Anyone who owns a pet knows just how tough it can be to keep up with each and every one of their needs as they arise. Of course, there are certain factors that can make this task that much more difficult as time marches on. One such challenge comes about when the weather warms up and the summer season takes hold of our work lives and our social lives. But your dog still requires the same level of attention in order to stay happy, healthy, and well functioning. That’s why we’ve come up with this list of things you can do if you’re wondering how to keep your dog healthy and clean all summer long.
Keep Up With Regular Vet Appointments
If you have ever been curious about how to keep your dog healthy and clean then you probably know just how important it is to keep up on your regular visits to the vet. Without these visits, your dog could be suffering from an unknown issue that may even end up becoming an even bigger problem in the future if it is not addressed in a timely manner. Vets have experience with all kinds of dogs, from adopted animals to those obtained from a breeder. After all, were you aware of the fact that approximately 3.2 million shelter animals are adopted each year (1.6 million dogs and 1.6 million cats)?
Regular visits to the vet help you to avoid unexpected health issues with your dog. They also help to increase your peace of mind and simultaneously decrease the odds that you may have to make a last-minute rushed trip to the animal hospital. Whether you’re in the summer season or not, if you want to know how to keep your dog healthy and clean then don’t neglect your routine visits to the vet’s office.
As we all know summer can get busy in life, it’s a good idea to set up your scheduled vet visits in advance. This way you are able to make clear priorities on your calendar. It’s also much easier to set up these visits before they are needed. Once the vet visit is placed on your calendar, it’s far simpler to follow through. Many times dog owners put these kinds of things off for too long, only to discover that their vet office may not even have an appointment available for them on their desired day. This only leads to even more complications with an already busy summer schedule. Make a point to schedule out all of your summer vet visits in advance if you’re someone who has wondered how to keep your dog healthy and clean all summer long.
Be Watchful While Your Dog Is in the Yard
As most pet owners know, many problems with your dog can be avoided by designing your environment in such a way that contributes to their overall health and well being. Of course, cleanliness is also impacted by the way in which your dog spends time in the yard. If they’re always digging around and rolling in the dirt, then it’s going to be quite difficult if you’re someone who is perplexed on how to keep your dog healthy and clean in the warmer months.
Engaging in proper garden care is a great starting point for most people. Don’t just allow stray piles of dirt and soil to accumulate. In most cases, dogs will be attracted to these kinds of things and they’ll often end up digging around in them. You can also reduce the likelihood that your dog will encounter any unwanted interactions with critters if you’re keeping your garden and lawn trimmed and well kept. In the event that your dog comes into contact with bugs and skunks, the effects can be quite damaging both to your dog’s health and cleanliness. Thankfully, you can avoid many of these problems before they even come up by keeping a close eye on your dog as they run around in your yard.
Invest in a Good Fence
Similar to the previous point regarding monitoring your pet as they are in your yard, choosing the right fence for your yard carries many different benefits for the health and well being of your dog. First and foremost, the right fence design makes it so that your dog cannot simply get out of your property and run out into the street. The last thing you want is a fence that is too short. In this case, it’s not uncommon for a dog to hop over and wander around the neighborhood. Not only does this put your dog at risk for getting into trouble with other people and animals, but it also puts the dog at risk for running out into traffic on a busy street. All of this can be sidestepped by making sure you have a fence that is both strong and tall enough to keep your dog contained.
A good fence also helps in keeping out any unwanted pests or critters. Even one interaction with another animal can leave your dog injured or infected with a harmful disease or virus. If you’re wondering how to keep your dog healthy and clean, you should begin by taking note of just how robust and sturdy all of your fences are. If they are not up to the task of keeping your dog contained while keeping other animals out, then it’s probably a good idea to invest in a new fence that can ensure that your dog is staying safe each and every time they are let outside to go to the bathroom or run around and play. The right fence truly makes all the difference for the health and wellness of your dog in the summer and beyond.
Be Mindful of What You Plant Outside
As you can see, much of your dog’s health and wellness depends on the quality of their outdoor areas. In the respect, it’s also vital that you’re careful about what types of plants you put into place in areas where your dog has any amount of outdoor access. Certain plants can cause severe allergic reactions in some kinds of dogs. Make sure you do your research the next time you have plans to plant a tree, a set of shrubs, or any other plant matter. Taking care to make sure that the plant you’ve chosen won’t have any adverse reactions with your dog is a great way to avoid an unwanted visit to the vet’s office on short notice.
