Every Day Dog Essentials

What Are the Best Every-Day Essentials for Your Canine Companions? (an Opinion by Boris, the Dog)

Many of the Dog Products and Supplies Include:

Collar and Leash

It’s the law almost everywhere for dogs to wear collars and leashes when we’re out with our humans in public places.

Many humans choose collars and leashes that make keeping us safe and secure more difficult and complicated than it needs to be.

In most cases, all we need is a simple 4-foot leash that fits comfortably in a human hand so it’s easy for them to hold, attached to our Martingale collar.

We dogs are very smart and athletic and can easily get ourselves out of a flat collar if we’re scared or want to chase something, and then try to catch us!

The Martingale collar is nice and loose when the leash is not attached so we’re comfortable all day long.

When the leash IS attached, if we pull against it, the collar tightens just enough so that we can’t get it off, so we stay safely at your side.

License and Name Tag

Guess what humans? It’s also the law almost everywhere for humans to buy us dogs that are older than 4-months a license that they attach to our collar.

This license can help us find our way home if we ever get lost.

We don’t need a name tag, but many humans like to do this because, while we dogs don’t care about it at all, it makes our humans feel good to buy us this doggy jewelry.

Medical Insurance

I always hear humans talking about how expensive it is to take us to the vet’s office and they seem to be upset.

Some other humans don’t seem to worry about it because they have something called “insurance”.

They say that they can take us to this smelly place more often because the insurance pays for these trips.

While we don’t really like going there, I guess that means we dogs that have insurance might be healthier and better cared for.

Food and Water Bowls

We dogs need food and water bowls because we love to eat and drink water, and while we’d happily eat off the floor, it seems that humans like to give us bowls.

While there are many kinds of bowls, I think my humans made the right choice for me.

I like those little doggy dining tables that have one bowl for water and one bowl for my food because it’s up off the floor, which makes it easier for me to drink and eat.

Food and Treats

Have you noticed how many of my cousins are fat and sluggish and seem to have itchy skin and dry coats?

And last week a Labrador friend of mine had to go to the vet to have something called “rawhide” surgically removed from inside him.

I don’t know what “surgically” means, but when I saw him a few days later, he smelled funny, had a cone on his head and was not his usual happy self, so I don’t think “surgically” means fun.

When my humans go to the dog store to buy me food they spend a lot of time staring at the bag, putting some back on the shelf, and talking to each other before they choose.

I think they want to get me the best food that doesn’t have stuff in it that makes me sick or itchy, and I appreciate that.

My humans also cook me meat, even though I’d gladly eat it raw.

They also stare a lot at those tiny bags of treats that they buy for me.

They’re always looking for something called “one ingredient” and my two favorites are the soft liver or the dried chicken treats.

I could eat the whole bag in one go! I don’t know why they won’t let me.

Supplements

My humans are always eating some little hard things they call “supplements” and I’m not sure what they are, cuz they sure don’t smell like something I’d like to eat.

Anyway, a while ago they decided I should also eat them, too so they buy me something that comes in a round container that I’m supposed to like.

They say it’s “chicken” flavored but my nose can tell the difference so I just spit them on the floor.

Now I think they sneak them into my cooked meat so there’s no way I can avoid eating my daily supplement.

I guess supplements are OK because since I started eating them my joints feel better, my skin isn’t itchy, my poops are good, I still have a bouncy step when I’m out walking with my humans, and love running through the grass.

Even though my humans say I’m an “old boy,” I feel pretty darn good.

Toys

What dog doesn’t like toys? We all do, of course, although every one of my four-legged cousins is different when it comes to choosing the right toy for him or her.

Me, I’m a gentle chewer, and I love those soft, cuddly, small toys.

I even have my very first toy that my humans let me choose from the store when I was only 10-weeks old.

My best Australian Terrier friend is opposite from me, cuz he’s a hard chewer and he likes those tough rope tugs that he never lets go once he’s locked on.

We dogs all have different likes when it comes to our toys because we’re all different types, sizes, shapes and strengths.

