Anyone who owns a dog knows the pleasure of watching them bounce around as puppies and grow into the grey hairs that frame their face and paws. For us as Wild Bound, every moment with our pups has been everything we could ask for. That’s what gives everyone’s Fido the title of Man’s Best Friend. But as every dog owner knows, the lifespans of our pooches are far shorter than our own. That’s why we’re here to provide advice to help your dog live longer so you can savor every second you can with your fur baby and give them the best life you can.
- Do your yearly check-up visits with the veterinarian.
Your veterinarian is a godsend. At your annual check-up, they look to maintain optimal health as your pooch ages. This means those blood and fecal tests can catch infections and diseases early on, which improves the chance of treating and successfully resolving their issues.
Not only can your veterinarian catch things going wrong early on, but they can take preventative measures too. Heartworms, fleas, rabies, and more can all be avoided with your yearly shots or prescriptions.
- Feed them high-quality food.
Just like food is fuel for our own bodies, it works the same way for dogs too. As such, it’s important to feed them high-quality foods. Luckily, this is made easier by looking for pet food that’s labeled as meeting the AAFCO (American Association of Feed Control Officials) standards.
When it comes to telling what’s in their food, it’s best to ignore the front of the packaging and read the ingredients list. By examining the first few items on the ingredients list, you can also tell what makes up most of their food. Dogs, just like humans, are omnivores so expect to see both plants and meats in the ingredient list. Although the packaging might market something as “with chicken” or “with” some other ingredient, that means it only has to make up 3% of that food!
- Learn when to say no.
Your avocado burger looks appetizing to your pup but can have adverse effects. Don’t give in to their adorable puppy eyes!
As a dog owner, you’re going to be bombarded by a lot of advice, requests, and orders. Some of these won’t be what’s best for your pet, however. Whether these requests are coming from your dog, coworker, or friend, you need to learn when to set boundaries and rules for your dog and say no.
- Make sure your dog stays physically active.
Not only does exercise benefit you, but it also benefits your dog too. Producing endorphins, lowering stress, and helping sustain muscle mass, exercise plays a crucial role in humans and animals alike. Muscles support joints, so by preserving your dog’s muscle mass, you’re able to preserve the joints and allow for easy and comfortable mobility into old age.
- Don’t forget to engage your pup mentally.
We’ve seen a lot of parallels between humans and dogs on this list. So it’s not surprising that just like our cognitive abilities decline with age, you’ll see your dog’s abilities decline too. Without mental stimulation, your dog can become bored, depressed, or even sick.
Luckily, you have plenty of options to engage your pup. Whether you get them interactive toys, play games, give them one-on-one attention, or teach them a new trick, your dog will surely benefit from the experience. (Who says an old dog can’t learn new tricks anyway?)
- Brush those teeth!
Teeth play a critical role in health. Mouths are easy access for bacteria to enter the body and when teeth aren’t maintained, they allow for easy access into the bloodstream. This can lead to inflammation in the heart and damage to other organs in the body.
By doing simple tasks, such as watching for bad breath and broken teeth, along with taking your dog to a veterinary dentist and brushing your dog’s teeth daily, you can prevent unnecessary pain and health complications.
- Maintain healthy body weight.
Obesity serves as a well-known risk factor in developing several different diseases. It also put additional weight on your dog’s joints as well. In fact, obese dogs that lost just 6% of their weight saw an improvement in mobility.
By keeping your dog in a healthy weight range, you honor your dog by providing him an average of 2.5 more years of life on this earth. If your dog is overweight, consider consulting with a veterinarian, limiting the number of treats, or increasing exercise.
- Quit smoking and avoid secondhand smoke.
Smoking, secondhand smoking, and even THIRDHAND SMOKING can affect your dog for the worse. Toxins released from smoking can increase allergies, eye infections, and respiratory issues, including lung cancer. Your dog’s nose plays a critical role in where tumor development might be seen. In longer snouted dogs, tumors are more common in the nasal passage where smoke residue tends to get trapped. Shorter snouted dogs will see more issues in the lungs.
- Dog proof your home and yard.
In younger dogs, we’ll find that most deaths are caused by trauma and accidents. While no one wants this to happen, we do want to take steps to limit these plausibilities. Simple steps you can take include: making sure your dog can come inside during extreme weather, watching your dog and providing them with a doggy life jacket when they’re around water, putting up child gates, and filling in holes around the fence if they’re excellent escape artists, making sure your dog has chew-safe toys, and aren’t left near wires or plugins during their teething phase.
- Spay/neuter your dog.
From preventing future dogs in need of homes to helping limit behavioral issues, fixing your furry friend poses many benefits. One of the less mentioned benefits, however, is life extension. Recent research has found that spayed and neutered dogs lived an average of 1.5 years longer than those that were intact. With many affordable options and programs available, this is one of the easiest and quickest ways to help prolong your baby’s life.
While the lifespan of dogs is regrettably much shorter than our own, we can make changes to ensure they live long, healthy, and happy lives. Regardless of how much longer your pup has, remember to take a moment to enjoy their company and give them some extra love.
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