Looking for a dog? Have you thought about...

We are always happy to offer people advice about caring for their dog. Dogs are intelligent creatures that need mental, emotional and physical stimulation throughout the day. A well-stimulated, happy dog that gets the right amount of exercise and the right diet will be unlikely to suffer health or behavioural problems.

Please remember that all dogs require exercise, tasty food, a calm confident and consistent pack leader (you), companionship, training, toys and insurance. We have elaborated on each point below, as these are often the true reasons that dogs are given up to us; they form the minimum requirements for having a dog. If you wish to get a dog, it is crucial that you understand what is required and that you can commit to the lifetime care of the dog. We are here to help, please do ask questions and let us know if any of the points are unclear:

1. Exercise:

Your dog will need at least one hour off lead exercise daily for smaller breeds and 2 – 3 hours for more active breeds. Please do not get a dog if you cannot commit to this minimum requirement.

Regardless of breed type, all dogs should receive at least one hour of freedom in a park or open space daily, remember this will be 7 days a week, 365 days per year, regardless of how busy your day is or what the weather is like outside. Some dogs require more active exercise such as running or agility and others require at the least, to have freedom to explore an open space at their leisure.

Try to ensure at least two regular walks per day.

A garden is not a substitute to having freedom in an open space. Socialising with other dogs, exploring, meeting strangers and sniffing around in grass and shrubs is what dogs like doing!

Lead walks on the street are fine but they should only be in addition to your dog’s daily off lead runs in the park. Ideally lead walks are for first thing in the morning and last thing at night toilet breaks.

Remember even if your dog receives 2hrs off lead exercise a day, he will still have to spend 22 hrs of the day cooped up in the house & garden.

Your dog needs to get out first thing in the morning; long lie-ins on a weekend will become a thing of the past when you have a dog!

Without fail, all dogs are capable of being trained to come back when called. The earlier in life a dog is let off the lead, the easier he will be to train and the less likely he will run away. Please contact us for advice if you are concerned about letting your dog off the lead.

Why is exercise necessary?

Health: dogs can experience all kinds of health problems if they are not exercised enough. These problems can be life threatening.

Socialisation: it is natural for dogs to want to meet others and play/play fight with others of its own species. To ensure he has a good relationship with other dogs, he should be socialised from an early age and allowed to play freely until tired.

Stimulation: dogs are intelligent beings and like us, they need stimulation. They can’t read books, watch TV or play on their own and are therefore entirely dependant on their owner for their stimulation. Remember, when a dog is left on his own, he does nothing….

2. Two tasty meals a day

Dogs should be fed a good quality dry dog food twice daily, which will cost approximately £30.00 per month.

You can mix in other “human foods” with their daily portions to make their meal more interesting e.g. potatoes, bread, vegetables, various meats, fish, gravy etc

3. A calm, consistent & confident pack leader

Be kind, fair and consistent showing your dog that you are the pack leader through continual training – this simply means if you ask your dog to do something make sure he responds. Do not repeat a command over and over again until the dog carries out what you wanted him to do, not only will he see you as a weak pack leader, you will be teaching him not listen to you or teaching him to only listen once you’ve said the command 5 or 6 times. For example, you asked your dog to sit and he didn’t listen to you, instead of repeating the command, calmly walk over to him and whilst placing him in the sitting position repeat the command once more, then quickly praise him as if he’s carried out the action himself. Don’t ever ask your dog to do something if you can’t be bothered to follow through the command. You must be consistent.

A dog is only as good as its owner, if you allow your dog to think he is boss of the household letting him get away with whatever he wants you will be setting yourself up for problems. To have a happy, well adjusted, well behaved, non aggressive dog he will have to see you as having the pack leader role NOT vice versa.

Decide what your household rules are and stick to them. If you allow your dog to misbehave one minute then tell him off for doing the very same thing the next, you will end up with a confused and grumpy dog. Also if you are unpredictable, aggressive and moody, this is how your dog will act. If your children are boisterous, loud and annoying, your dog will almost certainly start acting this way too.

