Simple Ways To Keep Your Dog Happy When They're Home Alone

Before we become dog owners, we all have a responsibility to consider the amount of time we’ll be able to dedicate to our canine companions. Unfortunately, even if you’re around a lot of the time, the odd work trip or day out can still see you leaving your dog at home alone.

As many of us find out the hard way, this separation can see even the perfect family dog wreaking havoc at home. From chewed furniture to neighbor noise complaints and beyond, this can make an already difficult separation much harder. However, there are steps you can take to keep your dog happy even while they’re home alone, and we’re going to consider your best options. 

Image Source: CC0 License

Provide them with a Safe Space

Dogs are pack animals, and they rely on this pack mentality to face threats. Left alone, your dog may feel exposed, vulnerable, and in need of defensive behaviors, hence they may become destructive or uncharacteristically loud. To avoid this, it’s best to provide them with a generally safe space that they already know and feel relaxed in. Crates are great for this purpose and can even be kept open in any room to provide your dog a go-to safe spot that they know. Equally, leaving them in an area of the house that they spend a lot of time in and that has things like their bed, water, etc. can significantly reduce the impact of separation anxiety, and its overall negative outcomes.

Ensure Plenty of Stimulation

You wouldn’t like to be left at home with nothing to do, and nor would your dog. In fact, boredom is perhaps the leading cause of destructive canine behavior when home alone. To overcome this, it’s therefore important to provide plenty of stimulation for your dog when you aren’t around. Chew toys like Kongs that include puzzles your dog needs to solve can be especially great for this, as can fresh animal chew treats like those from Superior Farms which can last for the entire time you’re away in most instances. Simply experiment with a few different techniques while you’re around, and see which occupies your dog’s attention for the longest time so that you can pick the best option when you are away. 

Get them used to Time Alone

While no dog owner should ever deprive their dog of attention, keeping your pooch happy when they’re home alone is also easiest if you get them used to their own company when you’re around. Obviously, you should never do this to the detriment of playtime or walks, etc., but something as simple as leaving your dog to play in the other room alone while you complete household errands can help them to adjust to the solo life. Then, when you do have to leave, it’ll be far less shocking for a dog that’s already happier in its own company. 

Leaving your dog is never a pleasant experience, but you can at least rest easy that they’ll be happier at home alone when you implement these pointers. 

Dog Training Weekly Tip

Dog Training Tip

Only after the first job or mission is mastered do you introduce another plan or job for your dog to learn and do the same as before by repeating the exercise until your dog has mastered the lesson over a couple of weeks. 

 Repeat your lesson plan several times over a couple of week’s time without any changes and your dog will learn what you want.  

5 Secrets to Saving Big When Ordering Pet Supplies Online

5 Secrets to Saving Big When Ordering Pet Supplies Online

Photo A. Higgins

If you are like most pet parents, you enjoy scoring a great discount every now and then. Pet expenses are always on the rise and your goal as a pet parent should be to buy quality products and supplies without paying more than you should.



While wholesale places like Costco offer great discounts on pet products, they often fail to match the prices offered online. However, finding the best prices on pet supply stores takes a bit of effort. There are a few tricks you can employ to get the best discounts consistently. Few of these tips are going to be pretty obvious, but you would be surprised how many pet parents actually forget to utilize them. Before we reveal our tips, remember our one and only rule.

#1 Rule: Never Trust a Shady Online Pet Store

Without further ado, the following are 5 secret tips to save big when ordering pet supplies online.

When Possible Buy Generic Pet Medications

Did the vet prescribe an expensive pet medication? Stop the urge to shop at the vet’s office, where you are least likely to get a proper discount. Instead, ask the vet to write down the generic name of the medication. Generic meds are usually significantly cheaper than their branded counterparts and they are identical in efficacy and quality. However, when you order pet meds online, it’s important to buy it from a reputed store (remember our #1 rule). A lot of unethical stores sell counterfeit pet medications and generic drugs are even easier to fake than branded ones.

Become a Member

If you shop at one particular store, then it makes complete sense to become a member. Online pet stores reward members by giving them assured discounts on both pet supplies and medications. The cost of the membership fee is usually recovered in the first few months if you buy all your pet products from one store.

Buy Pet Food in Bulk

Pet food is one of the few supplies you know you are going to need. As long as you have the space to store them safely, it makes sense to buy dog and cat food in bulk. Here’s an example to help you understand how much are likely to save. We compared the same pet food product of different pack sizes after all the discounts. The 15lb pack costed us $2.15 per pound. When we bought the bigger 28lb bag we paid $1.89 per pound. Simply put, you can buy the same exact pet food for a cheaper price per pound if you buy in bulk. This is barring the fact that most online pet stores give you additional discount coupons for buying more at a time.

Keep Multiple Tabs Open to Quickly Compare Prices

Okay, this one’s super obvious, but something that most shoppers simply forget to do. Before you do this, however, remember our #1 rule. Don’t trust a shady online pet store offering massive discounts. Keep multiple tabs open of sites you know and trust and compare the prices after adding items to the cart and applying coupons. This is the final price and that’s what matters at the end of the day.

Hunt For Coupons

Hunting for coupons at independent coupon sites is a great way to score additional discounts. You can even check the coupons section on the online pet store website.

How Technology Can Make You a Better Pet Owner!

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Ok, so maybe technology can’t make you a better pet owner. That’s because what our pets really need is our time, love and commitment and no gadget or bit of tech can offer that. However it can certainly make us more efficient pet owners, make life easier for us and keep our pets entertained, safe and healthy.

