I'm about to get my first puppy, a German shorthaired pointer.

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>>2412091
Get a better dog, like a rat

People are going to try to give you adive on everything you do and it can be so difficult to not get caught up in other people's opinions, we all have bias and at the end of the day an anecdote is just an anecdote - what might work for one person's dog might fuck yours up. My personal belief is that positive reinforcement is best, and that you shouldn't hit a dog (unless it is hurting or going to hurt someone, or even itself).

Don't use puppy pads - in the long run it is so much easier to take it outside a couple of times an hour, puppy pads teach the dog its ok to piss indoors, especially on things that are a similar texture to the pads.

Clicker train it early because thats the shit that can make a difference. Also, you can pretty much train dogs from day 1, don't wait until the dog is unmanagable to start training.

Some people say puppy classes are a must, but it depends on what you feel, they can be expensive but can also be really good for socialisation.

Make sure it gets all of it's shots and is microchipped. Preventative is cheaper than treatment.

There's probably a lot more, but just make sure to love it and treat it right.

>>2412141
Also, breeds like that aren't only physically demanding but need a lot of mental stimulation - invest in toys that require them to use their brain so they don't get bored. Especially when yiu aren't at home.

Toys like kongs can be useful for crate training because you can put food in them and it can help keep the dog distracted.

>>2412144
This is all very good advice. OP, listen to this nigga...

Thanks for the advice anon