The holidays are a great time to get pets but where do you get them. If I can stress one thing, ALWAYS get your pets a the local shelter or a reputable
rescue. There are always too many pets to pick from and most of the time the fees include shots, micro-chipping, and neutering/spaying. Plus they usually do behavior testing to know if that pet is going to be good with other animals or children. If you get one from a pet store or private seller please check them out thoroughly so you don’t end up with a pet that has been raised or bred in a puppy mill.
Now that you have one and you get it home how are are your fun holiday decorations going to stay put with your little puppy bouncing around and exploring everything. Here are a few suggestions:
- Make sure that all cords and tree decorations are up on higher limbs of the tree and don’t hang low where they might be pulled off.
- Vacuum daily because trees needles can harm a puppy’s inside and the last thing you want is a vet bill over the holidays.
- Watch that puppy at ALL times. Don’t allow him/her to eat people food especially chocolate, alcohol, onions. And also keep away from those poinsettia plants!! All of these are toxic to dogs.
- With the weather being so cold all over the U.S., make sure that you don’t leave your puppy (or grown dog) outside for too long or consider getting them a cute sweater and booties if they must stay outside for long periods of time. A dog house or igloo with a nice warm blanket will also do.
- Remember that you decided to bring this sweet puppy into your home so don’t ignore or forget about him/her. Make sure your new canine gets plenty of fresh water & food daily and don’t forget to exercise them.
- Try to keep track of all those ribbons and tags so that the puppy doesn’t get all wrapped up in it or choke on them.
- If you give them lots of love they will return it back twice as much.
This is the time of year that our shelters get full of dogs that people did not want, can’t have or decided that they were way too much trouble. If you are giving one as a gift, PLEASE make sure that the person who is on the receiving end wants and can have one. Maybe getting a gift certificate from the shelter might be a better idea then they can do the picking of their best friend.
Lastly, check out attending some obedience training or better yet give the gift of Day Training to your favorite dog. Give me a call and we can set that up!!
Happy Howl-idays