How to Ensure That Your Senior Dog has the Best Quality of Life

When your faithful four-legged friend is getting a little older, you want to make sure that they are going to be having the best quality of life. Though they may be slowing down a little, there is no reason why they cannot live for many years to come with the right care from you! Here are some of the things that you can do to give your senior dog the best quality of life.

Understand the Breed

The first thing you should do is take your dog’s breed into consideration. Every breed has their own little quirks that can affect their health. From problems with their hips to other issues like deafness and blindness, there are many hereditary issues that can affect the health of a dog. As the owner, you need to make sure that you know about some of these conditions so you can care for your dog properly.

Your vet is a great source of knowledge here. They may even be able to perform certain tests to work out the likelihood of your dog developing one of their breed conditions. If you have a pedigree dog, checking their ancestry to see what is in their family line can also be a great move.

Of course, many of us don’t know what breed of dogs we have precisely. This can be very common with rescue dogs where you more than likely chose a dog for its temperament and less maybe about its breed characteristics or look. How do you know what issues could affect your pooch?

Luckily, there is a solution. There are now many dog ancestry tests that you can try to find out what the breakdown of your dog might be. Many of these tests will also check for some of the biggest genetic issues that each breed in your dog can face. It could be the first step in ensuring that nothing is going to majorly affect the health of your dog in the future.

Find the Right Food

You need to make sure that you have the right quality of food to feed your dogs. Buying food straight from the supermarket means that you might be buying something that is not the best quality. There are many other options out there that might be able to offer much a much higher quality of nutrition for your dog.

Have you ever thought about looking into senior dog food from a raw food company? Raw food can often be a fantastic option to put your dogs on. It can give them all of the nutrients they need in a way that suits them. If you want to consider a raw food diet, consider this product.

There are so many options out there in terms of diets that you could feed your dog. You also need to make sure that you are paying attention to how your dog reacts to their diet. Though something might be the best on paper, that does not always mean that it is the right option for your dog. It might take a little bit of investigation to find precisely the right type of food for your dog to eat.

Exercise

Obviously, as your dog gets older, they are not going to be able to exercise in precisely the same way that they might have when they were younger. If you have already had quite an active lifestyle with your dog – for example if you frequently go on hikes together – you might notice that they do not seem to slow down that much.

Adjust your exercise routine together to whatever you think might work best for them. What might have once been impressive hikes to some of the most distant and remote parts of the country might now look very different. Take it as an opportunity to explore somewhere new – there might be some great woodland walks around you or even some urban hikes that you could check out together.

As your dog begins to physically show signs of old age, it might be a good idea to adjust precisely how you go to walks together too. Suddenly, it might not be such a good idea to go for a very long walk each day, bookended by smaller ones. Instead, you might prefer to take them for shorter walks more frequently. It allows them to get out and exercise, and they might not get as tired out as quickly as they would on a big walk.

Low-Impact Play

Every dog still needs to be played with, but you need to make sure that you adjust the play to suit their age. A rambunctious puppy is not going to play in the same way that an older dog will, so you need to find some playstyles that will engage the older properly.

If you do have several dogs with lots of different ages, make sure to take them out individually at least once a week. This means that you will be able to get in some playtime with them that will be suited to their age and current temperament.

Though letting young and old dogs play together can be good, trying to join the action means that all of your attention could be taken up by the younger. By separating them, you can concentrate all of your love and attention on your older friend, and they will only benefit from it.

Adjust Your Home

If you allow your dogs to climb up and down on furniture like your sofa or bed, they might struggle to do so a little as they get older. Therefore, you should consider investing in some ramps and other pieces of furniture that could help them out as they try to keep up with you.

There are many companies that make these ramps, and they can be added to the side of your bed, or even added to your car to help them get in and out. They are a fantastic addition to your home that can make things that little bit more comfortable for your dog.

You should also think about investing in an orthopaedic dog bed and some heating pads if your dog begins to struggle with their joints. These are all great options that can help to soothe your dog’s limbs after a long day.

Take Good Care of Them

With an older dog in your household, you need to make sure that you are spending time and attention taking care of them. However, they are more than likely already a firm part of your household and this should be second nature to you. Even if you decide to adopt an older dog and care for them in their last few years, you will still find plenty of opportunities to make them feel comfortable and treasured.

The tips mentioned above are just some of the things that you can do to help look after an older dog in your household. If you are able to give them the care and attention that they need, no matter what it might be, you will hopefully be able to still spend many years living together happily.