Microchip Pet Flap

The cat flap is a fantastic invention- we all know cats are independent and like to do their own thing. A cat flap means they can go in and out as they please, so if you’re at work or have popped out in the evening there’s no worry about your cat getting locked in or out. The problem many cat owners have faced though is other cats, and often other wildlife too letting themselves into their home with the cat flap. Rats, foxes and even badgers have been known to get in this way which does pose a dilemma. However you can now buy cat flaps which are activated by your cat’s microchip. The perfect solution for giving your cat freedom while keeping uninvited guests out! You can get dog flaps too, as these can only be activated with the microchip they’re a good way to keep burglars out. Because dog flaps tend to be larger, this was previously a concern. If your dog is constantly in and out and barking at the door, something like this can certainly make your life easier.

Wireless Dog Fence

Keeping our dogs safe when they’re outside is crucial as an owner. The last thing we want is for them to wander off, whether it’s off our property or into a part of the yard that’s dangerous for them. Having physical fences and barriers built isn’t always practical, however one thing that you can invest in is a wireless dog fence. Here your dog will wear a collar and if they pass a certain wireless boundary they receive a small correction. Being intelligent creatures, dogs quickly learn to stay within the boundaries and it can help to keep them safe and contained in a set space. Since they can be plugged in anywhere they’re simple and easy to travel with and are the perfect choice for some dogs- BestPetReviews has more information on how they work. If you have a very large garden but want to keep your dog to one area, perhaps you have a pool, pond, flowerbeds, a play area for your kids or another separate zone, something like this would be perfect as it keeps them to their own section of the garden without boundaries or barriers.

Automatic Pet Feeder

Just like people, some pets are particularly keen on their food. ‘Free feeding’ is a good option for some pets, as they will simply eat what they want and then leave the rest, meaning you can just fill up their bowl when you see it getting low. Other pets will eat excessively until they make themselves sick or become overweight. One way to get around this is to weigh out their food, but you can make it easier for yourself by using an automatic pet feeder. Particularly ones which work over the space of a week, that way you can fill it up on a Sunday and know your pet is being fed at the right time, the right amount all through the week. It’s convenient and ensures that there’s no error and you’re not messing around at 6am before work weighing things out. You can even get automatic feeders for fish too, this is useful if you’re going on holiday or you’re just not good at remembering to feed fish. Dogs or cats who will let you know when they’re hungry and be very clear about it! Of course, this isn't the case with fish.

Smart Bowl

Another clever feeding gadget if an automatic feeder doesn't appeal is a smart bowl. Using your pet's age and weight it monitors their intake, and can recommend recipes that will work best for your specific pet. It can even send alerts to your phone if something is out of the ordinary, such as they’re not eating or drinking enough. Another smart way to keep tabs on your pet’s health and ensure they’re getting everything they need.

Automatic Ball Launcher

Most dogs love a good game of fetch. And let's be honest, you’re going to get bored far quicker than they will. Some dogs will happily chase a ball for hours on end which isn’t the most practical. But one thing you can buy is an automatic ball thrower, here you can teach your dog how to drop the ball into the device and then it launches it for them. This would be a good one to set up during the summer, when you’re sat outside with the family. It’s something the dog can play with and tire themselves out with and is bound to create a few laughs as well. There’s a very heartwarming video of a dog playing with one of these, while they might not be suitable in every case for the right dog it could be lots of fun and fantastic exercise.

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Electronic Toys

As well as the ball launcher there are tonnes of other toys on the market too. Dogs need a lot of mental stimulation, certain breeds and younger dogs particularly. Without this they can become bored and exhibit destructive behaviour. While you should be making time to play with and fuss your dog and give them attention, there are toys you can get these days to help you out. These can be useful if you’re out at work, or if your dog has simply tired you out and isn’t ready to settle! From puzzles to interactive balls that dispense treats, there are loads to choose from these days. If your dog is high energy and you’re struggling wearing them out, this is a great option. There are versions for cats too, there are even ipad games for cats which are funny to watch and can give a bored housecat some much needed mental stimulation.

Smart Cameras

Smart home technology has grown massively in popularity over the last few years. You can now get voice activated smart speakers, smart lightbulbs, cctv, heating and so much more. But one thing you can get on board with as a pet owner is a wireless smart camera. Many of these have functions which detect motion, some even allow you to speak to your pet via a speaker and can dispense treats! If you work full time and your pet is alone during the day this can be an issue as an owner, while this doesn't compare to being there in person it can give you peace of mind that everything is ok and allows you to keep an eye on things.

GPS Tracking Collars

One of the biggest fears for most dog owners is their dog running off on a walk. Even if your dog is normally very well behaved, they could become spooked or run off after an animal out of the blue. The trouble is, letting them off the lead for a proper run is fantastic exercise and allows them to wear themselves out far better than walking on a lead. One thing you can do for peace of mind is use a GPS tracking collar with your dog. At least that way, worst case scenario you can follow them via the app and get them back. GPS collars are becoming sleeker and more efficient, and is a fantastic bit of equipment that’s well worth getting on board with if you let your dogs off the lead. Hopefully they never do bolt off, but if they do you’ll be so glad they had it on.

Activity Monitor

Fitness trackers which monitor our steps, heart rate, sleep and more have become increasingly popular in the past couple of years and are a great way we can track and improve our health. Now you can get something similar for your pets! They’re not quite as in depth of course, but they can tell you how your pet is sleeping and how much activity they’re clocking up and use this date to improve their life and help them live a happier and healthier lifestyle. All of the data syncs up to your phone in easy to read charts and graphs in the same way your own fitness tracker does.

There are lots of fun, cool and unique gadgets and tech items that can make life better for both you and your pet, have a browse in your local pet store online. A squeaky bone for a dog or a ball of string for a kitten might provide hours of fun still, but there are other more advanced options out there too!

What’s the coolest or most unusual pet gadget you’ve ever seen? Of the items listed above, which interests you the most or would you be most likely to buy?