Pets Information

Preparing Your Home For a New Puppy


While excitement and anticipation will be at the top of the list when bringing home a new puppy for the first time, preparing for his arrival should rank highly on the list. Just as you would have to prepare a home when you have a toddler, pet owners also have to take certain precautions when "puppy-proofing."

Before you begin preparing your home for a puppy, you should think about the front yard and garden. First, check fences and gates to be sure there are no holes massive enough for him to get his head stuck in or escape through. Watch for litter and trash cans, which can be knocked over, giving your new puppy the opportunity to eat things that might make him sick. Also, know where you are treating your lawn and garden with pesticides, and then don't let your puppy in that area. In addition, produce sure that all chemicals and more harmful products are put away out of your new child's reach.

Next, you will have to inspect your home as if a strange toddler is coming to live with you! Just like toddlers, puppies will think everything is new and exciting. They don't know when something is dangerous or can't tell if that "interesting" remote control will get them into trouble.

In addition, when restructuring your home for the new puppy, you should keep these tips in mind:

Make sure all electrical and cable wires are either in a space your puppy will not have access to, or hide them under rugs or carpets. Don't keep wires where your puppy may gnaw or chew on them.

Just like a toddler, your puppy will investigate each element, including low cupboards. Just when you believed having a puppy was simpler than an infant, he'll learn to pull those cupboard doors open! Think about installing locks or "child-proof" devices.

So far, so good, right? Well, that's only if you remember that in reality your puppy has the brain of a little kid. Soon you'll be getting ready for afternoon walks to the park, three a.m. trips to the bathroom, (more officially, outside) and lots of snuggling. So, while preparing your home for your puppy, think of him as a member of your family. Get him a bed that is chew resistant. Line it with comfortable, washable, bedding and then place it in a favorite place just for him. Be sure it's somewhere he'll be safe and comfortable.

Preparing your home for your new puppy is a lot to handle, so you can look at buying a puppy pen until everything settles down. Just like a baby's playpen, a puppy pen will offer an area for him to play without roaming the home. By doing this, you are also saving your furniture and more objects from being chewed on. (Don't worry-he'll hopefully grow out of this!)

One last thing to think about when preparing your home for your puppy is any stairs that you might have in the home. If you have an open basement or even 2nd floor, utilize toddler gates to confine his run area to avoid accidents. Infants and puppies aren't aware of danger and don't understand that they may fall down steps and get hurt.

The bottom line to think about while preparing your home for the new puppy is, just like a baby, they will require cuddling, attention and there will obviously be a lot of wet kisses!

Eric Shannon is a freelance author who also publishes the Dog Lovers Report, which is a biweekly newsletter with a very large readership. He also runs Beds For Doggies, which carries a large selection of Dog Beds, Dog Couches, and Dog Furniture.


MORE RESOURCES:

The Associated Press

Pet-lover McCain finds the scent of their votes; petless Obama lags
Los Angeles Times, CA - 7 hours ago
Americans like their pets. Two out of three of our homes have pets, a whopping 163 million dogs and cats living as full family members. ...
In poll of pet owners, McCain tops Obama The Associated Press
Is McCain "best in show" for pet people? San Francisco Chronicle
Police: Pet Owners Not Abiding By Laws WJACtv.com
CW33 Dallas/Fort Worth KDAF-TV - Boston Herald
all 250 news articles


Pets suffer as owners feel pinch
Dispatch Online, South Africa - 1 hour ago
With pet owners feeling the economic pinch, the AWS has had to cope with an increasing number of unwanted pets, but never one delivered in this manner ...


Shakespeare Festival heads south, forces fans leave pets, coolers ...
Palm Beach Post,  United States - 3 hours ago
By BILL DIPAOLO JUPITER — This year's Shakespeare Festival will go on, but leave your coolers and pets at home. The usual oceanfront venue at Carlin Park ...
Park Rangers Face Cuts WPEC
all 2 news articles


Dumped pets sent to Dundee as rescue centres swamped
Scotsman, United Kingdom - 19 hours ago
By HAZEL MOLLISON UNWANTED pets are having to be sent to Dundee to be rehomed as callous owners in the Capital abandon them to go on holiday, ...
Salwan: Pet diseases no small matter The Argus
all 4 news articles


Ridding your pets, home of fleas
KHOU, TX - 3 hours ago
Whilden suggests that pet owners use a monthly topical treatment, but then check to make sure it works. Even after using flea controls such as Advantix, ...


Methodology for Pets and Politics poll
The Associated Press - 20 hours ago
The sampling error margin is plus or minus 2.9 percentage points for the subsample of 1185 pet owners and 4.1 percentage points for the subsample of 570 ...


BBC News

Owners 'kill pets with kindness'
BBC News, UK - Jul 7, 2008
By Fiona Stalker A leading veterinary charity has said the problem of obese pets in Scotland is now the worst it has ever seen. The People's Dispensary For ...
ONE IN 5 DOGS MISS OUT ON THEIR WALKIES UK Express
all 2 news articles


SBAWL wants to save pets’ lives
Bryan County News, GA - 1 hour ago
Even with those numbers, we hope to turn those pets around within a month. This would add up to 400-600 animals adopted out each year – which is close to ...


Shelter sees influx in lost pets after long, loud weekend
The Olympian, WA - 13 hours ago
People who are looking for their lost pets can check with Thurston County Animal Services at 360-352-2510. Owners also can drop by the shelter from 9:30 am ...


G8 critics...Weaker Bertha?...Pets and politics | KXNet.com North ...
KXMC, ND - 18 hours ago
WASHINGTON (AP) An AP-Yahoo News poll finds that pet owners favor John McCain over Barack Obama 42 percent to 37 percent, with dog owners particularly in ...

Pets - Google News

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