National Dog Week: Keeping Our Dogs Safe

Our main focus at Child Safety Store is just as our name suggests – the safety of our children. We’ve given a lot of advice in the past for how to babyproof our homes, protect our children from the sun, and keep babies safe in car seats. Seeing as how this is National Dog Week, we thought we would highlight some ways to keep your furry friends safe as well. After all, for most of us, our pets are like our children, too.  They rely on us for comfort, safety and security.

As it turns out, many of the same safety measures we suggest for children also apply to dogs and other pets.

Here are five of those helpful safety steps for National Dog Week:

1. Pool fences:

   Dogs seem to be drawn to bodies of water. Typically, where there is a lake or pool, our dogs will find their way into the water! Sadly, veterinarians estimate that 5,000 family pets drown in backyard pools each year. This is a devastating statistic. Keep both your child and your dog safe by investing in a pool fence to create a barrier between your loved ones and the water when it isn’t pool time. It's a smart investment for National Dog Week and beyond!

2. Safety gate alarms:

   Speaking of creating a barrier to block unsafe environments, safety gates that prevent children from reaching areas of the house that may be dangerous also work great for dogs. Keep your man’s-best-friend from unsafe spaces by investing in a gate alarm such as the MagnaLatch Alarm, which beeps each time gate is opened, and sounds twice if the gate is not fully and securely latched.

3. Don’t leave dogs in cars:

   Leaving a child or pet inside a locked car can be incredibly dangerous and even life threatening. You see, the heat can cause vehicular heatstroke. According to a test by Consumer Reports, the temperature inside a car reached 105° F in just one hour, even though it was only 61° F outside.

4. Check for ticks:

   Lyme disease is an illness caused by tick bites. This can affect children, adults or pets and can be pretty serious. Lyme can worsen the longer the tick is attached to you, so be sure to thoroughly check your children and pets for ticks when they come inside.

5. Careful around children:

   Your dog and child can become best of friends if they each respect each other’s space. Encourage friendly interactions between them. A dog is more likely to get aggressive when it is bothered or instigated. Actions such as touching a dog’s face can frighten it and cause it to be more likely to lash out. Instead, teach your child how to take care of and play nicely with their furry friend.  While we’re at it, check out this blog post about interacting with our furry feline friends as well!

When it comes to safety in our homes, why not spread the love? We want our children to be safe, but we also want to keep our pets out of trouble as well! Happy National Dog Week to you and your furry friend!