Have all of this before the puppies arrive. Don’t wait until 2am when something goes wrong. Print each document below, fill in what you can, and keep them where you can grab them.
Emergency Kit Checklist
The full supply list — the must-haves and the nice-to-haves — so nothing is missing at 2am.
Daily Puppy Checklist
Run through this once a day — morning is best.
Contact & Rescue Info
Emergency vet, rescue coordinator, backup contact, poison control — fill these in before the puppies arrive so you’re not searching at 2am.
When to Call Your Rescue
For anything in the “Needs Vet” column, call your rescue coordinator first — they authorize and pay for vet care and may already have the medication on hand. The only exceptions are true life-threatening emergencies: those you handle now and call on the way.
When in doubt, text your rescue coordinator a photo or video. A 10-second video of a breathing pattern, a limp, or a wobble tells them more than a paragraph of description ever could.