How to Keep Your Pets Safe At Home and in Public
When you take your pet home from the rescue or breeder, there are so many things to consider. From what types of food and toys you should supply for your new furry family member to how often you should take them to the veterinarian for wellness exams, your mind is probably going a million miles a minute to keep up with this adjustment in your life circumstances. As any pet owner knows, safety comes first.
Inside the home, you’ll want to pet-proof your place to make it as safe and comfortable as possible for your pet. Even if your pet is strictly meant to stay inside the home, you’ll still want to pet-proof the outside of your home as much as you can. Otherwise, you may run the risk of your pet escaping and making a beeline for something that could harm or even kill them.
Address Safety Concerns Outside
In the case of dogs and outdoor cats, outside safety is just as important as inside safety. After all, your pet will be spending a considerable amount of time outside your home if they’re outdoor pets. This means that the dangers of outside will be all the more relevant to you. Some outdoor concerns around safety such as properly storing outdoor cleaning chemicals and poisonous plant removal are within your control as a homeowner.
Other issues like electrical concerns and pipeline problems may require professional help to address before your pet can have free range outside of your home. As research shows, pipelines that have been around for less than a decade tend to be responsible for the majority of accidents. If you know a pipeline near you has hit the ten-year mark of existing near your home, you may want to see if there are any potential hazards related to it.
There’s Strength in Numbers
If you own a pet, you’re far from alone in the United States. As a survey performed by the American Pet Products Association (APPA) discovered, roughly seven out of every 10 households in the U.S. participate in pet ownership. This amounts to approximately 90.5 million families owning some sort of four-footed friend.
Because there are so many pet owners in America, you’re in good company. You can easily consult with other pet owners to determine the best course of action for protecting your pet. You can also share knowledge that you acquire as you move forward in your pet-owning journey with novice pet parents. This can be one of the most rewarding parts of owning a pet.
Consider the Risks to All Creatures
Pets aren’t the only ones who face danger outside the home. As humans, many of us ignore safety risks so we can maintain ignorant bliss inside and outside the home. Everyday dangers can lead to emergencies and even wrongful death lawsuits. In case you don’t know, wrongful death lawsuits allege that the defending party’s actions could be considered negligence or even malpractice. Some examples of catalysts for wrongful death lawsuits include unreliable machinery, the sale of unproven drugs, or ill-prepared meals to the victim. Although human safety may seem unrelated to pet safety, the two often go hand in hand.
In short, pet safety is something that every pet owner should take seriously. Your pet relies on you for comfort, meeting their needs, and keeping them safe. Not every pet parenting story has a happy ending. Some have devastating outcomes such as accidents, illness, and tragedies that could’ve been prevented. The idea that your pet could undergo harmful experiences might be painful to consider, but it’s a sobering reality. As they say, an ounce of prevention is worth a pound of cure. The good news is that you’re thinking about safety and potential hazards related to your pet now. It’s much better than waiting until they’ve encountered threats to safety.