6 Holiday Safety Tips for Your Dog

Are your dogs joining in your holiday festivities? Here are some tips so you and your dogs have a good time celebrating.

Be Careful with your Tree and Decorations

Dogs can get very curious whenever something new enters their environment, especially if it’s a tree with lots of lights, sparkling garland, and ornaments. Make sure your tree is secure so it doesn’t topple over if your dog bumps into it. You may want to hang treasured ornaments on the higher branches. Even if your dog tends to leave the tree alone, you never know when a wagging tail will knock an ornament off.

Don’t let your dog drink the tree water, especially if you put any sort of fertilizer in it. Also, don’t let your dog eat pine needles or tinsel. Neither are digestible and could cut your dog’s digestive tract and require a vet visit.

Holly, mistletoe, and poinsettia plants are all poisonous to dogs. If you absolutely must have them, make sure they’re out of reach of your dog.

Keep Lit Candles Out of Reach

Most of our dogs are Labs, and we know that a Lab tail is capable of cleaning off a coffee table in one wagging swipe. Make sure you keep an eye on all lit candles, and if you have to leave the room, consider moving them out of tail-reach.

Keep an Eye on Holiday Goodies and Presents

If you set out dishes of candy, plates of cookies, or adult beverages, be sure to keep an eye on them. They can be tempting for dogs, and chocolate and alcohol can upset your dog’s stomach. Also keep an eye on any presents. If your dog eats wrapping paper, ribbon, bows, etc., they could cause blockages that require a vet visit.

Practice Calm Greetings

If you’re planning on having guests over to your house, or if you’re taking your dog with you, it’s a good idea to practice calm greetings, especially if you have an SSD dog. Enlist a friend to help by knocking or ringing the doorbell like he or she is coming to visit. When they come inside, keep your dog’s attention on you by giving them lots of treats, one at a time. Only when they’re calm and have all four paws on the floor can they be greeted by visitors.

If guests are going to be coming and going, it’s a good idea to make sure your dog is wearing a collar and I.D. tags. In the excitement and bustle of people arriving with bags of goodies, it’s not unheard-of for dogs to slip out the door.

Give Your Dog Plenty of Water

With all the excitement and stimulation during the holidays, dogs may need more water than usual. Make sure your dog has access to plenty of water, and if you notice your dog drinking more, be sure to take them out for potty breaks.

Create a Quiet Haven

All the hustle and bustle can be overwhelming for some dogs. Even if your dog seems to be handling everything well, they still may get tired sooner than usual. Give them a quiet place to go, whether it’s a crate or a dog bed.

We hope your holidays are filled with joy!

Holiday Fun!

We hope that you, your family and your dogs had a wonderful holiday! Here's how some of the SSD dogs celebrated.

Is this SSD Chamberlain? Or a reindeer?

SSD Parks models her new antlers.

SSD Grace is in the holiday spirit!

SSD Onyx also turned into a reindeer!

SSD Opal and her mom SSD Pearl pose in front of the tree.

Every dog needs a special holiday outfit! SSD Opal models hers.

New toy! SSD Parks loves it.

SSD Parks and her puppy raiser

Pearl gets a hug, the best present!

SSD Quinn hides behind the tree. He's not quite sure why the tree is inside!

SSD Ripley helps to pick out a tree.

SSD Stanley and his puppy sitter

SSD Stanley was exhausted before the day even started!

SSD Wish opens her presents.

SSD Lil looks cute in her hat.

How To Keep Dogs Safe This Holiday Season

The Eastern Star puppies are going to their puppy raiser families tonight, just in time for the holidays! While raising a puppy is an exciting time, it can also add stress, particularly at this time of year. Here are some holiday safety tips to make sure that you and your dog have a joyful holiday.


Christmas Trees
Be extra careful if you put up a Christmas tree. If dogs eat the tree or ornaments, they can get blockages in their intestines or worse. To keep your puppy from getting to the tree, you can surround it with a baby gate, or if you don't want to do that, put ornaments and tinsel above the dog's reach.

Also, if you have a live tree, do not let your dog drink the tree water. There can be chemicals in it, particularly anti-freeze, which can be deadly to animals.

Other Holiday Plants
Other seasonal holiday plants, such as mistletoe, poinsettias and lilies, can be poisonous to dogs in ingested. Keep them out of reach.

Holiday Lights
The twinkle of holiday lights always brings out the holiday spirit, but be sure to keep cords away from curious puppies. They could chew on them and get an electric shock.

Food, food and more food
The holidays are a wonderful reason to get together with family and friends and eat lots of delicious food. However, while that food might be okay for you, it could be harmful to your dog. Holiday foods are often rich and could give your dog vomiting and diarrhea. SSD dogs should never be fed people food from the table, counters, plates, etc. Part of their service dog training involves learning to chill out at people meal times.

