The Gift of Time

Hello, and welcome.

With this holiday season being all the more special after time apart last year, you may well be filling your social calendar to the brim! It’s always a busy time of the year - even if you have a prolonged time away from work, you are no doubt filling that time with planning, preparing and partying.

Overwhelm can affect not only ourselves but also our dogs. Even for the most social of dogs, too many activities and not enough quiet time can leave them wired and over-tired.

One of the things I regularly discuss with the dog parents I support is the importance of creating BALANCE in our dogs’ lives. The key is to have a good mixture of physical and mental activity, social encounters, and quality rest.

When it comes to this year’s festivities - the best thing you can give your dog is the gift of time: Time DOING; DOWN Time; and SOLO Time.

TIME DOING

Just like us, dog’s need entertainment (or as I like to say, enterTRAINment!) - a really good balance of physical and mental activities is a key component of our dog’s welfare. This can include: walks, playtime, training (at home or in classes), enrichment, scentwork, and social encounters.

DOWN TIME

Sleep not only is important for our dog’s physical health but also for their mental wellbeing. Quality rest - whether that’s snoozing in their bed or curled up on the sofa with you - allows for the stresses of the day to deplete and prepares them for the next day’s activities. For most adult dogs, 12-16 hours of sleep per day is a good guide to aim for (although if you have an anxious or elderly dog, you might want to up that even more). For puppies, 18-20 hours is ideal.

SOLO TIME

While time away from work gifts you with extra time to spend with your dog, it’s important that we won’t shock them when we return to a normal schedule in the new year. Spending 2 or 3 weeks non-stop with your dog, then returning to working full days would be hard for them to cope with. We also know that when we spend a lot of time with family we can sometimes get a little cranky - so gifting your dog with a little solo time allows them even better rest and keeps them used to your departures from the home.

Remember, while all your focus might be on the BIG day - you hopefully have much more TIME to play with during the holiday season. Use it wisely.

Until next time,

Caroline