How to Become a Responsible Dog Owner
Posted by Hot Dog Collars on 08/15/16 10:57 AM
When your girlfriend convinces you it’s time to take your
relationship to the next level and start building a family, you feel a little
apprehensive. Never having owned a dog before, you’re not sure you would make a
good doggie parent. Puppies deserve a lot of time, love and affection. You
don’t know if you’re ready to do that. Then you ask yourself:
When is anybody ever ready?
The two of you set out in search of finding your newest
family member on the web and in the newspaper. You guys don’t care about owning
a pure bred, you just want to grow your family. Then you find him. A Border
Collie Lab Mix puppy waiting at the local shelter for his “furever” family to
take him home. The shelter approves your adoption application and you finally
get to bring him home. What are some of the first gifts you get for the pup?
Some chew toys, a pet collar and
dog ID tags.
Hey, he deserves some selection, right?
Becoming a Doggie
Parent
You want to make sure you are the best puppy parent you can
be. Not wanting to let the little fella down, you begin reading books and blog
posts (like you’re doing right now) about how to be a good owner. Every dog
deserves a responsible owner, and you’re going to make sure your new fur baby
gets exactly that. So, what are some ways of being a responsible dog owner?
Let’s take a look.
Puppy Proofing
It’s amazing what puppies will
consider
for chew toys
. Sure, everyone knows a shoe or a sock might be his first
pick, but so are gaming remotes, sprinkler heads and couch cushions. And in
most cases, the puppy won’t just chew on these things, he’ll try and eat them
too. Move everything that has the potential to be chewed or eaten to a place
your pup cannot reach. Much like what you would do with a human child, move and
cover all electrical cords and block off rooms of the house you don’t want the
puppy to enter with a safety gate.
To teach your puppy the rules of the house, discipline him
when he chews on something he is not supposed to. Remove the item from his
mouth and say firmly, “no.” Then replace the item with one of his chew toys. He
will learn that his toys are for playing. Never hit or frighten your dog as a
form of discipline. This falls under animal cruelty and if you do this, you are
not equipped to own a dog.
Setting the Pace
The
American Kennel
Club
(AKC) suggests that all dog owners establish a schedule within the
household. This means that one member is responsible for feeding and dog
walking, while another is responsible for poo duty and setting up veterinary
appointments. With each family member responsible for a certain set of tasks,
the dog will be well taken care of.
Obedience School
You’ll want to be able to take your dog to the dog park
without incident. To make sure this happens, enroll him in obedience school.
Obedience school will help him to socialize with other dogs and teach him dog
walking etiquette; how to sit, stay and roll over, and of course, who the
leader of the pack is (you).
Finding a Vet
You’re going to want to make sure that your dog is in good
health. Like our own doctors, veterinarians can make good and bad diagnoses.
You will want your vet to have a strong reputation and to offer emergency
services. So if your dog has been bitten by a snake or tumbled with another
pup, you can get him to the vet ASAP when the office is supposed to be closed. Here
is a list of
veterinary
review sites
that will help you sift through the vets in your area to find
the one that is right for your dog.
Being a puppy parent isn’t going to be easy, but it’s more than worth it. To keep your dog happy and healthy, find all your doggie accessories at Hot Dog Collars .