How to Doggie-Proof Your Home
Is your home as safe as it can be for your canine friend? Here are a few simple things you can do to doggie-proof your home without engaging professional help.
1. Kitchens & Bathrooms
- Use child-proof latches to keep paws from prying open cabinets
- Place medications, cleaners, chemicals, and laundry supplies on high shelves
- Keep dustbins covered or inside a latched cabinet
- Check for small spaces, nooks, or holes that your pooch might sneak into and block them out. Common hideouts are holes inside cabinets and spaces behind washer/dryer units
- Keep food out of reach by keeping them in child-proofed cabinets or above ground
- Keep the toilet lid closed to prevent drowning or drinking of harmful cleaning chemicals
2. Living Room
- Place wires from lights, DVD players, televisions, consoles and telephones out of your dog’s reach.
- Put away toys, cards, torches, pencils, pens etc away from your dog’s reach
- Put away knick-knacks until your dog has the coordination not to knock them over
- Check all those places where your vacuum cleaner doesn’t fit, but your puppy does, for dangerous items, like string
- Move common house plants that may be poisonous out of reach. Don’t forget hanging plants that can be jumped onto from nearby surfaces
- Make sure all heating/air vents have covers
- Put away all sewing and craft notions, especially thread.
3. Garage
- Move all chemicals to high shelves or behind secure doors
- Put away any heavy industrial grade chemical you might have- be it pesticide, detergent or heavy water- one small dose might even be lethal to your pet.
- Ensure that no sharp objects or small tools are strewn on the floor if your dog has access to the garage.
- Keep all hoses and faucets out of reach.
4. BEDROOMS
- Keep laundry and shoes behind closed doors (drawstrings and buttons can cause major problems if swallowed)
- Keep any medications, lotions, or cosmetics off accessible surfaces (like the bedside table)
- Move electrical and phone wires out of reach of chewing
- Be careful that you don’t close your kitten in closets or dresser drawers
