Owning a Dog – What You Need to Consider

When you look at owning a dog, there are a lot of things you will want to consider before making a commitment. A dog can live for over 15+ years, so you have to be prepared to commit this time to your dog. So, to ensure that you are ready for dog ownership, here are a few things you should think about.

The Time Commitment

Dogs can live for 10-15 years, and sometimes even longer. As well as a good lifespan, dogs also need a time commitment every day. It is important to have time to feed a dog, exercise it, and ensure that it gets human companionship. If you do not invest your time into a new dog, you could well find that you have behavioral issues or obedience issues. If you are out of the house, working for 8+ hours of the day, you have to think about how much time you have for a new dog. Sharing the commitment with other members of your household may be an option, especially if you are working full time outside of the house.

Ongoing Training

Dogs are excellent learners, and the majority of breeds enjoy training. However, it is important that you see training as an ongoing commitment. It is not something that you can do just once and then expect your dog to do it over and over again. Training is something that needs to be reinforced and rewarded constantly. Committing time and energy to train your new dog will benefit your dog’s behavior, and it will help you bond more too.

Outside Safety and Security 

Ensuring that any outside space you have attached to your home is safe and secure for your dog needs to be a top priority. If your dog was to escape from your home or your outside area, it could be dangerous to other people, and it could also run into danger. To ensure that the outside of your home is safe and secure, you must look at getting electric dog fences installed. Electric fences will deter dogs from escaping, and they will give you greater control over your dog and where it goes.

A Dog Proof Home

As well as focusing on the outside of your home, it is important that you invest in the interior of your home. Interiors are often full of accidents waiting to happen, such as shoes left lying around (ready to chew) or food being left accessible, and possibly even on countertops. Establishing good habits early on and dog proofing your entire home will ensure that accidents are kept to a minimum. 

Vacations and Leaving the House

When thinking about owning a dog, something you can often overlook is what will happen when you are not at home. Planning who will take care of your dog when you leave the house or even when you go on vacation is crucial. Ensuring that you have support in an emergency is always beneficial.