South Bellmore Veterinary Group

How to make sure of the safety of your dog in a park

Staying inside your home with your dog for the whole week is not entirely bad especially if you're a home person. But your dog may need a change in its environment even if it's just for a while. suggests taking your loyal companion to the park in your neighborhood. Give your dog the chance to experience life's joy such as to play, exercise and to socialize with other dogs and people outside your home. You can witness benefits of such activities on your pets and see improvements in their physical and mental health.

However, as a pet parent, you must always keep an eye on your precious pet every time you go outside with them. Before going to the park, see to it that you'll do your best to protect your dog's health and that you're prepared to take charge of them the whole time.

Keeping your pet safe all the time requires good supervision and to help you make sure of the safety of your dog, South Bellmore Veterinary Group provides basic guidelines which are included in the next paragraphs.

Avoid distraction

Once you decided to take your dog to the park, it is your sole responsibility to take care of its wellbeing. You must be strict about not letting anything fully get your attention because you need to watch over your pet. Keep an eye on the body language of your dog and if there were unfavorable events, try your best to calm their behavior or take them away from other animals or people who are bullying your beloved animal.

Don't bring a lot of toys

Your pet might become overprotective to their toys so it would be better to leave their toys at home. You don't want your pet to be involved in a fight just because of some toys. Your dog and another animal might become aggressive with stalking or being possessive to a certain toy, which could lead to tug-of-war or wrestling. Once you noticed unwanted behaviors from your dog such as neck biting, excessive barking, pinning another dog down, or snapping at other animals, you must stop their playtime right away and bring your dog to other sides of the park and let it enjoy other things.

Make sure of proper medication

Going outside often makes your pet vulnerable to some infectious disease and parasites. Taking them to the park is nothing different so you must ensure that your pet has proper medications, which are essential to avoid heartworms, fleas, and intestinal parasites. If you have puppies, consider leaving them at home until they have taken all the necessary vaccinations. Related to this, your grown-up dog should be updated on its vaccinations as well. You may also visit your veterinarian and ask about vaccines that can help your pet steer clear of some diseases, especially if both of you are going to the park often.

In particular, Bordetella vaccination should be taken by dogs that already have contact with other dogs. Bordetella is described to as a contagious respiratory disease and better known as the kennel cough. Vaccination for leptospira bacteria should also be considered since this bacterium can be found in ponds with stagnant water or by contaminated urine from wildlife.

South Bellmore Veterinary Group needs you to always be prepared for protecting the health of your dog and watching over their wellbeing whenever you and your pet is going to start a little journey in the park.