Three Things You Want To Do As A Dog Owner
There are three main areas of concern you should have about your dog and these include health, safety and obedience. Therefore, you want to make sure you cover all these things when you decide to bring a new dog into your life. Here are the three major areas of concern and information on how to properly care for your dog in those areas.
Taking care of your dog's health
When it comes to your dog's health you should know that you should be bringing your dog in for annual vet exams. During these exams the vet will look your dog over and make sure there are no health concerns. If there are any, then they can be treated for whatever issues have been found. They will look at your dog's eyes, ears, mouth and entire body. This is also the time when your dog will be given their annual vaccinations. You may also want to have your dog spayed or neutered so they can no longer reproduce. Fixing your dog can prevent a lot of bad habits and other issues that you will be glad you don't have to deal with.
You will also want to give your dog a high quality dog food that has very little to no grain in it and that has as little fillers as possible. If you have good water in your area, then you can give your dog tap water. However, if your water isn't very good and your family drinks bottled water, then the dog should be on bottled water as well.
Taking care of your dog's safety
You want to make sure your dog is always contained anytime you aren't able to watch them. Walk your dog on a leash so you maintain full control over them. If you like to take your dog with you in the car, make absolutely sure to leave them at home on hot days instead of leaving them in the car. The temperature in the car can quickly get hotter than it is outside and this can even kill your dog. If you don't already have a fence around your yard, then you may want to put up a chain link fence to keep your dog in the yard when you let them outside. If you don't want to fence in the whole yard then you can put up dog fencing around a portion of the yard and designate that as their area.
Keeping your dog obedient
You want to start by giving your dog boundaries from the moment you bring them home. If you don't want them in the kitchen, let this be known from day one. You should also teach them manners by having them sit and wait for you to tell them it is okay to eat before they make the mad dash to their food bowl. Also, you should take them to a dog obedience class so they can learn how to behave when they are around other dogs and stimuli.
