10 Dog Owner MUST HAVES + Tips
[Music]
hello everybody welcome back to my
channel so today I have a very very very
very very special guest and this is my
me if you guys don’t already know this
is my first dog ever she’s my biggest
baby the love of my life and she’s just
been my best friend for the past how old
are you 13 years she’s a Westie she’s
been my best friend for 13 years I love
her so much she’s just the best I love
her personality she’s a little feisty
and a little crazy but I love her for
that so today I am doing something a
little different from usual I wanted to
do this video where I kind of talk about
my experiences or like what I’ve learned
as a dog owner and kind of just share
some of my tips and also just like my
must-haves as a dog mom hopefully this
will be helpful to any of you who are
looking to adopt a dog or maybe you
already have a dog and you feel like you
just want to know a little bit more so
yeah that’s what this video is going to
be about I hope you guys enjoy it and
let’s just jump right in so obviously
this list of things that I feel like are
must-haves are my must-haves
it could very differently between each
person and you know depending on what
dog you have it’s gonna you know vary a
lot I only have small medium sized dogs
I’ve only grown up with small dogs like
under 20 pounds I’ll meet you would be
the biggest dog I’ve ever owned she is
about 25 pounds somewhere there she’s
like a medium sized so obviously these
things are gonna be catered towards like
the smaller dogs but you can just you
know tweak it to what fits you and
you’re a dog so the first thing I feel
like is a must-have and if you guys
aren’t looking to adopt and actually let
me just kind of throw this in there if
you are new to this whole dog or pet
world and maybe have been really wanting
a companion animal I highly highly
highly recommend adopting versus
shopping for a dog there are so so so
many dogs that are adoptable out there
and I think a lot of people think that
in order for me to get the dog I want I
have to get it through a breeder or I
have to buy it from a dog shop or
something that is so not true I think
that if you just have the page
and you continue your search and not
just going to one shelter you’ll
obviously have to check out many many
shelters you have to look for rescue
groups to find your perfect dog I truly
believe that it’s out there and for
those of you who maybe want a specific
breed don’t get discouraged and don’t
think that that’s impossible because it
definitely is even if you have allergies
I hear a lot of people say because I
have allergies I need to get a purebred
dog and I need to get a specific breed
but you can definitely find that in
shelters I’ve met so many people who
found their perfect dog that is purebred
and is hypoallergenic from a shelter
before so you have to keep searching you
have to be very patient it took us like
five years before we found Navi
we would go to different shelters we
will always be online and you know it
did take many years but in the end it’s
just so worth it and just know that by
adopting you are saving an animal’s life
and that itself is just so so meaningful
and building that bond with that animal
it’s so so special so I highly recommend
you guys to adopt if you’re looking to
get a dog and just be very very patient
and open-minded sometimes you may go
into the shelter thinking I want this
specific breed but you may fall in love
with a different one you know so be
open-minded and good luck with your
adoption surgery so the first thing if
you’re just now getting a dog and you
don’t know what to get the first thing
you want to get is definitely a collar
with tags you want to make sure that if
your dog ever got away that there would
be some sort of way if someone else
found it to contact you and also you can
go with the extra mile of like
microchipping your dog it’s really
inexpensive and you can do it at any vet
office so another thing that I feel it
kind of just goes hand in hand with the
collar is obviously a leash you want to
have a good nice quality leash they’re
not expensive you can get them at any
pet store this one I just got from
Petsmart has a nice sturdy buckle on
here if you have a dog that is heavier
you may want to go for something more
heavy-duty just in case like the buckle
will snap or break I’ve heard that
happened before but since our dogs are
really small just a simple one like this
works great I recommend that if you are
a new dog owner to get a leash that is
shorter you don’t want your dog to be
able to just like wander off you know
how there are those leashes that are
extendable has like the tape and that I
feel like is good for certain occasions
but overall I feel like when you have a
new dog and you
to train it to walk on a leash
definitely go with something short this
one is about four feet and I like this
one because I’m able to keep my dog
close and if you want to step your game
up your walking dog game up you can get
one of these things so this is from easy
dog and it’s basically a belt so you tie
this around your waist so that way you
can be hands-free like you don’t have to
worry about your arm being occupied by a
leash because I’m x what I’m walking the
dogs I’m like on the phone or something
I just don’t want to have like too much
just going on so I like to wear this so
that I can just strap my dogs to my
waist and be hands-free so for the
second thing I feel like it’s important
for every dog to have a harness if you
have a dog that likes to pull that’s
really harsh on their throat and that
can choke them so this is what a harness
looks like they all come in I guess like
different shapes and sizes this is the
one that I absolutely love I’ve had like
over ten harnesses throughout all my
dogs and this is seriously the best one
this is from easy dog I love their stuff
by the way and this is not sponsored but
hey if you over an easy dog on your
watch and hit a girl up I love you guys
so yeah I love love love this harness
actually was introduced to this by
Sophie she has it for Leo and she raves
about it I’m like all right let me see
what this is about and now all my dogs
wear this harness I like this because
you can just fit it over their head you
don’t have to do all this stuff like
putting it through their arm and like
just a lot of material like some
harnesses are so thick that when they