Greeting Guests
If you're having people over to your house, you want to make sure your dog can calmly greet them. This means that the dog keeps all four paws on the floor. No jumping and barking. If you have time, proper greetings are a good thing to practice before any guests arrive. It may be helpful to have your dog on a leash while guests are arriving, and be sure to have the clicker and lots of treats ready. When guests arrive, keep your dog's attention on you by giving him treats, especially if people are petting him. It may also be helpful if you talk to your guests before they arrive to let them know they should ignore the puppy if he jumps on them.

Relaxation
Being around lots of people and activity can be very stressful for dogs. Make sure they have a quiet, calm place to go if all the excitement gets to be too much for them. Watch for the signs of stress, and if your dog starts exhibiting them, remove him from the situation.

When dogs get stressed, they may pant more and will be more thirsty than usual. Give them free access to cool, fresh water.

Also, it's a good idea to stick to your dog's routines as closely as possible. Continue feeding your dog on his normal schedule and take him outside for potty breaks and walks as close to your normal time as possible. And don't forget play time!

Finally, make sure you know what your dogs are doing at all times, especially if you have a young puppy. By keeping an eye on him, you can often prevent him from getting into mischief and make sure that the holidays are safe and happy for everyone.

Happy holidays from all of us here at SSD!

A Nubble Christmas

The weeks before Christmas are busy for almost everyone, and it was no different for Nubble. Donna and Lindsey took him to the Berkshire Mall so he could experience all of the hustle and bustle. This was an outing just for Nubble to gain experience. They didn't plan to do any shopping - a good idea since it can be stressful to try to find the perfect gift and train a dog at the same time.

At the mall, Nubble got lots of practice doing greetings. Many people came over to say hello. We have no doubt that he brought a smile to people's faces!

As they walked by Santa, there wasn't a line, and Santa called them over. Nubble did very well. Santa was great with him, staying very calm while petting and talking to him. At first, Nubble grabbed Santa's fuzzy sleeve, but when cued, he did a nice "leave it." When Santa was petting him, Nubble paid attention to Donna, just like he's supposed to. Then, while Donna and Santa had a conversation, Nubble lay down at Santa's feet.

They took Nubble outside for a break. However, as they were walking toward the doors, another dog was about to come inside. Nubble barked a couple times when he saw the dog, but Donna and Lindsey did a nice job setting Nubble up for success. They timed their departure from the mall so that Nubble was going out one set of doors while the other dog was coming in the other doors. It worked well because Nubble was able to stay focused.

When the went back inside, Donna and Lindsey kept their eyes open for the other dog. They saw him over by Santa waiting to have his picture taken. Using power treats, Donna was able to keep Nubble's attention on her while they went past the other dog. Nubble did great!

They practiced stairs at the mall, although they only practiced going down the stairs. It was too crowded for Nubble to be successful going up the stairs, especially since he still has a tendency to rush up. They took the elevator up and the stairs down. Nubble did very well going down the stairs. He also does very well with elevators. This particular elevator had glass walls, however, which startled Nubble at first. He seemed surprised to be able to see everything move. After riding the elevator a few times, though, he settled down.

Over all, he did wonderfully with the crowds. His loose leash walking was great! They also practiced "leave it" a lot. When they were in line to get a soft pretzel, there was a piece of pretzel on the floor. They practiced "leave it" with that piece of pretzel, and Nubble was successful! Donna then picked up the pretzel piece and threw it out so he wouldn't be tempted. While they were waiting, Donna dropped her keys a few times and Nubble would pick them up for her. It was a fun game to keep him occupied, and the people around them enjoyed watching Nubble work! It was quite a successful outing.

The Northeast Division held a Christmas get-together last week. Nubble went straight for the Christmas tree to investigate. They played dog games and the dogs got to open presents. They got squeaky toys! Meg, the Northeast coordinator, brought an activity board made of wood with little wells for treats. Each well had a sliding lid that the dogs could open with their paws or nose. SSD Slate and Burnaby did well sliding open the doors. Nubble had a different method of getting the treats out. He picked up the board and dropped it. When a treat fell out, he picked the board up and dropped it again until he got all the treats out!

Nubble went to the vet to be neutered. Although he was a little cautious for a few days afterward, you would never have known he had surgery. He was acting just like his normal self.

Nubble's loose leash walking has been coming along. Donna has stopped using the gentle leader halter because it causes Nubble too much stress. Instead, she uses an EasyWalk harness, which fits over his chest and shoulders. Nubble does very well with that. Donna only tries to use the EasyWalk when she knows there is going to be a challenging environment. Otherwise, she works with the leash attached the Nubble's collar. It's been working well. Nubble now accompanies Donna on her Saturday morning errands, and she feels completely confident holding a cup of coffee when they leave Wawa.

We're looking forward to what the new year brings for Nubble!