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Bringing a foster dog home for the first time is incredibly exciting, no doubt the kids are incredibly excited, but the excitement can be so feverish that you may forget about the fundamentals about raising a dog in a safe environment. Depending on what dog you have, you may find websites like zooawesome useful as they could give you some useful tips for different dog breeds. Different breeds will have different demands so it’s worth making sure you make the right environment for your new dog. Dog-proofing your home is a bit similar to getting your house ready for a toddler, with quite possibly a lot more mess! You can never underestimate the importance of making sure your home is ready, and not just regarding the home itself, are you and your family prepared for the challenges that come with having a pet? Here are the key points to get you started!
Pet Proofing Your Home
The first thing to do when it comes to getting the room pet-proof is to get a dog-eye view of what temptations may be presented to your pet. You may be very surprised as to how many wires or strange items you might have left under the couch. Doing a deep clean of your home before you bring the dog home may feel a little counterintuitive, especially with the amount of mess that you will encounter, but at least you will know that the house has a baseline of cleanliness.
Stock Up On Everything!
Everything that you think you will need make sure you get double! ID tags, food, paper towels (for the unsightly mess), dog toys (they will easily get destroyed) will all come in handy. I recommend buying some really durable chew toys for your dog. They’re great for teething and it will mean that you won’t have to keep buying new dog toys. You’ll be surprised how quickly a little puppy can chew its way through a basket of toys! It’s a win-win situation! Bringing a foster dog into another environment is very stressful for them so you can soften the shock by giving them as much love, care, and attention as you can. Making sure that you have enough dog medication, such as frontline plus for dogs, for fleas will prevent your house being overrun with bugs!
Work With Your Family To Assign The Chores Between You
Introducing a dog into your home is going to be a strain on many levels. A dog is not just an animal for playing with, you need to assign the chores between yourselves. From the dog walking to the bathing, and everything in between. And it isn’t just the adults that can do the chores, dogs can teach a lot of children about responsibility, and will instill caring values. It can be utter chaos when bringing a pet into a new home, they will experience a culture shock, and as a family, you need to pull together to make sure that you are giving the dog the warmest, and most loving welcome there is. So, make sure you work as a team. Assign a rota and make sure that it is stuck to religiously, from early morning dog walks and making sure you feed them properly, all the way to taking them for their jabs. If you eventually get to the point where you don’t have the time to walk your dog enough, it may be a good idea to contact somewhere like Confident Mutt as they provide a really useful dog walking service that could help you out big time.
A dog can do so much to bring a family closer together, they offer unconditional love, and all they ask is that you look after them, feed them and give them care and attention. It isn’t that hard really, so get clued up and reap the loving benefits!