Safe Play: Top Tips For Dog Owners

We all know that dogs love to play. While encouraging exercise is crucial for optimum health, there are risks to be wary of. If you’ve recently become a dog owner for the first time, or you’re eager to ensure your pet pooch plays safe, here are some top tips to take on board.

 

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Securing your outdoor space

Many of us enjoy watching our precious pets tanking around the garden, letting off steam with their tails wagging enthusiastically. Spending time in the open air, and letting your dog run around is great for their physical health, but it is important to ensure the environment is safe before your dog starts running free. Secure the space, look for products like specially designed fencing for a dog, and make sure any gates are closed before you let your pups run wild. Your garden may be a safe haven, but you never really know what kinds of hazards may be lurking over hedges or through holes in the fence at the bottom of the yard. Check your outdoor area on a regular basis, and if you have people visiting, always make sure you ask them to close gates and doors behind them.

Removing hazards

It’s always useful to carry out a risk assessment as a dog owner. Dogs are very smart, and their senses are brilliant at picking up danger, but they don’t always detect every hazard. Have a walk around your garden before you let your dogs out, and if you’re taking them to a forest or a park, keep your eyes peeled for objects that might cause harm.

Buying safe, suitable toys

Dogs love to play with toys, but they also tend to think that everything in their pathway is a play-thing. Your slippers, shoelaces, and children’s toys can all become part of your pooch’s play box if you’re not careful. To avoid losing your possessions and to keep your pet as healthy as possible, invest in suitable dog toys that meet safety standards. Look for products that are appropriate for your dog in terms of their size and weight and their activity levels. Buying toys is a fantastic way to encourage regular exercise, to keep your dog entertained, and to prevent boredom.

Hydration

If you have a dog that will run and run, even when the sun is beating down, it’s vital to ensure they have access to fresh, cold water. Try and avoid exercising during intense heat, and wait for temperatures to drop if it’s a hot day. Choose shady patches to play with balls or attempt training drills, and take a bowl with you if you’re going out with your dog. Hydration is key for good health. Signs of dehydration include loss of appetite, fatigue, a dry nose, dry gums and vomiting.

As a dog owner, there’s nothing more satisfying than watching your precious pup enjoying playtime. Although it’s hugely beneficial for dogs to exercise frequently, it is essential to ensure they have access to a secure environment, safe toys, and plenty of water.

3 Dog Nutrition Myths

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If you are thinking about adding a pet to your family or you have recently done so, one thing you need to get right is nutrition. After all, a healthy diet is important for all of us! However, the trouble is that there is a lot of misinformation out there today regarding what you should feed a dog. So, with that being said, in this blog post, we decided to put some of the most common myths to bed. Let’s take a look at these myths in further detail…

A dog’s age doesn't matter when choosing a diet - Feeding your dog a diet that is designed for a certain stage in their life is the preferred option. This will ensure that nutrition-related health risks that are unique to a particular breed or lifestyle are minimized. Life-stage nutrition is the term used to describe the process of feeding your dog a diet that is designed to meet its nutritional needs based on the dog’s physiologic state or specific age. This will ensure your dog has optimal nutritional benefits.

Dogs can only be healthy if fed a raw diet - This is another myth that a lot of people tend to believe today. However, there has been no scientific evidence to prove that raw diets are superior in a nutritional sense for dogs when compared to commercial diets and homemade food. An animal is only healthy if it consumes all of the essential nutrients it needs in the correct proportion.

Dogs should not be fed table scraps - Last but not least, there are lots of different articles online that state you should never feed your dog table scraps. However, table scraps don’t always mean unhealthy food. Of course, you shouldn’t simply throw your last slice of pizza into your dog’s bowl. However, some food scraps are healthy, for example, lightly steamed vegetables, rice, and pasta. 

There are a number of foods that can be given alongside nutritious veterinary supplies. Nevertheless, you do need to educate yourself, as there are also a number of vegetables and fruits that should never be given to dogs because they can cause a range of medical problems. This includes the likes of tomatoes and lemons, as well as other highly acidic fruits, and garlic, onions, avocados, grapes, and raisins.

As you can see, there are a number of myths about dog nutrition, and those mentioned in this blog post are only a mere handful. Hopefully, though, they have helped to give you a better understanding regarding what you should and should not feed your dog. If you are unsure, it is always best to talk to your vet. After all, your dog’s diet will be impacted by a number of different factors, including breed.

