is about to change — in a good way! — so ideally, you’ll have certain things ready to go if you’ve decided you’re ready for a puppy. Once you get that call from your chosen breeder, things can happen pretty quickly. Don’t worry — you’re not going to break your little puppy. But you’ll need to establish some ground rules with your family, create a schedule for meals and bedtimes, and even puppy-proof your home.