Making The Home Environment Safer For Your Senior Dog
If you have a dog that likes to get up on to the bed or couch, you need to consider the impact on their joints and the injury risk to them when they jump off.
I have seen many dogs injury themselves unnecessarily through impact injuries as a result of jumping off the bed or couch.
My suggestion would to stop them getting up on them all together, now they’re a senior dog …
But … I understand how much many of us love having them with us to.
So if you are going to let them up on the furniture, then it’s worth considering using a half way step or a ramp to help them get up and down.
This will minimise the impact on their joints and reduce the injury risk to them considerably.
It may take them a little time to get used to using a ramp or step, so encourage them with something positive like treats.
Over time, this should help them to use the ramp or step, and stop them jumping off the bed or couch.
Another thing to consider to help your home become a safer place for your senior dog is to look at the floor surfaces you have around the house.
Do you have wooden floorboards, tiles or vinyl floor surfaces?
These can be a major injury risk for a senior dog as they become less stable and find it hard to balance on these slippery surfaces.
Many senior dogs can easily injury themselves on slippery floor surfaces, and this is something you can minimise the risk of by placing non slip surfaces in areas where your dog uses the most or is more at risk.
I appreciate that not everybody wants non slip runners or rugs all over the house, but it can make a huge difference in keeping your dog senior dog safer at home.
If you can just place them in the busiest areas that your dog uses, then often they will start to stick to these areas and stay away from the other slippery floor areas around the house.
So that’s 2 simple strategies you can start to apply right now to help keep your senior dog safer at home.