Being a pack leader is not about being the most aggressive person in the household it’s quite the opposite, a dog will respond best to a calm, confident and caring leader. If you are constantly shouting at and getting angry with your dog he will soon start to rebel.

It is essential that you know the basics of dog behaviour to communicate with your dog in his terms, a good training class should be able to teach you everything you need to know. Failing that, you will need to read as many books as you can to ensure you understand your dogs behaviour.

4. Companionship

Dogs are pack animals; it is unnatural for them to be left alone for long periods on their own. Most dogs can cope with being left alone for 3-4hrs per day however any longer than this and you may find your dog becomes frustrated and starts destructive negative behaviour i.e. chewing, howling, barking etc

Dogs shouldn’t be left on their own for long periods. They are entirely dependant on YOU for stimulation. Sleeping all day is no life and a pointless existence. If you do have to leave your dog, ensure that play or a long walk first tires him out. Make sure he is left for no longer than four hours and ensure that you leave him something like a knuckle/marrow bone to chew on. Make sure he has a comfortable bed and leave the TV or radio on. Remember if you don’t give him things to do he’ll occupy himself, which could mean destroying objects he shouldn’t.

Most dogs enjoy company of their own kind; try to ensure that your dog meets up with other dogs regularly.

A dog needs to feel he is part of a pack. It is unfair to shut your dog away whilst the family are gathered together in another room. If you or your family are relaxing on the sofa in front of the TV then this is also where your dog should be.

The more quality one to one time you spend with your dog the stronger the bond and the happier you both will be.

5. Training

Puppies are certainly harder work than adult dogs, adult dogs have longer attention spans and fully formed brains so will learn at a quicker rate. Please do not consider taking on a puppy unless you are prepared for hours of almost continuous training for the next 6-12months.

Training classes are a necessity regardless of the dog’s age. Teaching a dog to be well behaved indoors should be a fairly easy task providing you have done the proper research. However having a dog that is well behaved and responsive in a room/park full of strangers, children & other dogs is no easy task. Training classes will ensure that your dog learns to listen to you regardless of the distractions going on around him/her.

Training is a lifetime task. It would be nice to think that after a few months of training you’ll be able to sit back, relax and enjoy the rewards of your hard work. Unfortunately it doesn’t work like that. Although the initial training will be more time consuming, your dog will still need continuous reminders throughout his life as to what is expected of him. Getting an adult dog does not mean you will have a fully trained “ready made” dog. A dog’s behaviour will differ depending on the people s/he is living with if you don’t have the time or commitment to attend training classes you should really question if you have the time for a dog.

6. Toys

The more toys you can provide the better. Just as a child will lose interest in the same toy, so will your dog. Don’t buy a few toys and expect them to last him a lifetime, even if the tennis ball you bought him 3 years ago is still in one piece!

The following is a list of must have toys for your dog

• Kong (the bigger the better)
• Activity ball
• Tennis ball
• Soft ball
• Hard rubber ball
• Large plastic hard ball
• Plastic bottles
• Rubber ring
• Raw hide bones
• Teddies
• Tugger
• Nylabone
• Knuckle bone
• Frisbee
• Squeaky toy

Take note of which toys your dog seems to enjoy the most, you can then use these toys as rewards during training. Try to alternate his toys to keep his interest; ideally you should have enough toys so that you can rotate them regularly to ensure he never gets bored.

Remember that your dog needs YOU to interact with him. Regular play will keep your dog’s mind active and stimulated.

7. Insurance

Unfortunately there is no equivalent to the NHS for dogs in the UK; all medical treatment has to be paid for. Veterinary fees can become painfully expensive. For approx £10.00-£30.00 per month you will have the peace of mind that should anything happen to your dog, you will be financially covered.

Take a look at Animal Friends Insurance, a unique not-for-profit insurance who support The Mayhew Animal Home with each commission.