Have a stress free Christmas with your dog!

Picture the scene, you’ve just returned from a lovely walk in the crisp white snow with your furry friend.  He’s now lying by the roaring fire, the lights on the Christmas tree are twinkling in the corner and you’re lounging on the sofa, glass of wine in hand, watching heartwarming Christmas movies.

Lovely isn’t it? It’s more likely that the reality is very different. Fido has come back from his walk sopping wet and filthy after rolling around in the slushy snow.  He’s trodden his dirty paws all over your living room carpet and is still in bad books after opening your Christmas presents early because he could smell the yummy treats hiding inside, chewing up a bauble/tinsel/Christmas tree and almost knocking your Aunt Mabel over with excitement!

The changes to routine, preparations and endless streams of visitors can be stressful for us all, including our pets.  However, you can make sure your dog doesn’t get too fretful by following our festive tips:-

  1. Make sure your dog gets his regular walks, or as many as possible.  Tiring your dog out can stop him getting bored and destructive.  It’ll also help you work off all those mince pies!
  2. Give your dog a quiet place he can escape to so he has a place to retreat from visitors and all the festivities.
  3. Always supervise dogs and children, especially if your dog is not used to them.  Ensure any children visiting are taught how to handle your pet and are respectful.
  4. Give your visitors rules as far as your dog is concerned.  I.e. to ignore the dog on arrival and only pet him when he is calm, do not feed the dog and any other rules you might feel appropriate.
  5. Ensure your dog is wearing an ID tag, it can be quite easy for a pet to slip out of the door during all the commotion of visitors coming and going.
  6. If your dog is not used to wearing pet clothing then don’t stress him out by forcing him to dress up for the festivities. He might look super cute dressed up as a reindeer but it’s very unfair if he is distressed because of it.
  7. Keep festive plants out of reach, and don’t let your dog drink the water out of a potted Christmas tree.  Poinsettias, Mistletoe, Amaryllis, Ferns and Pine Sap are all poisonous to dogs.
  8. Ensure your dog is supervised around the Christmas tree.  Shiny baubles and tinsel can be very attractive to dogs but ingestion of foreign objects such as these could cause your dog to become very ill.  These objects can cause internal blockages and shards of bauble or pine needles could puncture your dog’s intestines.
  9. Don’t keep presents containing chocolate or food under the Christmas tree.  It won’t take your dog long to sniff out and unwrap these.  Chocolate contains a substance called Theobromine.  This is toxic to dogs and if eaten in large quantities can cause death.
  10. Do not keep any edible decorations or chocolates on the Christmas tree.  Dogs can be very inventive when they smell something delicious and no doubt will get to treats that you made quite sure were out of reach!
  11. Never give your dog cooked chicken or turkey bones as these can splinter and cause internal damage.
  12. Do not leave your dog unattended with any lit candles.  Any open flame should be well out of reach of any wagging tail.
  13. And lastly, you might want to make your dog feel part of the celebrations by making them some tasty homemade treats and making sure they have some presents of their own, maybe a new collar or a cosy jumper to keep them snug on their winter outings.
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One Response to “Have a stress free Christmas with your dog!”

  1. Hilario Froese says:

    I have been told to go and open a WordPress blog account to make web mini sites (web presence) and I am wanting to know if you have better ideas or simply more ideas? Advise for WordPress would be great as well!.

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