Got a garage? Great!  As long as you have a good amount of room in your garage (a space where your car would be for example)  You can play a small game of catch with your pet in your garage.  All you need is a little wiggle room, and a little luck, and in no time you and your pet will be wrestling around and burning energy in no time!  If you are training your pet, you can even work on your commands there as well.  If your freezing out there, you would be surprised how much help a small space heater can lend.

Got stairs?  And, hopefully for you, kids?!?  Chasing your pet up and down those stairs a few times will have you both pretty tired.  If your lucky, you can make it a game with your kids and your dog, to keep the energy burning with those who need it!

As I said, hopefully you have a garage or a dog run area that can be of use for you and your pet.  Sometimes its hard on both the owner and the pet, because pets need more constant, consistant exercise.   So try to help your pet out- chances are you will end up having more fun than you imagined!

Check out this awesome service dog saving its owner!!

How to avoid this?  I would recommend leaving your pet in your bedroom or the garage, where they don’t have the opportunity to get all of these extra treats.  This may sound mean, but its better to have your pet healthy than happy in this case.  Otherwise at the end of your night, your dog is going to be so full he won’t know what to do with himself- and all of the food your serving your guests is much too fatty and inappropriate for your pet as it is.

Hopefully this will help you have a healthy and happy holiday weekend with your family, friends, and your pets!

2.) Your Living Situation: Make sure you know what breed would best suit your personal lifestyle. Consider your living situation: do you rent, is there enough yard available, is it a big enough place for a large breed or would you be better off with a small breed to ensure that your pet is comfortable and happy..these are extremely important questions that MUST be answered before you bring your new pet home.

3.) Your Other Pets:  Are you forgetting anyone?! Often, people get so excited about a new pet to play with that they forget to consider their other pets.  You need to think about if your pet can even handle a new addition, let alone if it is a different type of animal.  Most animals are pretty touchy at first no matter what you do, but you really need to ensure that you aren’t making your other pet miserable, and that you are protecting both pets safety.

4.) Be Prepared: Make absolutely sure that you are ready for your new pet!  Have the food ready, treats ready, toys, litter etc.  The last thing you want is an uncomfortable and very confused pet (they of course will need time to adapt, but you really want to make sure that they have what they need).  Also, have a vet picked out, have the appointment already made for your new pet to make sure they are healthy, have had their immunizations or at least have an appointment to do so.

5.) Check out your adoption options!  I am all about rescuing pets, especially with the foreclosure pets issue that is hitting our community.  You can always get a pet from a breeder, a friend, but I will always recommend getting a pet from the pound, SPCA, or the many rescues that are available to you.  You will no doubt gather a lot of info regarding your pet from a rescue, and you will have the satisfaction of knowing that you rescued your pet!