When you bring a pet home for the first time, it’s an exciting moment. It’s not hard to see the love and joy a pet can bring to your household, often completing your family unit as a respected member, not just a furry friend that you tolerate within the household.
That said, it’s true that pets and human owners have different living needs. It’s unlikely that you’ll be pulling up a chair for your dog at the dinner table, for example. As such, it’s good to invest in a few accommodations not only to make the home more comfortable for them to occupy, but to protect them from the wider home itself and any unseen dangers that may affect them.
In this post, we’ll list nine of those possible decisions. You could use all of them or only one, but the important takeaway here is to think about how your home could possibly affect your pet, and how they could affect it in turn. Don’t worry - because a properly domesticated pet will certainly feel at home if some of these adjustments are made:
Internal Safety Gates
Internal safety gates may be more familiar to you when raising children - after all, a crawling toddler is perhaps one of the most curious beings on the planet, and that’s not always safe. Adding safety gates to the top and bottom of your staircase is an obvious safety measure, but you can also adjust them and fit them in certain door frames, too. For example, you might have internal safety gates at the door of your bathroom as you wash your child.
However, these are worthwhile tools for puppies, and even kittens that haven’t quite learned how to jump yet. Allowing small pets to climb up and down the steps in your household may seem like fun, but those steps are quite large compared to their size, and jumping up and down inclines or declines can be damaging to their joints. They may fall. As such, safety gates can be helpful.
In addition, door closers can be an added safety mechanism that allows you to keep certain rooms off-limits. For example, a newborn lying in their cot may seem like a warm place for a cat to sit, but for obvious reasons, this can be dangerous to your child. So, making sure the door closes automatically before the cat can get in is ideal - as is your own observation and good habit-setting approach.
External Privacy Fences
External privacy fences, installed with robust foundations, can prevent even the most quick-to-dig dog from escaping your back or front yard. Having that protection is paramount; because you can’t always keep an eye on your dog while entertaining guests, gardening, or just letting your pet out to do their business.
Privacy fences have the added benefit of keeping others out. It’s unfortunate and disgusting, but some criminals will steal dogs and sell them on. Not giving anyone easy access to your garden is a great way to prevent that. On top of this, a dog barking that a potential intruder cannot see without climbing up the fence can seem way more threatening than it actually is; even if your doggo is one of the most tepid creatures around and would likely lose a fight with its own shadow.
A Hygienic Bowl Area
Pets need to eat, and boy do they remind you of it. It’s good to separate a clean, dependable, and secure space where they can head to on a regular routine to eat. Many people tend to use their garage floor spaces for that and a cat litter tray, or a utility room with laminate or vinyl flooring that remains very easy to clean.
A hygienic bowl area can also be cared for quite easily, preventing drips and spills as dogs and cats are both likely to cause at least once in a while. Of course, it’s always worth separating the eating space from the cat litter space, at least on opposite walls of a mid-sized room, or in different rooms entirely.
Doggy Beds & Comforts
It’s nice to give your pet a specific place to relax and sleep. A dog or cat bed will give them a continual place to rest their head and feel a small sense of dominion over, somewhere they can retire to when you’ve told them off or when they need to get that ever-needed nap in.
This also has the added benefit of preventing them from finding refuge sleeping where they shouldn’t. Cats are harder to manage, as they will sleep on anything, the more inappropriate the better. Dogs, on the other hand, can be trained to not sleep in certain areas like on your futon or bed. This latter point is essential, as it’s actually quite unhygienic to let your dog sleep on your bed with you. But near your bed in their own custom pad? Well, that’s much better, keeps you safe, and you can rest easy in one another’s comfort.
Dog & Cat Doors
If you trust your little pooch or feline to come and go as they please, understanding that your garden is primed for their safety, then sliding patio doors with built-in dog door or cat door options can be very helpful.
This way, they can come and go, you can lock the door at night to prevent any strays from coming in, and in general, you won’t have to keep letting your pet outside to perform their business, because they can do so themselves.
Note that this does have the side responsibility of watching out for other trespassers, but for such a nice door and added peace of mind, this rare occurrence is more than worth it.
Throws & Covers
It’s good to have pet-resistant and machine-washable furniture covers should you need them, particularly if you have certain implements like faux-leather sofas that are absolutely scratchable.
Throwing a cover over can protect your item from being torn, even if your pets are relatively well-behaved for the most part. We all know how cats like to pad and pad to prepare their own sleeping area, but that’s not always helpful for furniture.
Sure, keep setting your boundaries with your pet, but understand that when you’re out, or when they feel particularly pet-like, they may forget your instructions. At least with this measure, you can prevent this annoying issue from affecting you too much as time goes by, or overly questioning purchasing that piece of vintage furniture with classic upholstery.
Securing Electrical Outlets
One thing most people know is that pets like to lick. Everything and anything. While they might not put as much in their mouths as babies do given they lack opposable thumbs, they’ll still give this task a good go.
That’s not always helpful when it comes to lickable household objects that could harm them. Most electricians won’t design your power outlets to be lickable, and so it’s important to do that work for them.
Thankfully, this is as easy as placing plug-socket defenders in unused plug areas. It also means cable managing your appliances that are plugged in to prevent cords from being yanked out or tripped over as easily - we all know the damage an excited dog can cause when hurtling through your household.
Store Cleaning & Chemical Items Safely
Dogs will eat anything. That’s not helpful if they accidentally spill laundry fabric condition all over your floor after gaining access to a cupboard. The last thing you want to see is your dog walk in with his tail between his legs and neon blue liquid all around his or her mouth.
While it’s true they won’t be able to access the cupboards like an enthusiastic toddler can, it’s important to tighten all of your cleaning products, to store them safely, and to place catches on your cupboards as appropriate. This way, even the smartest dog with the best motor control over their naughty paw will have a hard time eating items you’ve purchased from the household section.
It’s also important to note that your pets absolutely understand where you keep the food. They listen out for the jingle of the bowl as you prepare them a meal, which is why they come running around the corner as they hear it. As such, make sure this is under lock and key too, lest your dog eat fifteen pounds of kibble and require a trip to your local vet. Unfortunately, you can teach a dog many tricks, but never portion control.
Pet-Safe Garden Plants
Some flowers in your garden won’t be that healthy for your pet. Pets will eat almost anything, particularly dogs, and that’s not always good for them. It’s good to opt for plants that are non-toxic, such as spider plants, sunflowers, rosemary, snapdragons, and more that fit on this list.
That’s not to say that your pet is going to eat your entire garden, but in the off chance they nibble at it, you’ll have countered that with foresight.
With this advice, you’re sure to pet-proof your home in the best possible way. We’re certain you’ll make a great owner.
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