Pamper Your Pooch With These Seven Suggestions

We humans are biologically built to be selfish. We make a conscious choice to be selfless with our time and our love, but when it comes down to it, we do what we can for survival. Dogs? Dogs will put themselves at risk to save our lives - and sometimes, we don’t deserve it. 

Dogs are the animals in our lives that will do everything to make us happy, from the moment we walk in through the door after work to the moment they beg for a walk, all dogs do is try to make us happy and stay loyal. Dogs are so much more than just pets, too. 

They are hunters, they are protectors, they are intuitive beasts that can sense more than we know, which is why there are dogs out there that can sniff out illness, drugs and even rescue people from harrowing situations. For all their loyalty and their love, dogs need to be pampered.

Pampering your pooch is so much more than just chucking them a treat every now and then. Our pets get the best attention and loyalty from us, and we have to put the effort in to make our dogs feel as loved as they make us feel. And the best thing is that our dogs love to be pampered as much as we love it. 

They love to know that they’re loved, as they show us every single day just how loved we are. With all of that in mind, here are seven ways that you can spoil your dog and make them happy, enhance their lives and making them feel loved.

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Make Your Treats Homemade.

There’s nothing wrong with the shop bought treats; they’re convenient and they’re sold as products designed for dogs. However, homemade treats? So. Much. Better. You would rather a home cooked roast dinner over a microwaved meal, right? Your dog will agree, too. Baking dog treats at home with these recipes can be so much better nutritionally for your pet. Not only can you make high-quality treats, you can make them as natural as possible. Homemade treats really go down well and you can really see their happiness at your effort.

 

Doggy Spa Day, Anyone?

Good grooming, that’s all. Dogs are the ones that look forward to a pet, a bath and a brush, and positive grooming experiences can leave your dog feeling amazing. Take your dog to the groomers for a bath, brush and a cut if necessary. You can also hire people to come and make your dog feel relaxed and calm as part of the experience with doggy massage. Pooch spa days are very popular, and you can have your dog feeling secure and reinvigorated whenever you book them in.

Plan A Pooch Vacation.

We love to take our dogs away from home for a while and go for hikes in the forests, wanders in the woodlands and gambols in the green. No one likes to put their dog into boarding if they can avoid it, but there are special dog boarders that is almost like a luxury dog vacation! Pet resorts are a thing, and they get walked group play and one to one time with a professional puppy person. You don’t have to board your pet if you don't want to, because luxury dog carers who live in their own home or who can come to yours exist!

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Pay For Doggy Day Care

You’re at work all day, and that’s not always fair for your dog. If you spend a lot of time away from your dog, you’re going to have to consider how much interaction they’re getting. Doggy day care can give your pet a chance to get out, run around, train and feel secure and loved while you aren’t there. The socialization is great for them and the constant running around can make them happy and tired for being ready to be at home again. You can even find daycare facilities that will collect and drop off your dog!

Vets, Ahoy!

The dog doesn't like going to the vet. You don't like taking your dog to the vet. However, it’s one of those things that we have to do even when we don’t want to. A part of pampering your dog is to ensure that they are healthy from teeth to toes, and it’s one of the ways that you can spoil your dog. His health is important, as is yours, and you can really help your dog to feel calm and happy purely by making sure that their vet appointments were attended each time.

Backyard Heaven

You have the space, and your dog needs the exercise. If you create a backyard heaven for your dog with a fence to keep them secure, shelter from the elements and a self-filling water dish that your dog can drink from when they want to. You can even add in a little zone where they can dig down and get muddy without ruining the rest of your garden. If you have a cat, and they’d be okay with it, install a doggy door to the house so yours can come and go as he pleases.

Sleeping Time

Your dog is likely to want to sleep on the sofa or up on the bed where you sleep. However, that’s not always okay! You can buy your dog a stylish bed or area to sleep piled with lots of blankets and pillows to make their space comfortable. Older pets with arthritis will always feel appreciative of a heated bed with tons of pillows that’s easy to get in and out of.

Your dog needs to be pampered and all your pet wants is your time and to know he’s loved. Take the time to pamper your pooch and let him know that you care about his well being. Dogs pick up on a lot more than we think, and we should do what we can to show them as much loyalty as possible.

