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Dog Proofing Your Christmas Tree

December 26, 2015 by Derek Chambers Leave a Comment

Dog Proofing Your Christmas Tree Derek ChambersThe Christmas season is in full swing and people everywhere are decorating their homes to the highest degree and making them shine. One of the most common decorated features of any home during the holidays would have to be the beloved Christmas tree. Christmas trees are beautiful and used to display ornaments and decorations of every kind imaginable. Here are some useful tips before you decorate your tree that will ensure that it remains in an upright position and your dog does not ingest something he shouldn’t or break a favorite ornament.

Dogs and Ornaments

We tend to have ornaments of every shape and size on our tree. Some are priceless handmade ornaments that can never be recreated while others are store bought and disposable. When applying ornaments to a tree a bit of tact is in order. Dogs are highly curious creatures and are attracted by shiny object, so it is important to decorate accordingly. Purchase new ornaments that are plastic rather than glass just in case your dog becomes attracted by the shiny finish. Also, any prized ornaments should be placed out of the dog’s reach. If you have a dog that has a habit of climbing, you may want to avoid putting priceless ornaments on the tree altogether. You can still display these ornaments in a different way around the home.

Garland

It is beautiful to have a tree that is perfectly ornamented with the right amount of garland. As much as we love the sight of it, dog’s merely see a new play toy that can be strung all over the house. One pull on garland from your dog can bring the entire Christmas tree tumbling down breaking ornaments and scaring the dog half to death.

If garland is needed in order to have happy holidays look for alternate places throughout your home to hang it; maybe along a door frame or around a mantle. Should you still desire to hand garland on your tree it is best to think about its placement before placing it on the tree. To avoid certain destruction, do not wrap the tree in garland. Use the garland only on the front of the tree using a back and forth pattern. You will still have the same effect without the risk of the dog pulling the entire tree down if the garland attracts him.

Tinsel

Some people love it and some people hate it, but tinsel is among the most famous decorations. If you happen to be a tinsel lover, you might want to rethink the idea of putting it on your tree. I know that tinsel adds a certain glistening glow to the tree, but it can also add a bowel obstruction to your dog. Tinsel is easily ingested and the stringed nature of it makes it difficult to pass through the bowels and impossible to properly digest. A bowel obstruction of any kind has the possibility of death in a dog.

Lights

One of the most special things about Christmas is the lights everywhere lighting up the cold night sky. As wonderful as lights are on a tree, they can be a bad idea if you have a curious dog. Dogs love to chew on electrical cords, but shock from these cords can severely injure your dog’s mouth. Decorating with Christmas lights may be something that you have to skip until the dog is trained not to chew.

Edible Decorations especially Chocolate

Many Christmas decorations come in the form of food. There is nothing more attractive to a dog than the sweet smell of treats. Some treats are fine for dogs, but candy canes and popcorn should be avoided. It is not so much that the dog cannot eat these things; it is the fact that candy canes are encased in plastic and popcorn is strung on a string. Both plastic and string can be ingested causing a bowel issues  just like tinsel.

The Tree Itself

People love a live tree, but they do not understand that a live tree can offer some disadvantages to your dog. One of the most hazardous attributes of a live tree is the chemicals used to keep it fresh longer. These chemicals have a tendency to leak out into the water in the bottom of the tree and should the dog drink the water, they can become poisoned. Additionally, you dog may be attracted by the smell of the live tree and enjoy chewing on the branches.

Solution

Christmas trees are attractive to everyone including dogs, so it is best to simply keep any distractions away from the dog. The most common way to think of decorating a tree with a dog in mind is to think of them as a toddler. They do not know any better and will try to see what the tree is all about. Keep your dog’s best interests in mind this Christmas season to avoid any unwanted veterinarian trips or messes to clean up.

 

Finally don’t forget to keep to routing and make sure that you dog gets walked

 

Derek Chambers is the owner  of Finchley Dog Walker and all info provided on this blog is purely for advice.

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Derek is a rare breed of dog walker and I cannot recommend him highly enough. He walks my two manic dogs 5 days a week... and has been an absolute god send. He assists in their training (their behaviour has actually improved thanks to Derek), he always puts their welfare first especially during the hot weather and really wants to know what makes them tick. I found it really hard to find a dog walker that would firstly walk my dogs without other dogs and understood their quirks and needs. Having used dog walkers in the past I wanted one that I could trust, that did exactly what they had said they have done - Derek is honest, reliable, caring, conscientious and a true dog lover, I trust him complelty with my dogs and I am so glad to have found him. My dogs really like him too!read more
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A trustworthy dog walker local to Finchley. Very knowledgeable and has contributed to the Two By Two Vets blog.
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