Puppies are inquisitive in nature; full of energy and highly playful. Little puppies rarely sit idle and are always very curious at everything that comes their way. If there is something in the house, your puppy must see and check it for himself too. While this playful nature of puppies brings us immense joy, it is also one of the reasons that put them in great danger at times.
Here, your role as a pet parent begins. You must be very careful when you bring your puppy home. It is better than you take a cautionary step before bringing your bundle of joy home, other than preparing for it after some damage occurs. Puppies are like toddlers, you have to be extra vigilant with everything around you. But, a child-proof house is not necessarily a puppy safe house too. There are a lot many things that you have to take care of while parenting a puppy.
Here are ten such ways that will help you make your home puppy proof:
Make your home safe for your puppy
The inside of your house is equally dangerous as yards and the parks you take your puppy to. There are so many objects that seem absolutely harmless to you, but can be potentially very harmful to the little puppy. Here are the 5 most common ways in which you can puppy proof your house in:
- Know your plants well. There are a few indoor Plants Which Are Potentially Poisonous for your puppy, and the puppies being playful, eat a leaf or two off, unknowingly. The most common toxic plants, found indoors, are dieffenbachia, azalea, Calla lily, and philodendron.
To make your indoors puppy proof, you can either replace these toxic plants with the non-toxic ones or place these plants somewhere they are not reachable for your puppy. - Keep the medication out of the reach of your puppy. Medications include all your medicines and even the dog supplements. It is important to understand that placing these medicines in a plastic container that is in the reach of your puppy is not how you can make your puppy safe. Puppies usually chew off plastic containers to check what is inside. Make sure that the medicines are somewhere your puppy cannot reach; low height tables or kitchen counters are not safe.
- Sanitary supplies and used razors are another hazards to your puppy. It is important to put the bathroom trash cans high enough to where your dog cannot reach them.
- Puppies drink off toilet bowls out of curiosity. It is hence important to ensure that there is no automatic toilet bowl cleaner if you cannot stop your dog from drinking out of the toilet. Full sinks and bathtubs are also hazardous as the little puppies can drown in them. It is important to ensure that such water-filled places are either covered or blocked for your puppy to enter.
- Put the cleaning supplies in cupboards, and use childproof latches on your lower cupboards. Remove your puppy from the are you are going to spray cleaners or such liquids because these can harm the eyes and lungs of the little curious pup.
How to puppy proof outside your house
The outdoors is the tough part of the environment that you can control. There are only a few possible cautions that you can take. Here are a few common cautionary steps that you must take:
- To prevent your puppy from wandering here and there, you will need to build an outdoor kennel or a secure fencing which cannot be jumped over by the little dog, or dug under. It is important to ensure that your puppy is not left unsupervised outside.
- Demarcate a separate area for your puppy to use as his bathroom area. Fencing or other such means can be used to separate the children’s play area from your puppy’s bathroom area. The sandboxes need to be kept such that your puppy does not use it as his bathroom area.
- There are outdoor plants that are toxic too. Dogs chew and swallow these plants, and even the landscaping stones, causing intestinal blockages and poisoning. The toxic plants include potato (all green parts), morning glory, foxglove, lily of the valley, and oak (buds and acorns) and the bulbs of certain plants like daffodils, and even Cocoa bean mulch.
- The auto supplies, lawn fertilizers, insecticides, oils, paints, and gasoline must be placed in secure containers and out of reach of these little puppies. It is even more important to take special care with the antifreeze and rat poison. Dogs find the taste of both these things good and can be fatal when ingested.
- Fire sources like fire rings, barbecues should be kept out of reach of your puppies as they can cause serious burns.
Your new puppy is the joy of your home, and to keep this joy of yours safe, it is very important for you, as a pet parent to take all necessary measures to keep them safe. The best thing to do is to make a checklist of all the things you should, and should not do for the safety for your puppy.
Take diligent care of your little one, and enjoy time with them hazel free.
Make sure that you keep in mind all the points for their safety and that no danger remains unseen.
Happy parenting!