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Think carefully about what your pooch wants for Christmas
The Christmas festivities that make this season so magical for us might not be quite so enjoyable for our dogs. With affected routines, more busyness and some pretty out-of-the-ordinary happenings going on, here are some ways to help your pooch navigate this bonkers season.
We all have extra demands placed on us at Christmas-time, but if you can stick as much as possible to doggo’s daily routine – meals, walks, training and play – what, when, where and how – this offers predictability and a sense of control for your dog, which can make the other non-routine stuff seem less challenging.
If you’re expecting more guests than usual, create a safe quiet space your dog can head off to if things get a bit much and keep it completely out of bounds from human bothering.
One of the great joys of dog ownership is heading out with our companions on a walk, to the pub, exploring new places… It is worth considering how busy and challenging these things will be: streets might be busy with shoppers, pubs will have more patrons in Christmas merriment and anywhere new that might tempt you with markets, lights and elves will be likely tempting lots of other people through the doors too. Although I am all for sharing these special experiences with loved ones, consider, from your dog’s perspective, if they’d get similar enjoyment out of it as you or would they be happier snoring on their own bed at home? Keep an eye out for stress behaviours while out and about and if anything does upset your pup, give them more distance to help them find their comfort zone again and offer up lots of fuss and treats for being so brave.
As far as Christmas wishlists are concerned, your dog’s one is likely very simple:
– To feel safe
– To spend lots of quality time with their favourite human(s)
– To steal a bit of unguarded turkey when the opportunity arises.
With love, Zara
More Than Sit Dog Training
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