Safety for new family members - San Antonio Express-News

Congratulations on your new family addition. You and your new companion have a lot to learn about each other in the coming days, weeks and months. ?There are so many things to keep in order ? vet care, socialization, training, etc..

But before parent and new pet can begin their journey, the pet must be safe. ?In her book, ?Love Has No Age Limit,? author Patricia McConnell writes: ?An escaped dog is one of the most common problems that people experience with adopted dogs.?

Lost pet prevention is important for all pets (cats, dogs, etc..) but especially new pets who might not know their way back home or for pets who might even be afraid of their new family at first.

The following are some ways that new pets might get away from us

1. Bolting through opened car doors
2. Bolting through opened residence doors
3. Slipping a collar while on a walk
4. Escaping from the yard

This pamphlet will discuss ways to minimize the above types of escapes and it will also list other preventative measures to keep your new family member safe. ?All preventative options won?t be feasible for all pet parents.

1.Bolting through opened car doors. Sadly, some pets get lost before making it inside their new home.
A. While driving, keep all windows rolled up (as long as vehicle has air conditioning and/or it?s not too hot). ?If no A/C then don?t have windows rolled down far enough that dog can jump out.
B. Ride pet in an enclosed crate
C. Ride pet in a seat belt harness
D. If pet parent has a garage, drive all the way into the garage, close the garage door before opening the car door
E. Hold on to the leash before opening the car door and make sure that the pet is wearing a secure collar and harness. See more on collar and harness safety in #3 below
F. For cats and other small pets, keep the pet in the carrier. Transport the carrier into the residence before opening the carrier door.
G. Have a second person ride along to help handle the new pet

2. Bolting through open residence doors. ?Sometimes new pet parents might be careful but other family members might not realize the danger. So when pet parent is making things safe for new pet, he/she will have to take into consideration what other household members or guests might do.

A. Establish an airlock ? something that slows down a human from opening a door and something that might slow down a dog from bolting out the door. ?For more details on air locks, see http://blog.mysanantonio.com/latrenda/2012/09/tall-enough-to-reach-the-door-knob-young-enough-to-be-careless/

B. Before opening any door to the outside, ensure pet is enclosed in another room, enclosed in a crate, or held on leash by someone
C. When going for walks, be sure leash and collar/harness are secure before opening the door. ?When returning from a walk, ensure you and pet are inside with door closed before taking off leash

3. Slipping a collar while on a walk. This can happen if your new pet hears a strange noise or sees a dog or squirrel, etc..
A. Flat buckle or snap collars should be just for holding ID. ?For most dogs, if they try hard enough, they can slip these collars. ?If a dog slips a collar with ID, then not only do you have a lost pet but you have a lost pet who isn?t wearing ID. A properly fitted harness is often safer than a flat collar; but some dogs can easily slip harnesses as well.
B. Ideally, a new pet should wear a secure, H-style harness with a slip leash or martingale as a backup.
C. Pet parents who prefer to use collars instead of harnesses should use a flat buckle collar for ID only and attach leash to a properly fitted martingale or use a slip leash as a backup.
See more details here: http://blog.mysanantonio.com/latrenda/2011/10/collar-and-harness-safety/
In addition to keeping your dog safe from escape, pet parents might also be concerned about keeping their dogs? neck and spine safe. See more details on harnesses vs collars here:
http://clicktreat.blogspot.com/2012/06/is-it-harmful-to-attach-aleash-to-your.html

4. Escaping from the yard. ?We might think our yard is secure but there is much we don?t know about our new companion. ?Can she jump an 8 foot fence? Can she climb like a cat? Does he know how to flip latches? ?Is he a digger?
A. Until our new pet has settled into our household, we should take him/her out on leash ? even in an enclosed yard. ?As our new pet settles in, we can start letting the dog drag around a leash (while being watched). Later we can graduate to off leash time in the yard but still with supervision.
B. Let our pets live indoors as family members
C. Never leave a pet tethered unattended
See this link for more information on safer outdoor pets: http://blog.mysanantonio.com/latrenda/2011/09/safter-outdoor-pets-part-ii/

Consider keeping cats indoors all the time. ?Unless the new guardian builds a cat safe outdoor enclosure. ?Click here for information on safer outdoor cats: http://rescueconnections.wordpress.com/2010/07/29/safe-outdoor-cats/

Preparation for the new arrival
Many good Samaritans often have pets who just show up and adopt the humans. ?They don?t plan on adding to the family. It just happens. But for those of us to make the decision to drive to the shelter or visit a foster home to bring home our new baby, we should have some things ready for the day of pickup or drop off

1. Make sure there are no holes in the fence. ?Redundant fencing would be ideal:
http://blog.mysanantonio.com/latrenda/2011/09/safer-outside-pets-part-i/

2. Purchase a martingale or slip leash for safety and a flat collar for ID tags. ?These slip leases are ideal as they have safeties that prevent them from getting too tight or too loose: http://www.genuinedoggear.com/dog_mart_leashes.html

For more on slip leashes, click here: http://blog.mysanantonio.com/latrenda/tag/slip-leash/

3. Purchase an ID tag and put it on your new pet as soon as possible ? don?t wait until you get home. Put it on the minute you pick up your pet. Check local pet stores and department stores for machines that can make custom ID tags in a few minutes.

4. Purchase a crate, and when your new arrival comes ? take some time to teach your new baby that the crate is a fun place: http://blog.mysanantonio.com/latrenda/tag/crate-acclimation-posts/

5. Purchase whatever items you need to make your air lock (see above). Have that in place before bringing home the new pet

Sometimes no matter how cautious new pet parents are, pets can slip away. If this happens be sure to post flyers, post on various internet sites such as craigslist and contact the rescue or previous pet parents or previous foster parents. They might be instrumental in helping the pet get back home because the pet might be more likely to go to someone familiar.

For information on bringing home a shy or fearful dog, click here: http://blog.mysanantonio.com/latrenda/bringing-home-a-shy-scared-skittish-or-abused-dogs/

For more tips on training, safety, and behavior, see:
http://blog.mysanantonio.com/latrenda/

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To view/listen to a presentation on lost dog prevention, click here: http://blog.mysanantonio.com/latrenda/2012/02/lost-dog-prevention-a-presentation/

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For more training tips, please see Puddin?s Training Tips

For more pet articles, check out SAPAWS

For info on public appearances (human only), see Pet Education

Source: http://blog.mysanantonio.com/latrenda/2012/09/safety-for-new-family-members/

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