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Last Updated on June 24, 2023 by Thee Puppypreneur
PUPPY PROOFING YOUR HOME
Learn how to puppy proof your house or apartment. So, having a puppy is like having a baby. They keep you up at night, they keep you on your toes, you have to watch them constantly as they can be very fast and curious little furballs. Things you don’t even think of or can’t even see can happen.
Before you bring your puppy home you will want to do a walk through of your house and decide are you designating your puppy to just downstairs or both upstairs and downstairs are you giving them the whole yard or just a portion of the yard.
WHY PUPPY PROOFING YOUR HOUSE IS SO IMPORTANT?
Here is a great reason puppy proofing your home is so important. You may not think much of it but I have witnessed with my own eyes a lady that moved into her new apartment and I guess there was a missing board or a hole underneath the cabinet in the bathroom and her puppy crawled in there and got stuck and they had to tear out the cabinets to get to the puppy.
Do you have any open drain holes in your backyard that a puppy could fall and get stuck in. There is another serious instance when a dog chewed on electrical wiring and burned down the whole house.1Canine separation anxiety: strategies for treatment and management | VMRR (dovepress.com)
It’s not even just for puppies I had an older dog and he was visiting my ex’s parents and they had clothes hanging over the sofa, nothing to think of right?
WRONG! The hook part was hanging over the arm of the sofa and the dog walked by and the hook got caught in the corner of his eye and he was running around yelping and screaming and I had to stop and take the metal hanger out and LUCKILY there was no damage and no eye issues.
Another time at the same house (you think I would have learned not to leave him there) I got a call from emergency saying my dog was there and was having his stomach pumped.
Yes, he was a lab and yes, labs get into everything and no, he wasn’t a puppy. He was 13 years old but apparently, they had snail bait in the backyard to keep the slugs off their plants and this is something that has a scent that is very appetizing to dogs.
He was totally fine again, fyi after the ER induced vomiting and did their thing but you don’t want that $3000 bill because of a stupid careless mistake that could have been avoided.
HOW TO PUPPY PROOF YOUR HOME AND THE ITEMS TO PUPPY PROOF
TOILET SEAT LIDS
especially if you use toilet bowl cleaners you will want to make sure they are down so they don’t drink the chemicals
ELECTRICAL CORDS
should have protecters from chewing like these two options
- Pet Supplies : Cord Protector – CritterCord – A New Way to Protect Your Pet from Chewing Hazardous Cords : Cord Covers : Amazon.com this one is plastic clear tubing and this one
- Amazon.com: PetCable Pet-Resistant Cord Protector From Pets – 9 Foot Long Polyester Braided Cable Wrap to Protect Wires from Chewing – Unscented Cord Protector for Dogs : Pet Supplies is used to wrap up a bunch of loose wires and combine them into one larger bundle.
CHEMICALS
Check all the chemicals you have around outside for the lawn, bugs, or rodents and keep traps out of site and reach.
SECTION OFF AREAS
Designate an area of your house or yard by sectioning it off with baby gates such as this large gate Amazon.com: COMOMY 198″ Baby Gate Extra Wide, Dog Gate Pet Gate for House Stairs Doorways Fireplace, Adjustable 3 in 1 Play Yard Child Safety Gate, Auto Close, Hardware Mounted (30″ Tall, White) : Pet Supplies
that is adjustable and allows for a more secure area for your puppy.
Or if you are trying to prevent your puppy from climbing stairs or other areas this swing baby gate, I have this and it is a great option
TRASH CANS
are a great one too as no matter what age and whether in the kitchen or the bathroom they are always curious.
Plastic trash cans as I have found out offer no puppy proofing protection as I threw some Mexican food in there once and walked away and that lovely, now 15 year old lab.
Well, he decided the Mexican food wrappers were just too good to pass up and you don’t want all your trash on the floor trust me, it’s a pain and stains carpet.
Heavy duty trash cans with secured lids like these,
offer a bit of help such as odor protection as well.
PLANTS
are something you should be careful of as plants can be toxic to pets as well.
CABINETS
that don’t close tightly are another issue as dogs can get inside and eat products that contain toxic chemicals so safety latches like these
or even these
Also, make sure to keep things off counters as just because they are low to the ground doesn’t mean your dog can’t jump up on 2 legs and grab stuff off the counter.
A very long time ago when I had roommates their husky puppy got in my room and jumped up on the bathroom counter and ate my Chanel® eyeliner and ruined all my Mac Cosmetics® makeup brushes.
Just do a thorough puppy proofing walk through of your house or apartment. I always check to look for things hanging off tables or couches ever since the hanger incident and I use all natural chemicals for my lawn now.
Whatever you think they can’t reach or won’t touch, don’t take it for granted because all it takes is a quick second.
And one last helpful tip is to get down to their level (yes, on all fours) and this way you can see the things they see that are closer to the ground, like they are and that you might have otherwise missed at 4 to 6 feet.
Check out our other articles for more helpful tips and information with your puppy such as;
