Keeping your pets safe in a fenced yard and walking them on a leash can prevent injury, illness and much, much worse. Conscientious owners keep pets in sight!
Fences make for good neighbors, but they also keep our dogs safe. Many well-meaning owners expose their pets to needless dangers by allowing their animals to run loose. Since we’ve domesticated our dogs and cats, changed their landscape and created motor cars and super highways, we have an obligation to restrict our pets’ boundaries to keep them out of harm’s way.
How often have you seen a dog or cat hit by a car on a street near you? You certainly don’t want your four-legged friend to suffer this fate. Additionally, loose pets are often killed by other animals, poisoned, contract disease or are sold to labs for experimentation. Regardless of the size of land you inhabit, it is imperative that you create a big enough world at home for your animals to explore and thrive in.
Other Dangers
Besides cars, attacks from other animals can be fatal or debilitating. Some injuries, especially those to thick-coated pets, can go unnoticed for days causing serious complications later. Rancid food, bones that splinter, rat poison, insecticides and fertilizers, snail bait pellets and anti-freeze can prove deadly if consumed by your pet.
Stray dogs can pick-up Rabies, Distemper, Corona and Parvo Viruses which are often fatal. Other diseases such as Giardia, Coccidia, Ringworm and Sarcoptic Mange are treatable, but can be costly and their symptoms can be passed on to humans.
An Unhappy End
A pet that roams free may end up in a shelter and be euthanized or suffer the fate of mean spirited people who intentionally harm or sell him to a lab. The best way to avoid these situations is to keep your dog where he belongs…safe at home, on a leash during walks or in a properly fenced yard with shade and water. Our feline friends can live quite contentedly indoors although a screened porch or sunroom is a major plus for them. According to the ASPCA, indoor cats live an average of 15 or more years while outdoor cats live less than 5 years.
What You Can Do
Make sure your pet is micro-chipped in case he outfoxes you and escapes his bounds. Provide a properly fenced yard (with shade and water) and for cats….a window on the world or screened porch where they can see nature. Always walk your dog on a leash and get him obedience trained so that he will walk nicely by your side and come when called.
When you bring a pet into your family, you have a furry toddler for life. Our dogs and cats provide us with unconditional love as well as emotional support.. It is your responsibility to keep him safe and you will reap great rewards from doing so…the love of your four-legged best friend!
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