The Dangers Of A Dog That Loves You Too Much

It’s not something that a lot of dog-owners consider a major problem. If anything, more people are concerned that a stoic pooch might not love them as much as they would like. But the opposite extreme can be just as much a problem. A dog that’s overly attached to its owner can develop dangerous behaviors as a response. They can become territorially aggressive over their owners, or they can even develop separation anxiety. Both will play a role in making them harder to command and to take control of a situation, which is especially unhelpful if you’re training them to be a useful partner, not just a pet. So, what do you do about it?

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Assert some discipline

One of the reasons that a dog’s affection of you might get out-of-bounds is that they may not necessarily see you as their pack leader. Rather, they may very well consider you lower in the chain of command than them and, in response, will treat you more like a member of their pack or a possession. They think that you are theirs and act accordingly. Alongside signs of territorial aggression, this will often show as overt disobedience. Make sure that training is complete and ongoing with them and that you can tell the difference between them being disobedient or just reacting with excitement to certain stimuli.

Socialize them

If they are well trained and listen to your commands, then it’s about finding the stimuli that set them off. For many dogs, those stimuli may be strangers and other dogs. If they’re too protective of their own, they might react to these situations with a high-tension response, which can make them difficult to keep control of. All dogs can be socialized. Even when they’re full adults, it’s not too late for them to learn new behavior patterns, though it’s certainly easier when they’re younger. Take them on walks and introduce them to other dogs. Many fear a negative response from their dog and will pull on their leash or shout if they worry about them becoming too excitable or aggressive. This often has the opposite effect, however. Be calm, in control of the situation, and touch your dog to reassure them they’re okay. Just be sure to use a muzzle if your dog has growled or barked at other dogs in the past. Remove the risk from the situation.

Greetings and farewells

You may very well be the stimuli, yourself. There are two big emotional high points that a lot of owners have trouble with. That’s saying goodbye and saying farewell to your dog. Pet your dog, and say your greetings or your farewells, but don’t let it escalate. Acting overly excitable creates a rush for them that keeps them in a high-tension state. It might be all fun and games when you’re there, but it translates into separation anxiety when you’re not there, as Psychology Today states.

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Calming on cue

It might seem like it’s too good to be true, but you can command your dog to be calm. Alongside “heel”, the “settle” command is one of the most useful tools a dog owner can use. Start by using the command indoors on their leash, when their attention is already on you. When they successfully come to a stop, give them a treat. As time goes on, give them distractions to deal with and, eventually, start the training outside. Before too long, you will have them able to “settle” without any treats at all.

Spread the love

Getting them used to other people is just as important, too. Having more than one authority figure in a dog’s life is an important way of ensuring they know that even that they’re beneath you in the hierarchy, that doesn’t mean that they’re above all other humans. Using a dog walking service can be a great way to teach that. However, this is only true if you’re using a real professional. Whistle has a list of great questions to sort out the people who are truly equipped to handling and showing authority to a stranger’s dog, and not just someone making money off a hobby.  In particular, make sure you ask how they might handle any behavioral issues that might come up. If they have no examples of how they’ve dealt with a dog that’s territorial or disobedient, they might not be the right person for this lesson.

Make sure they’re well cared for when you’re not around

Being cared for and treated well when you’re not the one with them is just as important as making sure they can act disciplined with other humans as well. Boarding a dog with separation anxiety or territorial behavior is a big step, but if you do, then places like Fon Jon Pet Care are usually the right solution. Make sure that any dog boarding services you use have experience with training dogs and know that if your dog isn’t yet fit to be socialized that they shouldn’t be.

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Check yourself

Much like with greetings and goodbyes, you should endeavor to keep a closer eye on your own behavior with the dog. Owners might very well often say that they have a deep emotional connection to their dog, and that’s not untrue. Dogs react off the energy of their own. If you approach a situation with a calm and a sense of control, your dog will feel safer in that situation. If you react to every display of anxiety or aggression in them with an escalation, they will continue to do the same. That’s because they’re reading your cues and believing there really is something to be so tense about. Obsessive affection can spread much the same way. Dogs learn from their owners, so make sure you’re a good teacher.

You don’t have to be entirely strict and unemotional with your dog. They need emotional fulfillment just as much as humans do and work better to their task when they have it. Just be cautious of the signs that they’re getting too territorial when you’re there or anxious when you’re not.