Life Hacks for Dog Owners

As the cliché goes, dogs are man’s best friends. Mine definitely are. Don’t get me wrong, I am an all animal lover… but my pups were my babies before my baby was my baby, ya know?! They’re part of the family! I like to call them my furry little tornadoes because they always seem to be into something. So here are some of the Dog Hacks I’ve come across in my 8 years of being a dog owner/momma.

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Oh Pups!

When Ryder was just a pup, one of our biggest issues was him eating too fast. He’d actually wind up eating himself sick. Our local vet tech suggested a specially designed dog bowl to force him to learn how to eat slower. We ordered this one and it’s been a life saver! He actually has to work for his food so it completely eliminates him inhaling it.

With four animals in the house it seemed like there was never any water in the water bowl. Our solution? A large replenishing Mason Jar water bowl!

Itchy Pups?

Ryder was my difficult pup. All of a sudden he was covered in spot and itchy. Living in Florida, my first thought was fleas. We gave him a couple of Dawn baths. (Dawn dish soap is an AWESOME flea killer) but then we realized it was his food that needed changing. We switched both of the boys to Rachel Ray’s Nutrish Grain Free and the difference has been night and day! No more itching, no more spots, no more random throwing up. I couldn’t believe I didn’t consider it earlier!

Speaking of what goes in to our furbabies’ bellies, I started making my own dog treats to make sure I knew exactly what they were getting. Check out the Pumpkin Pup Treats here!

Remember that scene in Marley and Me when Marley jumps out of the car?

Been there, done that. A dog seatbelt harness stops that. Seems simple, right? Well it took my dog actually jumping out of the car window before I considered it. This one is an actual harness so you don’t have to worry about keeping the pup safe!

Finally, for your home!

These aren’t so much “hacks” as they are cute and helpful items around my house….

With a house full of animals and a newly crawling baby, dirty paws just aren’t something I have time to clean up after 24/7 so I picked up this adorable “Wipe Your Paws” mat.

Speaking of dirty paws, did you know you can buy a dog washing station?! I hate having to wash the boys in the bathtub because it’s just too hard to keep them in the tub. This station solves that problem. It elevates the dogs and keeps them in place until they’re all clean and ready to play again! This is by far my favorite dog-hack find!