Tips on Taking Great Care of Your Dog

As a dog owner, you'll know that your pet is like your child. They are a fully-fledged member of the family, and you love them and want to take care of them just as much as you would your own children. A dog has the ability to take care of you too. They provide comfort and loyalty, even in circumstances where most people would walk away, love and companionship; they can even help you take care of your health in a few different ways. To make sure you are doing your best for your dog, you need to recognize that they have very specific needs. It is your prerogative to find out the best ways of looking after your dog, so they can live happy, healthy, and long lives. As long as you are prepared to do that hard work, you and your four-legged best friends can be happy together for a long time to come. So, let's discover some ways you can that great care of your dog.

Pixabay

The Breed
Before you buy that puppy, you need to do a lot of research and discover what breed is right for you. You should try and avoid the impulse of buying a dog based on what it looks like and consider its behavior and grooming needs. If you are living in a flat, are quite disabled, and are unable to go for long walks every day, then a border collie is probably not the dog for you. If you do not want long hair everywhere, then you'll want a short-haired dog that doesn't shed that often and so on. You need to find a dog whose temperament and basic needs match what you can give; that way, you and the dog won't have to compromise.

Training
Training is not just about making your life easier; it is about ensuring your dog has the best quality of life possible. An untrained dog can be dangerous, and this will impact what it can do. They can also become a nuisance to you and all your neighbors. If they bark incessantly, you will end up not being liked on your road; you will inevitably start feeling shame and embarrassment about your dog and your inability to keep it quiet. You may even start having complaints made about you. If you are not prepared to train a dog or don't know what you are doing, perhaps you should forget about having one or take the dog to an obedience school. Bad behavior can also be a health risk to the dog too. They may eat things they shouldn't, run into things, or into roads and hurt themselves. In the very worse cases, your dog may bite another dog or a person, and then they may get put down. Good training is in everyone's best interests. It allows you to take the dog out to places an untrained dog cannot go to. It offers you that peace of mind that they won't hurt themselves or anyone else or make a nuisance of themselves. A dog needs training.

A Vet
Dogs get ill, so it is important that you take care of their health and take them to visit the vet. There are a wide range of illnesses your dog can suffer from, so take notice of your dog. If anything seems like it's wrong, then take them to see a professional. You also need to make sure you stay on top of their immunizations too. There are other medications that need to be taken, too, like fleas, ticks, and worming medications. Remember that things like ticks carry very serious illnesses like Lyme Disease, which affects dogs as it does humans. So, this is vital, especially if you are going to be taking your fur baby out on walks on or near long grass. Each breed has its own individual needs too. So, see a vet, discuss your breed with them, and ensure that you are given the right level of individualized care.

A Good Diet
You are what you eat, and this is true with animals too. If you want your dog to be healthy, have a shiny coat, good teeth, and so on, feed them good nutrition. Did you know that dogs are omnivores? They are not predominantly meat eaters. So that means that they require a diet that has a range of vegetables in it as well as meat. The best combination of meat to veg ratio may be something that you ask your vet about, but if you want their blues to have all the vitamins and minerals they need, then you may need to scrub around your preconceived ideas about dog food. Just as important, though, is that you feed them food with meat in it. A lot of dog food containing a meat substitute as opposed to meat itself. All you need to do is check the ingredients list on the labels of the food. If meat is not the first item, then you can be pretty sure that there is not enough meat in there. Protein is absolutely essential to the health of your pup. Another thing to be wary of is not giving them too many treats or human food. Dogs love eating, and if they eat too much, they will get fat, just like we do. This is not conducive to optimum health for your dog. So, you need to be strong. Stoping them begging is all part of the training, too, so remember that. When it comes to human food, a lot of it can make your dog ill; things like chocolate, onions, milk and dairy, raisins, mushroom, and so on are all bad for your dog. So, be careful; you cannot assume your dog can eat like we do.

Exercise
If you love that dog, then you have to give it the opportunity to exercise. That means walks and lots of them. Obviously, it all depends on the breed, but dogs need to stretch those legs. If you have a dog like Border Collie, then you need to give it at least two hours of exercise a day. Remember, this breed has been bred to run around after sheep all day, so keeping it cooped up all the time is going to really hamper its health and well-being. As the amount of exercise you need to give your dog varies from breed to breed, you could have a word with your vet and discover the optimum amount to give your dog. It is important to remember that getting your dog out and about is more than just exercise too; it gives them a chance to experience new things, new sights, scents, sounds, and other stimuli. All of this adds to their quality of life. When you have more time, such as the weekends and holidays, why not take your dog away to a country park or further afield? It is their life too, and new experiences are always welcome. At the end of the day, the more exercise you can give your dog, the happier it will be, and this also helps to stave off illness too.

Grooming
Grooming is another essential aspect of having a happy and healthy dog. It is important for several reasons, such as to prevent its fur from becoming matted. It is a way of removing dead hair, dandruff, and any dirt that has got caught in it. Brushing your dog's coat is a great way of stimulating the skin to produce natural oils which help make the fur silky and glossy. It can also remove parasites and other nasties before they become a problem. Ticks, for example, can take a while before they embed, so bruising straight after a walk where there may have been ticks is a good idea. Some dogs need a lot of brushing, such as long-haired dogs, and this helps stop your house from getting covered in hair – although it doesn't stop it. Grooming in this way is even more essential at shedding times of the year. Dogs need to have their hair cut, and their claws cut too. Perhaps you could take your four-legged friend to a doggie salon if you are worried you may cu their claws wrong.

A Good Send Off
A great way to honor your pet after they pass on is to give them a good send-off. To give you and your family closure, you could buy a plot in a pet cemetery and have a funeral for them. This gives you the opportunity to go back and see them. Another good option is to choose from a selection of pet urns and have a memorial in your home. Whatever you choose to do, it is important that you give that four-legged family member the send-off that they deserve. Dogs can give us so much joy during their lives. You are their world, they obey and listen to you, and therefore it is important that you do the right thing by them in the end.