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It is always a
surprise to breeders that potential pet buyers cannot understand our
concerns about safety. After all, they are dogs. Shouldn’t they
know how to take care of themselves? And the answer is a big and
resounding NO!
There are
certain givens when you buy a puppy and those are food, water and
bedding. Training is too often an afterthought but very essential
to family happiness and pleasure in a new pet. Training is the
first key to safety and can best be described to you by a qualified
obedience trainer. Training is what enables the owner to get a
runaway dog to “Stay” upon command and may be a lifesaver for your
pet - and maybe for the child who is running behind him. So let’s
talk about interactions between child and pet for a start.
Children see
those adorable little fluffy Bichons and fall in love! The vision
is that of a stuffed animal come to life. But those little pups are
fragile and are adjusting to a new situation away from known family
and surroundings. So the first safety rule is to remember that
pups do break! And they can be taught bad manners if
they are handled roughly, teased, have tails pulled and eyes poked.
Or if they are interfered with as they are eating their dinner or in
their crates where they have gone for rest.
One of the
important safety tips to teach your children and their friends is
that chasing a dog is almost certainly creating an unsafe
situation. A dog running away may run into traffic.
Do not chase your pet but instead allow him to follow you so that
you can guide him into a safer area.
An immediate
concern should be obedience training which can begin as early
as 3 months of age (called puppy kindergarten). The basic commands
of sit, down, stay and come are the start of having the control that
will enable you to call your dog back to you if he heads into a
dangerous situation. Bichons are incredibly fast for little stuffed
animals! They do not recognize danger because, after all, they are
the cutest, sweetest and most adorable critters alive so what could
harm them. The answer is automobiles! Bichons are small, they are
fast and they should never be off lead unless they are in a
secure and fenced yard.
Household
chemicals are a danger to child and to animal, as are electrical cords that
can be chewed or tripped over. It is important to assess anything
that might endanger a child and consider that a pet can also be
harmed. Human medications, dropped under the table and
forgotten, can kill in small doses that are big doses for a tiny
dog.
These are
mostly obvious safety issues that you may already have considered
but it is important to review your surroundings from time to time to
see what you have missed. Remember that health can be negatively
affected by overexposure to chemicals in the environment and this
little dog is small in proportion to the humans who share his home.
The two tools
you should have at hand for your dog’s safety are a good lead
and a properly sized crate. Every dog should have a crate
that is his bed, his refuge, his place for dinner, his protection
in the car and the one place in the house that is for him alone.
There are so many reasons for a dog to have a crate that books could
be written on that topic alone.
Crate training
is the one and only way to quickly house train a pet. There are
articles elsewhere on the topic. Dogs fed in their crates will eat
quickly and finish their food. They rarely become picky eaters as
do those that are free fed by leaving food in a bowl all day long.
Would you want to eat that dry stuff that has been sitting around
for hours? As a refuge, his crate should be the one spot in the
house that is off limits to children. When a pup (or adult dog)
goes into his house, he is saying, I am tired, I have had enough of
play and attention, I need a nap and – emphatically – “Leave me
alone please!”
There is no
time a crate is more important than in an automobile. There are
statistics over the years, as well as personal experience accounts,
of dogs whose lives have been saved in accidents because they were
securely contained in their crates! If the dog is in the car, he
SHOULD be in a crate! And every car should contain an extra
lead for an emergency. Enough emphasis cannot be placed on these
essential rules. In the show world, we have all heard about
handlers who were in accidents in their large vehicles (never their
fault, we hope!) and the dogs have come through with their lives
despite heavy damage to the van or motor home. There have
unfortunately been times when these same handlers have allowed their
own dogs to ride free of a crate, only to be injured, to escape from
the wreck and to be hit by another vehicle or to vanish when they
ran away out of fear. You do NOT want this to happen to your dog.
The dog in a
crate can nap, can throw up in the event of car sickness, can have
an accident if you can’t find a place to stop for a walk, can bounce
off the roof of the crate if that is the nature of the animal. All
of these can happen in the crate and the car remains clean, the pet
remains safe and the driver can pay attention to the road. If the
puppy seems unhappy, throw a lightweight towel over the crate. This
simple act can make a difference in teaching a dog to be contented
while he rides. One theory is that the passing scenery confuses a
dog unaccustomed to riding. Try it – it works! And teaching him to
be happy riding in his crate is best for animal, driver and all
other occupants of the car. It is the SAFE way for everyone.
Check your yard
for possible escape holes. A low spot under the fence may be
unseen because the grass is cut at the same level so this takes
detective work on your part. A good chore for school age children –
“find the escape route”. In the home, children need to understand
that small toys or toy parts are going to vanish when left
where pup can find them. And mom and dad may find themselves with
an unexpected veterinary bill if those toys have to be surgically
removed.
Candy dishes
must be placed way high because chocolate can kill.
Antifreeze will kill within hours so dogs must never be allowed
to consume even so little as a spoonful. Certain plants can
kill and there are lists available to tell you which are most
poisonous. Potting soil is dangerous so any pet that has
consumed dirt should be taken to the vet at any sign of sickness or
nausea. Aforementioned electrical cords can electrocute an
animal if chewed. Large objects of any kind can plug the
esophagus or the gastrointestinal tract if swallowed.
As this article
is written, our state is under a tornado watch. Storms
happen, all kinds of storms, from ice to snow to rain to hurricanes
and/or tornados. If you are wise, you already have a plan of action
for your human family. NOW is the time to make plans for your pet
in the event of a storm. Tornados that require the family go to a
basement or interior room will also require that your pet do the
same. Hurricanes have been proven disastrous for pets by the events
of Katrina. Shelters may now allow small dogs to be brought to the
shelter and, once again, a dog in a crate will more likely be
admitted. This holds true for motels and hotels, whether in a
disaster or for normal travel.
A final four
letter word - FIRE! Many fire departments will provide
window or door stickers that show a pet or pets may be inside.
These can make a huge difference in any emergency, including storms,
so you should have them in place or suggest that your fire
department provide them if they do not already have them available.
Fires in apartment buildings seem to occur far too often but many
pets get saved. Your apartment pet may owe his or her life to a pet
sticker on the door to your apartment.
These are just
a few of the emergency situations that you may encounter. You will
know your own life style and may think of others as you read the
information provided. It is always heartbreaking to lose a pet. No
heartbreak is as painful as the pet lost to an unsafe situation that
could have been prevented. Be safe, plan ahead, be prepared every
day in every way you can. Most Red Cross centers offer pet
emergency first aid classes (contact your local Red Cross for
details). These teach first aid procedures such as CPR and
Heimlich for pets, medications that can be used safely and
techniques for transporting an injured pet.
In order to be
prepared in advance, there are certain measures for pet owners to
take prior to any emergency event. One is to have posted in a
convenient location (or programmed into your telephone) the address
and telephone numbers of your local 24 hour or overnight emergency
veterinary clinic. Few vets are on call 24 hours a day but major
cities and many small towns have at least one overnight emergency
clinic available. Know where it is before you need it!! You
may want to paste that information into a copy of this article:
EMERGENCY VET
CLINIC ________________________________________
Kansas City State Veterinary Toxicology hotline 785-532-5679 (poison
center).
Knowledge is power so be aware and be prepared!
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