Let’s start this post off with a little reassurance…
We are still open for business. In other states, pet food stores have been considered essential businesses as they are basically “pet grocery stores.” We are still receiving shipments and our shelves are fully stocked. We will be here to provide your dogs and cats with the supplies they need for as long as we can!
We are also cleaning extra well and taking precautions to try to keep our customers safe. See our recent grooming salon procedure updates HERE. And we are happy to take phone orders and bring your supplies out to your car in our parking lot. The health of our human clients is as important to us as the health of your pets.
Additionally, if you usually buy your pet food elsewhere and are finding it hard to come by these days, we are always happy to look up ingredients lists online and help find something we carry that is similar so as not to be too hard on your pet’s digestion.
Within the past couple of weeks, many of us have found ourselves in situations we had not anticipated. One common scenario at the moment is working from home with our pets. Perhaps our pets are just excited to see us and are wanting more attention than we can manage as we navigate the challenges of working remotely. Or maybe our pets are a little stir-crazy themselves due to social-distancing precautions we’ve had to take. Many dog sporting events, trials, and classes have been postponed or canceled to stop the spread of Covid-19 and suddenly our high-energy pups are without an outlet.
So here are a few suggestions about how to keep our pets occupied during this human health crisis.
1) Walk!
You can still walk, run with, or bike with your dog while complying with the CDC’s current recommendations. In fact, the fresh air and sunshine is good for you. So get out with your dog. Just avoid using public restrooms, touching public surfaces, and keep at least 6 feet between yourself and other walkers.
2) Train!
There’s never been a better time to teach your dog something new! Offer a couple of short training sessions a day. (Maybe during your 15’s?) It could be the perfect time to play crate games or work on appropriate doorbell behaviors. Or teach your dog some crowd-pleasing tricks so you can show off when all this is over and you can have guests again. In fact, the AKC is now allowing CGC Evaluators to give Trick Titles via video!
3) Puzzle toys
If you have puzzle feeder toys, now is a great time to bring them out! Make mealtime a learning event for your dog. If you can’t risk coming out at the moment and don’t want to order, you may be able to fashion some from objects you have laying around the house. Search YouTube and Pinterest for DIY Dog Puzzles but be sure to supervise to make sure your dog doesn’t ingest anything inappropriate!
4) Nose work!
You can enrich your dog’s life with some simple nose work games with objects you’re likely to have right now! Hide a few treats in a box, place it with a few empty boxes, and let your dog sniff out which is the “hot” (treat-filled) box. Patricia McConnell offers some great directions for this HERE.
5) Play!
A few minutes of play can be really good for your mental health in times like these. A round of tug or some fetch and chase might prove to be the break that you need to help you cope with the stress of covid-19.
6) Don’t forget the chewies!
Hopefully your dog was already getting chewies to help keep his teeth clean and satisfy his natural canine urge to chew. But instead of a chewie when you leave for work like usual, maybe for the next couple of weeks he will get one to chew on his bed beside your desk or kitchen table. We’ll be happy to add chews to your carside pick-up order, if you’re needing to restock!
We hope these suggestions help you with your social distancing! Thank you for helping to protect the vulnerable people in our community!
By: Tara Dickerson