For instance, I do like a little game of fetch that might involve a ball or soft toy, but compared to my retriever or terrier cousins who go mad for chasing a ball, I’m just not on the same playing field.

Bed

Oh yes, I do love my comfy bed, and I have several of them.

One in the living room, one in the human’s bedroom and another one in my human’s car.

There are plenty of choices when it comes to dog beds, and some of my friends prefer a big pillow or even a crate to sleep in.

Me, I prefer a plushy round or square bed with soft, raised sides for my head because I like a pillow.

Sometimes, if it’s warm in the house, I will choose to sleep on the cooler tile floor, or sometimes I just lay on the floor and use my human’s soft slippers for my pillow.

During winter months, when it’s a little cooler in the house, I sleep on the human’s couch because I can feel a draft at floor level and it’s warmer on the couch.

Crate or Kennels

My humans bought me a “Sherpa”, which is a soft-sided bag with ventilated windows, when I was only 10-weeks-old.

I love my Sherpa because it’s a cozy, safe place and I can go places other bigger and heavier cousins can’t when I’m in it.

I’ve even enjoyed sitting in restaurants or riding on a very big car called a “bus.”

My humans also bought me a hard crate that I ride in when I’m in the car because they say this is the safest place for me to be.

Most of my larger dog friends like a crate because we all like a quiet place that is just ours and feels like a safe cave that we can snooze in, and some of my friends have one in the house and another one in the car.

I’ve heard that some of my dog friends have been hurt when cars smashed together and that humans are having to pay something called a “fine” when that noisy car with the siren and flashing lights arrives because the human let their dog roam freely about the inside of the car when it was moving.

If your humans don’t have a proper, safe crate for you to ride in, you might see one of those noisy, flashing cars visit your humans.

Clothing

Some of us dogs need clothing to keep us warm and dry, and some don’t.

I get my hair regularly clipped so I appreciate a warm coat in winter and a raincoat when it’s wet out.

I’m also much more comfortable on a hot, sunny day when my humans put something they call a white t-shirt on me because being a darker-colored dog, that sun can really heat me up.

When I’m wearing my t-shirt the humans say it “reflects heat” and I guess this is a good thing for me, because I feel cooler and don’t have to pant so much.

Bathing & Grooming Supplies

All us dogs need a bath at least once in a while, and those of us who are smaller dogs usually need one more often because we’re closer to all the dirt and stuff that can make us itchy.

I’ve heard stories about some of my dog friends that will do anything to avoid the dreaded bath.

I don’t know what’s wrong with them because I love my warm, sudsy bath and when I hear the bathtub running, I come running and jump right in.

Having a bath makes me so excited afterward and I run around like a crazed adolescent and roll and rub on the carpet afterward.

I also love something called the “hair dryer” and whenever I hear it, even if my hair is dry, I come running because it makes my human laugh, and then she pretends to dry me.

I’ve heard that some humans don’t know that we dogs should never be washed and conditioned with human products because of something called the wrong “pH” whatever that is, and my humans always buy the doggy shampoo and conditioner that makes my skin and coat feel and look good at the dog store.

I also have a nice soft brush that feels good when my humans brush me every few days, but what I don’t especially like is that thing that my human puts on my toenails that squeezes my nails and makes a click noise, but I put up with it because it’s easier to walk and my back feels better when my nails are the right length.

Oh yes, and I better not forget to tell you that my human has scissors and something called a “clipper” that she uses to make my hair shorter every once in a while.

It vibrates and I don’t like it when she does that to my legs, but I put up with this too, because it feels good having shorter hair and I can see better when she trims the hair over my eyes.

I’ve heard that some of my cousins go to a place called a “grooming salon” if their humans don’t know how to do the clipping thing.

Finally, I have to put up with having my teeth brushed with something called an “electric toothbrush” every day.

My humans say this is very important for good health, and even though I don’t like that buzzing in my mouth, they seem very happy that my teeth are in good shape.

Yes, there’s a lot of essentials we dogs need, but once we get used to them, it’s not such a big deal, and we will all feel good, and be much healthier and happier for all of it.