As a responsible dog owner, you want to provide your pet with the best possible life. After all, their life is far too short not to be the best one. One of the critical factors in ensuring your dog remains healthy and happy is by balancing cleanliness and canine comfort.
In this ultimate guide, we will delve into the importance of maintaining a clean and comfortable home for your dog and provide you with tips and advice to achieve this balance.
Understanding your dog’s needs
Whether you’re a first-time dog owner or a seasoned pro, understanding your dog’s needs is essential to being a responsible and loving pet parent. You can ensure they get that by truly understanding your dog’s needs.
This section of the guide will delve into the two most essential needs dogs have and provide the information you need to meet those needs.
Physical needs
Physical needs are some of the most important aspects of caring for your dog. These needs include proper nutrition, exercise, and routine health check-ups. Providing your dog with the proper nutrition is crucial for maintaining its overall health and preventing serious health issues. Feeding your dog a well-balanced diet tailored to their age, breed, and activity level will help keep them in good physical condition.
Regular exercise is also crucial for maintaining a healthy body and preventing obesity. Whether it’s going for walks, playing fetch, or participating in agility training, it’s essential to find a type of exercise that your dog enjoys. Additionally, regular trips to the veterinarian will help keep your dog in good health by detecting and treating any potential health problems.
Emotional needs
Emotional needs are also an essential aspect of caring for your dog. A dog’s emotional needs can range from affection and attention to mental stimulation and socialization. When a dog is deprived of affection and attention, it can develop behavioral problems, such as destructive behavior and separation anxiety.
On the other hand, providing your dog with plenty of affection and attention can help strengthen the bond between you and your dog while giving them a sense of security. It’s also important to remember that dogs can experience turmoil when they are introduced to a new home.
This can be due to changes in their environment, routines, and social dynamics. However, you can help them with this transition and ensure they continue living their best life.
Cleanliness for dogs
Keeping your dog clean as can be is always a great step towards balancing cleanliness and canine comfort. There are many things you may need to keep in mind and do to do so.
However, a clean home and a happy dog are well worth it.
Regularly bathe your dog
Most dogs often benefit from a bath once a month (keeping the coat’s care requirements in mind). For instance, breeds with oily coats may require bathing as frequently as once a week.
Therefore, do your research and keep this critical component in mind. On the other hand, the breed is not all. For example, short- or medium-haired dogs typically do just fine with a monthly bath.
If your dog has long hair, you might want to brush it more frequently than bathe it. This promotes the distribution of natural oils for a lustrous, healthy coat while keeping your dog’s coat clean.
Brush frequently
Dead hair, dander, and grime can be removed from your dog by brushing. Furthermore, there is an added benefit, brushing your dog can strengthen your relationship with them. And if daily brushing is far too hard to commit to, try to brush them at least once a week.
Keep nails trimmed
If you truly want to avoid your dog leaving scratch marks all over your home, ensure their nails are trimmed. Furthermore, untrimmed nails will only add discomfort to your dog’s way of life and can even create issues with your dog’s mobility.
Wash bowls
Many dogs struggle to keep their food and water in their bowls. This is just something that comes with dog ownership. However, some dogs drag these dishes or dip their paws in them. To maintain a full supply of food and water in their bowls, set them on wood flooring or another firm surface that is simple to clean, and think about putting a placemat beneath them. This way, you will keep your home and your dog clean.
Keep your home clean while keeping your dog comfortable
Now that you understand your dog’s needs and how to keep them clean, it is time to focus on maintaining a clean home even while owning a dog. And yes, this is incredibly possible. However, there are certain things you’ll need to focus on or compromise on.
Know you need to clean more often
You may not want to hear this, but you will need to: if you want a clean home while owning any pet — you will need to clean more regularly. Of course, there are specific tips we will provide that will reduce the amount of cleaning you’ll have to do daily.
However, no matter what, an infinite amount of love from a dog also increases the chance of unexpected messes.
Always be prepared for messes
Although messes are a given, there are ways you can prepare for them. For example, we recommend having wipes on hand. These will surely come in handy when a mess is pretty easy to clean.
On the other hand, if your dog has created a stain that is hard to remove, don’t fret — stain removal products will have your back. But keep in mind, the earlier you apply the stain removal, the better, so always keep one in stock.
Cover furniture you wish to protect
There will be times when you cannot be there when your cute pup is accessing furniture you do not want it to. And if there is furniture you want to keep safe, cover it.
For example, you can protect your sofa with an easy-to-clean but aesthetically pleasing spread. Additionally, by doing so, you’ll provide your dog with comfort since it’ll be able to stay truly by your side.
Dedicate an area for your dog
It is essential to provide your pup with a space just for them. This area should be away from high-traffic areas and contain food and water bowls, toys, and a comfortable bed. If they have such an area, they’re more likely to feel safe and have a sense of comfort while they are in your home.
Furthermore, by creating such a space, you’ll be able to segregate potential messes into only one part of your home. Be sure to let them explore other areas of your home and incorporate daily exercise to keep them physically and mentally stimulated.
Invest in an air purifier
Pets can often bring allergens and other irritants into the home, aggravating allergies and asthma. An air purifier can help reduce airborne contaminants and keep the air in your home fresh and clean.
Choose pet-friendly cleaning products
If you genuinely want to work on balancing cleanliness and canine comfort, consider how important it is to use pet-friendly cleaning solutions.
These solutions can be used to clean up pet messes without causing harm to your pup or the environment. Examples include biodegradable and non-toxic cleaning solutions that use natural ingredients such as vinegar and baking soda.
Additionally, some pet-friendly cleaning solutions are formulated with essential oils, which can help to eliminate pet odors and keep your pup’s area smelling fresh.