The weather is starting to become a bit crispy and the leaves are starting to change color. Kids are going back to school and football season is revving up. Here comes fall - ready or not! To help you and your pet be ready, here are five fall tips that work all year long.
1. Preventatives! Did you know that September is the peak month for ticks? Those nasty little critters love to burrow their heads into your poor pet and can carry Lyme disease. I don't know about you, but I have received a call or two from a pet owner shrieking about the tick stuck in her pup and imploring me to rush over. You need to take care when pulling these critters out so as not to break the head off and leave it behind in your pet. I suggest thoroughly covering the tick (while still on your pet) in liquid dishwashing soap. This suffocates the tick and the nasty little thing tends to slide out easier. But the easiest solution is to keep your pet on flea and tick preventatives - all year long for those that live in warm climates. Warmer climates do not always have the frozen months of winter that usually kill of these pesky little pests.
2. Hazards! Hazards can be poisons, such as cleaning chemicals, many household plants, car products such as antifreeze, mouse or rat extermination products - or if you are lucky enough to have a sixteen year old living at home that loves super chocolate brownies and keeps her room like a pig sty leaving everything, including food, on the floor - well, just shutting the door doesn't always work. Take extra care to make sure anything that poses a hazard to your pet is put up or out of reach.
3. Tags! If - heaven forbid - your pet gets loose or lost - make sure he has a dog tag with your name and number on it, as well as a microchip that is registered with your veterinarian and pet register, such as Home Again. That way if the person that finds your pet is not savvy to the chip, he can easily call the number on the tag. If the tag is lost, the chip is there with the information on it and it just requires the pet to be scanned. Some companies, such as Home Again, send out announcement emails like Amber Alerts to other pet people in the area to be on the lookout for your pet.
4. Come! Help your pet stay safe by teaching her at least a couple very important commands. "Come" and "Leave It" can help your pet avoid trouble. Working on a leash, walk swiftly, allowing your dog to get a little ahead of you. Confidently call out "Nikki! Come!" and jog backwards motivating her to follow you with a doggie treat. Praise her for coming to you. Using her name gets her attention and that is important, particularly if she is in danger. Using positive training is the preferred method of training for the best trainers I have ever worked with. It never ceases to amaze me to watch an owner punish his dog for running from him when the dog returns to him. That dog is being trained to NOT come.
5. Leashes! When not on your own property, please use a leash. Even if there are not leash laws in your area, it is still wise to do so. This is not an insult to your perfectly well-trained pet, but is to protect your pet. Walking your pet on a leash guards against the "never- in- a-million- years" incidents. Consider the rambunctious child running toward your pet, or the crazy cat darting in front of your pet, or that stray ball shooting out into the street into traffic. Unfortunately, no matter what, your pet will be blamed for anything that happens so why take any chances? I can attest to this. Imagine running with your huge wolf-like dog on a leash running beside you in the middle of the neighborhood street. Out of the side yard shoots a two-pound-nothing Yorkie heading straight for me. In a blink of an eye, Nikki scooped that little attacker into her mouth and threw him away from us. The Yorkie yipped back to his yard and the inattentive gentleman dog-owner yelled at me and let me know just how lucky I was that his wife wasn't there. Trust me - take your leash and be watchful! You may even want to carry extra protection for you and your pet - such as pepper-spray or something similar in case you are rushed, and the rusher isn't two-pounds-nothing.
Janus Moncur, The Co-Creative Coach?, and CEO of Co-Creative Coaching, LLC, is a Writer and Certified Professional Coach who works with individuals as well as groups as their trail guide on the ride to recreating personal and professional success. Are you an Aspiring Entrepreneur or Pet-Preneur? Take Janus's free Entrepreneur's Quiz and receive her ebook, "How to Escape from Professional Purgatory" at Personal and Professional Success Coach or connect with Janus@TheCo-CreativeCoach.com for a free 20 minute consultation session.
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