We love our dogs, if you treat them right then they are as true a friend as you could ever hope for, but they need our help to look after them if we want them to stay healthy and happy. Since we have domesticated dogs and taken them out of their natural habitat then we have taken away their natural ability to look after themselves and surrounded them with new dangers they are not used to, so it is up to us to help them avoid those new dangers. Below we discuss 5 ways to look after your dog:
Keep dangerous items out of reach: In many ways then dogs are like children, they are naturally curious and they don’t understand how dangerous different things can be until it is too late. How can your innocent dog know that the bleach bottle it is biting into is going to hurt it? Or that eating your small ornaments could cause it to choke? Instead keep all small things your dog could eat or anything sharp or dangerous liquids etc out of reach like you would do with a young child.
Regular grooming: Grooming is not just about making your dog look good, it is also an important part of their care. When you bathe your dog then you remove dirt and parasites that can cause problems later, especially if it causes them to scratch which opens up a wound that can get infected. When you brush your dog then you are not just removing dead hair, you should also be checking over your dog for anything that might be wrong, rashes or scratches etc, that you can catch before they get worse.
Look after their teeth: There is nothing more painful than a toothache, so you want to make sure your dog avoids that pain if they can, by helping them look after their teeth. You want to inspect their teeth regularly to make sure they look ok, and use special dog toothpaste and a finger brush to clean their teeth regularly too. You can also get special dog chews that are made to clean their teeth as they chew on them, you could get some of them for the times in-between when you brush.
Stop giving them scraps: Dogs like to beg for food, and unfortunately we love them so much that we end up giving them scraps from our dinner, but most of the time it is not good for them. You might think you are being cruel giving them that nasty looking dog food, but the dog food is specially made for their systems so they can digest it and get the nutrients they need out of it. Our human food can often hurt them, things like chocolate and garlic powder can actually poison and kill your dog, and they are in all sorts of different items you might feed to your dog. So as harsh as it may seem them teach them not to beg at the table and to only eat their dog food, then get them some special dog treats for when you want to spoil them.
Regular exercise: Just like us, then dogs need exercise to stay healthy. If they were out in the wild then they would get all the exercise they could handle as they went about their daily lives, but as we keep them in our houses then we need to make sure they are being active enough. You don’t necessarily need to walk with them to give them exercise though, you could sit down on a bench and then throw a ball for them, they will happily chase after it and tire themselves out while you sit and relax!
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