This time of year for most of us is filled with parties, visiting family and friends and lots of activity and excitement.
To a dog it is a time of change when his/her routine is disturbed.
Dogs really like consistency in their lives especially if he/she has a more nervous or timid temperament. Sometimes our pets can be overwhelmed by all the celebrations.
Here are a few tips to help you and your dog enjoy the holiday period and some pitfalls to avoid.
1) Make sure your dog has a quiet safe place to escape to when the activity is at its loudest.
2) Teach young children to respect the dogs space and let it rest.
3)Don’t let children hand feed the dog tit bits instead tell them to drop any food on the floor for the dog to pick up. (This avoids excited dogs accidentally grabbing at the food)
4) Be wary of feeding the dog turkey(or any other meat) with the gravy and avoid rich puddings …both can be too heavy and cause upset tummies (In the dog that is!) Keep any scraps plain and simple.
5) Keep all chocolate away from your dog. Excess human chocolate has been known to kill dogs in the past.
6)NEVER EVER feed your dog the bone of a cooked turkey or any other animal. Bones become brittle during the cooking process and can cause horrendous damage if they splinter inside the dog.
Be aware of the winter weather.
1) When the temperature plummets be wary of your dog near water e.g. lochs/canals ect our pets don’t understand that thin ice cracks so keep them on lead near any frozen water.
2) If your dog travels with you remember the temperature in the car can drop fast in cold days. If you have to leave your dog for short periods make sure:
You use a warm doggie coat especially for short haired dogs.
If your dog is settled in the car simply wrap a doggie blanket round him/her to retain heat.
3) If your dog has been out in the snow wipe your dogs paws to remove and snow / ice or road salts that may have accumulated.