During the 2020 pandemic there was a surge in the number of people who decided to invite a dog to be part of their family. According to research by the Kennel Club, 1 in 5 new dog owners during this time had not considered the long-term responsibilities required. Sadly the Dog’s Trust in just the last 3 months alone has received over 1800 calls from people needing to re-home their pandemic pup. I did not experience the joys of having a dog around until later in adulthood. For our family, welcoming a dog into our home has been a very enriching experience. But, there are still some things to know before getting a dog that I wish I’d been aware of beforehand, so that I could have been better prepared. Maybe they’d be helpful to share, as they won’t necessarily appear in the average puppy handbook.
Puppies need round-the-clock care
As a parent, I’d been fully aware of the need to provide 24-hour care to my children. Whether it was feeding my newborn every 2 hours, or helping reduce my 3-year-old’s fever at 3am, I knew that was part and parcel of being a Mum. What I hadn’t fully expected was that I would be getting up around the clock with a puppy too. Fortunately it didn’t take long for our bundle of fur to get used to being away from his mother and he soon settled down to sleep through the night.
Chewing comes as naturally as breathing
Before getting a puppy I’d seen plenty of commercials for dog chews. What I hadn’t appreciated is that the tiny new addition to our family would want to chew literally everything in sight. We quickly learned that soft dog toys would be torn to shreds in seconds. If our backs were turned for a minute, chewing havoc occurred – from shoes, to rugs, to the corner of the couch, nothing left within his reach was safe. What did distract him? Hard plastic puzzle toys. So if you’ve got a dog who gets easily bored and is a chewer, a puzzle toy could be perfect to save your soft furnishings.
Walking’s not just for the dog
I knew how important it was going to be to give our pup plenty of exercise so that he’d be physically healthy and get the mental stimulation and socialisation that comes with a neighbourhood walk. It was only when our pup had a minor issue with his leg that stopped the daily walk for a couple of days that I realised how important those daily walks had become for the humans in the family. We missed going out in all weathers and getting the fresh air and exercise our bodies craved, we missed the interaction with fellow dog walkers in our local area, and most of all we missed just being with our four-legged friend.
Having a well-equipped car is essential
When we knew we were getting a dog, we investigated all sorts of options to ensure that he could travel with us in a comfortable and secure way so we were following the highway code and unlikely to incur fines (really important things to know before getting a dog). There are various options out there, including dog crates, harnesses and universal barriers. However, we were particularly impressed with the potential of having dog travel accessories designed to fit our car. The Travall Guard and Travall CargoMat gave us just that – a perfect fit for both, which meant the dog guard doesn’t rattle on country lanes and the liner gives full coverage of the boot floor (because even small dogs get very muddy).
Our hearts would never be the same
The little guy has now been with us for just over 10 years. There’s not a day goes by where he hasn’t made us smile and we hope to have many more of those days. So, from our standpoint one of the important things to know before getting a dog is that the little bundle of fur will capture your heart completely. As Dean Koontz said, “Once you have had a wonderful dog, a life without one is a life diminished.”