Keep Up with Lawn Maintenance
Keeping up with the care of your lawn can work wonders to keep your dog looking clean and feeling healthy. Of course, you should always be cleaning up any droppings that your dog makes in the yard. But you should also be taking care of the lawn and grass itself. Engaging in regular root pruning around the yard will keep the soil strong and fertile. Trimming grass when it gets too long will prevent too many unwanted insects from creeping into the hide and fur of your dog. All of these details matter if you’re wondering how to keep your dog healthy and clean during the summer. For most dog owners, it’s safe to assume that their dogs are going to be spending even more time outside during the summer months. As a result, it’s critical to ensure that the lawn and garden are welcoming environments for your dog. An unkempt lawn can easily create several layers of problems in the health, wellness, and cleanliness levels of your dog.
Visit the Dog Groomer on a Regular Schedule
If you are not taking your dog to a dog groomer on a regular basis, then it’s likely that your dog’s fur is not as clean as it could be. Regular visits to the groomer make sure that your dog’s fur is not causing them any problems. Of course, you can always do routine dog baths at home to make sure your dog is staying clean from dirt and debris after playing outside. However, these kinds of home baths can only do so much for the health and cleanliness of your dog’s fur.
Regular visits to a groomer ensure that your dog’s hair remains at a length that is comfortable and healthy for them. A groomer also knows how to handle other issues with your dog’s body, such as cleaning up its eye areas and taking care of any problems it may have with its nails. If you’re trying to learn how to keep your dog healthy and clean then you can learn quite a bit by simply visiting the dog groomer on a regular basis over the summer season. As an added bonus, a well-groomed dog makes an even better pose for all those fun summer pictures you may want to take with your dog!
Provide Relief From the Heat
Depending on where you and your dog live, the summer heat may bring a unique set of challenges. Even in moderate climates, the summer heat can bring some health concerns to light for your dog. You have to remember that even if it may not seem that hot outside to you, your dog is usually going to be running a bit warmer than you are. This means that you should be mindful to always provide relief from the hot summer heat for your dog when you’re out and about.
Taking care of heat relief around the house is quite simple. Investing in something such as a new awning installation can allow your dog to provide their own relief from time to time when they’re out in the yard for long periods of time. But when you’re out at the beach, or at the dog park, or just walking around the neighborhood, it’s your responsibility to know when to take a break for your dog. There are a few classic signs of heat exhaustion in dogs. Of course, if your dog is panting a lot, that’s usually a good sign that it’s time to pause for a water break and spend some time in the shade or out of the sun. Following the practice of providing heat relief is a great way to help your dog if you’re curious about how to keep your dog healthy and clean in the summer months.
You can also take care of your home’s interior to provide a relaxing environment for your dog in the summer. If you have an old outdated HVAC system then the summer months can provide some unique challenges. Make sure you have your system inspected regularly. You may even want to invest in a new air conditioning system to achieve greater energy efficiency throughout the warm season.
Keep Pests at Bay
Pests can cause all kinds of problems for dogs as you probably know. In most cases, it’s only a matter of time before you will encounter some kind of pests that are agitating your dog. More common pests such as fleas are a problem throughout most of the year. But the summer can bring about a whole different set of pests. Investing in an exterminator may even be necessary if you’re learning how to keep your dog healthy and clean. Some pests can cause significant medical trouble for your dog, so it’s usually a good idea to take all necessary steps to reduce their presence in around and your home.
Secure Your Garbage
We all know how motivated dogs are when it comes to food. Most dogs will do whatever they can to get a bite of some food scraps. This means they will even dig through the garbage if they happen to smell something that is appealing to their senses. While choosing the right local waste removal service certainly helps to mitigate these issues, there are some steps you can take in and around the house.
Any time you have leftover food scraps from a meal, make sure they are sealed and wrapped up properly so that your dog cannot access them. Without knowing exactly what kind of food may cause digestive problems in your dog, it’s a good idea to avoid feeding them “human food” in most instances. If you’re curious as to how to keep your dog healthy and clean, then taking care of your food and garbage is a strong first step to take.
Keep Your Garage Closed Off
If you haven’t already secured your garage door, then investing in residential garage door repair is not a bad idea if you own a dog. While training your dog to stay only in the areas you permit them to go is optimal, most dog owners have difficulty with this. If your garage door isn’t secure and closed off, then many dogs will simply take the chance to run off and explore. While this may not always be bad, you never know what kind of situation your dog may encounter once they venture out of your sight.
Whether you’re new to owning a dog or not, it’s helpful to know that there are so many resources out there about how to keep your dog healthy and clean all summer long. With this list, we hope we’ve given you some great ideas on how to keep your dog healthy and clean this summer season. We wish you all the best out there. Be safe and don’t forget to take care of your pets all summer long!
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