Photo via Pixabay
By Laura Muensterer
Let's be honest, taking care of a dog is no easy job. The lovablebranimals are the equivalent of babies, complete with separation anxiety, cryingbrand unpredictable bathroom schedules. However, that does not mean that thebreager-to-please fur balls are not worth every bit of love, affection and timebryou dedicate to them.
They know exactly how to make us feel better after a longbrday at work and encourage us to exercise as they sit by the door, anxiouslybrawaiting their daily walk. All dog owners have a plethora of responsibilitiesbrto tend to, and the good ones know that their work as a dog mom or dad neverbrends on simply filling the food and water bowl.
Experienced dog owners:
1. Know thatbra successful morning walk always has to end with a quality head scratch and abrwell-deserved food reward. After all, dogs are the ones who do the mostbrwork, including dragging you along as you sip your morning coffee.
2. Bringbrtheir four-legged family member to the dog park at least once a week sobrhe has a chance to socialize with his furry friends. And let’s not forgetbrthe owners, who are always happy to provide some extra head and rear scratches.
3. Have abrdedicated time slot for play time so their busybody pet can staybrin shape and fall asleep at night. Those treat calories aren’t going tobrburn themselves, after all. And everyone knows a late-night play session is thebrgo-to cure for any dog’s pre-bedtime restlessness.
4. Bringbrtheir dog to doggie day camp at PetSmart every week so he has the chance tobrplay with old and new friends (and the nice employees). Dogs need a changebrof scenery every so often. Doggie day camp is the best of both worlds becausebrthere is always a wide variety of dog breeds and a devoted handler who has nobrproblem loving on your buddy until you bring him home for the day.
5. Buy abrvariety of treats so their best friend has a smorgasbord of deliciousbrmeat-filled eats. Sure, your dog’s health and wellbeing is top priority,brbut that doesn’t mean a new, tasty treat every once in a while is unnecessary.
6. Let theirbrpuppy at heart take a dip in the pool, even if that means the pool will bebrfilled with his ubiquitous hair. It justifies the money you spend on a poolbrguy every week.
7. Leave thebrTV on while they're at work so their favorite canine has some entertainmentbrwhile he awaits his owner's return. Who cares if he understands the plot?brThe mere visuals will satisfy him until he has some real human attention he canbrbeg for.
8. Diversifybrtheir walk routes so their furry friend has a new light pole or fire hydrant tobrsniff each time. A dog’s favorite hobby, next to eating and playing, isbrsniffing. Even just taking a different street gives your walking companion thatbrmany more things to investigate with his sensitive snout.