wear it during the summer I feel like
it’s just suffocating them and I love
that there’s this like handle on the
back sometimes when money is just like
going crazy on another dog I’m able to
just hold this and pull her back so this
is really handy make sure you get a
harness to prevent your dog from choking
when you are walking them the next item
is a no-brainer and if you are just now
getting into I guess like walking your
dog taking your dog out to the public
make sure you have poopy bags dog poop
can transmit diseases it’s nasty its
stank and it’s just rude to leave your
dog poop like on someone else’s front
yard you know so just always make sure
that you have a poopy bag the next one
is some sort of like collapsible
collapsible am I saying that right water
bowl I love this I got it from Amazon
very inexpensive I think it was like
about six dollars for two and this
bpa-free it also has like this little
hook right here so I can attach it to
like my leash I really like having these
because I find that my dogs always get
thirsty when I take them out especially
if you take them out to go hiking like
they just get real thirsty and it’s nice
that these just collapse and you can
just travel with them you slip it in
your purse or your backpack this way it
allows you to always have water
available for your dogs so next thing
would be flea medication I don’t have
any with me right now I just ordered
some new ones because we’re completely
out but the ones I give my dog is
Trifexis Trifexis is pretty expensive I
will say but I like it because it comes
with everything I think it prevents like
heartworm fleas and ticks and a whole
bunch of other things it’s kind of like
the all-in-one flea medication so I like
to give that one to the dogs it’s a pill
when money was younger I would always
just get her like the over-the-counter
flea medication and I would drop it onto
the back of her neck and if I she would
always still get fleas with those and
with Trifexis I’ve been giving it to her
ever since she was like 5 years old and
never ever had a flea ever since then
it’s expensive you get it through your
vet it’s like $20 a pill do your
research on flea medication it’s
definitely a must and the next one would
be getting high quality food and treats
for your dogs so this one I feel like I
don’t really want to recommend you guys
anything around you guys just go and do
your own research because everyone is
different and everyone wants to feed
their dog a different diet but my main
thing when it comes to shopping for like
food for my dogs I always make sure that
the ingredients in the bag show that
it’s wholesome ingredients you don’t
want to get something that is just like
filled with fillers such as corn you
want to make sure that the ingredients
usually start with or should always
start with a protein such as chicken or
like beef fish nowadays I love going to
local pet shops the only source quality
food for the dogs they can always check
out pet food Express I love pet food
Express because it’s really accessible
to kind of everywhere and I just find
that people at pet food Express are
always really really knowledgeable about
their products versus like a Petco or
Pet Smart not that they’re bad or
anything but I find that people in pet
food Express seems to know a little more
they’re little more experienced so if
you’re looking for like a good dog food
and you’re confused I would definitely
check out pet food Express or just like
your local pet shops the next thing that
I would recommend is not something that
I use a lot and I’m so glad that I don’t
but I just like to have it in my house
so it is the styptic powder this is
basically a powder that helps stop
bleeding and it’s not for things like if
your dog got bit by something and
they’re bleeding like crazy this is not
something you want to use this is more
meant for if your dog got like us cut or
scrape or maybe you are trimming their
nails at home and you know you just cut
a little too deep and you need to stop
the bleeding this is great alright so
the next thing you probably saw it on my
dog harness this is also a thing that I
feel like it’s optional it just depends
on like your lifestyle and what you do
with your dog so this is a whistle dog
tracker you can find out on Amazon I
actually got this because I was working
with them a few months ago on this
campaign and I just really really liked
it if you’re someone that maybe leaves
your dog outside in the yard or maybe
you have a dog that’s really really good
at sneaking out this is just kind of
like a peace of mind it’s basically just
like a GPS tracker for your dog’s money
and meat you are getting like a little
over weight so I need to track like the
activity level to see if they’re getting
like the amount of exercise they need
per day so it also does that too it is a
little bulky but it’s really light so I
don’t think it bothers them at all
alright so the next thing would be dog
beds I love I love I love shopping for
dog beds for my dogs because I’m someone
that really value sleep and I just want
to always like have a good night’s sleep
and I want the same for my dogs and I
find that when they have a comfortable
bed they will kind of stay off of my
things with raising my dogs I like to
set boundaries for them because I
learned this from a trainer that it’s
good to have boundaries it’s good for
your dog to know what is your space and
what is their space for training
purposes I just feel like it’s good to
have that separation so that’s why I
make sure my dogs are very comfortable
and their beds so that they don’t feel
like they have to come up on mine to be
comfortable also if you have an older
dog you just want to make sure that
their joints are supported and that
they’re getting a good night’s sleep a
good dog bed is crucial and they’re not
expensive at all you can go to Amazon
and look up like I don’t know orthopedic
or like memory foam mattress bed for
dogs and you could get them for like $30
so my last must-have would be toys and
bones to keep your dog entertained so I
have toys like this that my dogs really
like they’re smaller so they don’t care
to have like a big tough toy they just
like things that make noises like this
you like it
and they like things with like a rope
they just like chewing on toys they also
love the squeaky you just want to make
sure you have some sort of stuff to keep
your dog entertained while you’re gone
