Top 10 essential dog caring tips

Image by Bill in Ash Vegas via Flickr

Your dog is your companion who will give you many years of love, friendship and loyalty in exchange for loving care, safe shelter, clean water and decent food. They also rely on you to provide them with health care when they are ill and regular exercise and grooming to help keep them fit and healthy. Listed below are 10 essentials for keeping your dog fit and healthy for many years to come:

1. make sure that you give your dog a collar and that it includes an identity tag with your name and telephone number on it, or even better have an electronic tag fitted just under your dogs skin, this makes it easy to track your dog should it get lost or stolen.

2. make sure you follow all the local laws and regulations regarding licensing for your dog and that they have the correct vaccinations when they should.

3. When on public property keep your dog on a lead, you should always keep your dog under strict control at all times when out and about. Never let your dog go wandering off alone and make sure they cannot get off your property without you. When you are walking keep your dog on its lead by your side until you come to an area away from cars, even then your dog should be well behaved and always do as its told the minute you tell it.

4. Make sure your dog has proper accommodation; if you keep your dog outside in a kennel make sure it’s the correct size for the breed of dog and that you spend a decent amount of time with it. Dogs crave companionship and don’t like to be left all day alone or tied up in a small pen, make sure you can devote the time needed to take care of a pet before you take on the responsibility.

5. take your dog to the vets regularly, makes sure that you take your dog to see the vet on a regular basis, this way illness can be caught before it shows and always make sure your dog has the necessary vaccinations when needed.

6. spay or neuter your dog, dogs that have this surgery are known to live longer, be healthier and have less behaviour problems.

7. give your dog a healthy balanced diet with plenty of clean fresh drinking water available at all times, if your dog puts on too much weight then seek the advice of your vet before restricting their diet.

8. take your dog to obedience classes, this not only makes your life a lot easier but also that of your dog, a well behaved dog who does as they are told will be welcome at a lot more places than ones which just please themselves.

9. Give your dog the exercise that they need without over doing it, two walks for roughly 15 minutes is adequate enough for most breeds providing they can get outside in the garden throughout the day. Smaller breeds may not even need this much exercise, care should of course be taken with very young puppy’s as their little legs may tire easily.

10. Be patient with your dog, sometimes your companion may not understand what is required of them and you may have to repeat or tell them in a different way what you want them to do. Dogs aren’t mind readers and cannot understand anything and everything you ask of them so a little patience on your part can go a long way.

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