Valentines Day Gifts for your Dog

We all love to receive cards and gifts on Valentines Day. We also like to give out cards and gifts to our loved ones, to thank them for being such an important part of our lives. Valentines day is a great day to celebrate the loved ones in your life. So why leave out your dog?

The love you have for your dog is something special too. It’s a love that is always there and their love for you is unconditional. Your loving dog is there for when you are feeling low, they make you laugh when you are feeling down. Though they can’t speak, the show you their love in so many ways.

Here are a few gift ideas to celebrate Valentines Day with your loving pooch. They are well within budget and it’s just another excuse to spoil your dog!

Dog toys are such fun for your dog! And if you can buy a toy that includes you in the play all the better. A lot of dogs love to tug. TUG TOYS are great for playing a good game of tug with your dog. Playing together ensures your dog grows up to see humans as a source of pleasure and enjoyment, it also helps build a bond of trust between you that will become important for effective training in the future. Other interactive toys may include a frisbee or a ball launcher that will keep your dog fit as they constantly retrieve the item for you.

There are also some great activity toys for dogs that can keep them occupied when you cannot play. These toys are intended to encourage your dog to play on their own. Many of these toys hold food or treats and some require your dog to experiment to understand how the treats are released. KONG TOYS are a great example of these. They are also perfect for when you have to leave your dog at home alone. Giving them the task of getting treats out of a Kong can keep them occupied for hours.

Dogs also love to chew toys. Although it looks like they are destroying the toy, it helps them maintain good teeth and jaws. Having them around is also a good idea as it stops them chewing your very expensive shoes or furniture. Some owners may be tempted to give their dogs unwanted soft toys designed for children. Just be careful that the toy or any fillings or fittings do not harm your dog. It’s always recommended that you give your dogs toys that are designed for dogs.

As the February cold days and cold nights are still making us feel all chilly, why not buy your canine best friend a coat? There are more and more dog coats being designed. As well as being fashionable they are very useful to your dogs health.

Larger hairier dogs are less prone to the cold as they are protected by their thick fur and their legs are further away from the ground. But what about those smaller, short haired dogs? The smaller ones lose more body heat proportionally compared with bigger breeds. Dogs that have shorter finer hair will definitely feel the cold and would benefit from wearing a coat.

So if you own a smaller dog, get them snuggly warm on their walks by fitting them with a good padded dog coat. There are some coats that are just fashion, so look out for the functional coats that have a good degree of padding and waterproof protection.

These coats are great for the winter months but have the added advantage of keeping in your dog’s body heat when they are ill or old aged.

All dogs love to sleep. In fact a dog will sleep around 14 hours a day and needs a comfy place to doze. The key to a good dog bed is that they need warmth, room and comfort. A dog needs to lay flat out on their side, with their legs out to achieve true REM sleep. Large flat padded beds are ideal for flat out snoozing. Dogs also like to curl up to sleep, helping themselves keep warm, so a cosy igloo or a walled soft bed is ideal. Don’t be surprised if you have to buy two types of bed for your dog and they will choose which one is suitable for a sleep or a snooze.

Your dogs size has also got to be taken into consideration. Obviously small dogs will need small beds, and larger dogs will need larger dog beds but make sure that you allow for some extra room, so your dog has extra space to stretch their legs out!

Buying a bed for a puppy is very important but remember you will have to keep buying a bigger bed the more they grow. And the older they get your dog may require more softer bedding as they may start to suffer joint problems in their senior years.

We also advise that you buy a dog bed that is washable or a bed that is plastic and has washable loose covers. Your house will start to smell pretty doggy if you don’t clean them regularly. A dogs bed can also be made much more warmer by adding more bedding in the winter months. Good quality fleece blankets are great to pad out your dogs bedding. They can be removed and washed during the summer months.