Christmas survival checklist

Rachel Williams Author

Christmas is certainly going to be different this year with fewer social gatherings. Keep your dog safe to avoid emergency trips to the vets. Here are my top tips for surviving Christmas.

1. Create a snug

Having a snug or 'bedroom' for your dog is important any time of the year. It ensures they have a quiet, safe space away from children, guests and other pets. Tired dogs and puppies struggle to make good choices, leading to unwanted behaviours such as chewing inappropriate items, excessive barking, jumping up etc.

Dogs need on average 12-14 hours of sleep a day (around 18 hours for puppies) so setting time aside for enforced rest in a quite space is vital.

2. Keep poisonous foods out of reach

There are many Christmas foods that dogs shouldn't consume, such as mince pies, Christmas cake, chocolate, alcohol and caffeine. If your dog does eat something they shouldn't, reach out to your vets or animal poison for advice: https://www.animalpoisonline.co.uk/

3. Christmas trees and decorations

Pine needles can cause injuries to our pets and can be toxic if consumed. Make sure fairly lights, tinsel and other decorations are out of reach for those who have a chewing tendency. As dog's see the world through their noses, there will be plenty of presents that need investigating, especially the ones with food and drink inside.

Putting a play pen around the Christmas tree can prevent your dog from access the tree and presents underneath. Floral arrangements and wreath are another favourite, keep poinsettias, holly, ivy, mistletoe and lilies out of reach as they can be toxic.

4. Crackers

Noise sensitive dogs might find the bang of a Christmas crackers frightening so move your dog into a separate room, ideally into their snug with an enrichment toy.

5. Guest etiquette

Our dogs have not been around as many people as usual due to the pandemic restrictions and suddenly having a house full of people can be stressful. Don't force your dog to greet guests, let them investigate them in their own time. Baby gates allow dogs to see what's happening without the pressure of having people over the top of them. Enrichment toys, such as a stuffed Kong, licki mat or snuffle mat give your dog a choice to do something else instead of interacting with guests straight away.

6. Dogs in clothes

There's no doubt that dressing dogs up in Santa hats and suits can look amusing. However, clothing on dogs often make it harder for us and other dogs to read their body language. Common signals that your dog is stressed include, lip licking, shaking off, yawning, scratching, pacing, panting, ears back and whale eye. A quick photo of your dog in their Christmas best will be more enjoyable for your dog than wearing an item all day.

Categories: : christmas