or maybe you’re like me and you work
from home and sometimes you just don’t
have the time to give all your attention
to your dog you want to train them to
know to entertain themselves when you’re
busy so I think having toys and bones is
like a really really important thing
okay so now that I went through the
must-haves I think I want to share five
of my tips with raising my dogs that I
have learned and maybe will be helpful
to you so the first thing which was
something that I learned the hard way
would be to remember that a dog is a dog
for about maybe eight years of money’s
life I always treated her like a baby
like she was my human child and I think
that it’s important to remember that
your dog is a dog and they will have
instincts of an animal
therefore you don’t have to baby them so
much they’re capable of kind of looking
out for themselves for example when
money was younger I would never really
let her like dig and I guess like get
dirty because I would basically humanize
my dog you know I don’t want her getting
dirty because that means I have to
shower her and she’ll get the house
dirty but it’s important for dogs still
have that instinct you know if your dog
wants to chase after squirrel you know
those are things that obviously I guess
you just tweak it to your lifestyle but
I feel like it’s important to always
remember that your dog is a dog your dog
is going to want to chase after animals
sometimes and your dog is going to want
to dig sometimes and make a mess and
that’s okay because all dogs from the
ancestry was bred to do a certain things
kind of pick and choose and see what you
can allow your dog to do what you can’t
allow your dog to do but just always
respect the fact that they are animals
and that they are not humans our second
tip in raising a dog would be to be very
very patient
I feel like raising the dog is like
raising a child sometimes I mean I’m
sure it’s a lot easier like I’m sure
raising a baby it’s like some but
you have to remember to be patient and
like a person your dog will have mood
swings you know your dog will change
throughout the years sometimes money
would do things that she’s never done
before and I’m like where the hell did
this come from like why are you doing
this you know but I would always be
patient and kind of look into her
language you know we think that we know
what our dog is saying but do we really
it’s important for you to sometimes take
a step back from being the
and thinking you know it all to just
really listening to your dog reading
your dog’s body language raising the dog
is such a commitment and even if your
dog is doing things that you don’t like
it doesn’t mean it’s the end of the
world you know you don’t love everything
that your boyfriend does you don’t love
everything that your mom does but you
will be patient right and I think that’s
the same mindset should be applied to
dogs as well they may sometimes be
annoying they may tear things up and be
bad even if you feels like your dog
doesn’t respect you I’m sure your dog
does care about you and when it’s acting
out it’s usually trying to tell you
something so be patient and really read
your dog’s body language and see what
it’s really trying to tell you before
you jump to conclusions and think that
your dog is just being bad my third tip
is so so important and I really really
learned and I feel like this is so true
when people say always walk your dog and
socialize them it makes such a
difference in the quality of their life
and for those of you who maybe have a
dog that is a little more aggressive
which is money like out of all my dogs I
would say money has the most kind of
like aggression
I’m sure never been another dog before
but she’s always quick to charge at it
and like bar but I have learned over the
years that just because your dog shows
signs of like aggression does not mean
you need to keep your dog at home and
cage it up all the time and like never
bring it out you have to socialize your
dog the more you socialize it the better
will become and also it just depends on
how bad or like how aggressive your dog
is if it gets to a point where you can
control it you have to get a trainer for
awhile I stopped bringing money out to
restaurants or like out for walks and
things like that where there are a lot
of dogs because I’m afraid that she will
bite another dog but I realized the more
I was doing that the more she became
aggressive because she wasn’t seeing
other dogs and any time she saw another
dog she was just like who the are
you you know and it’s just important to
always walk your dogs and socialize them
if you can’t promise your dog and give
your dog socialization and take them out
you should reconsider because it’s very
very important for a dog to be able to
get outside and see the outdoors
number four is something I talked about
earlier and that is to set boundaries
and you just always want to make sure
that in your household with your dog
that you are the leader of the pack and
this is still some
that I’m learning I see so many people
say like oh yeah my dog like oh she just
does that but it’s like unacceptable
behavior and it’s just important for
your dog to know and it’s important for
you to set your boundaries so that your
dog understands that it needs to respect
you whether it be I don’t want my dog
jumping up on my bed or like on my sofa
or stealing food off of the counter you
have to set those boundaries and then my
last tip would be positive training I
know this is a hard one because like
raising a child sometimes your dog can
just act out so bad but you’re just like
please stop but just know that unlike a
human being who can understand like that
frustration dogs only feed off of that
type of energy so the more I guess
aggressive their being and the more like
you’re yelling back they’re feeding off
of that energy and the more I guess like
out of hand the situation becomes I’m
not a dog trainer or an expert but this
is just something I’ve learned and I’ve
observed just make sure you’re rewarding
good behavior and ignoring bad behavior
alright guys that is it to this video I
hope you enjoyed it it was really long I
meant for this video to just be short
simple and sweet but I guess there was
just like a lot of stuff done what it’s
all about so I hope you guys enjoyed
this video and found it helpful I will
see you guys in my next video and have a
wonderful day bye
you
