Your Puppy's Safety - Puppy Proofing Your Home
Although your puppy, just like a human baby, can find 100's of things to get into, there are things you can do to help him be safe in his new home.
Puppy proofing your home should be a step that is taken before you bring your puppy home. A puppy's characteristics can lead to serious trouble if preventative measures are not taken. A puppy, like babies, are a bundle of energy, they are curious, and they teethe, these are things to keep in mind when looking for dangers in your home.
As with baby proofing your home, you will need to lower your vantage point to that of the puppy's level. Yes, this means getting down on the floor. Look for things that would be enticing to a puppy. Things that would be fun to chew on. You will also need to make sure there are not any electrical cords within puppy's reach, one good chew and your puppy could end up with severe mouth burns or electrocution. This could also spark a fire. Even if your puppy doesn't chew on a cord, it could become entangled in it and at the least cause a huge mess, but on the more severe end could choke himself. Make sure all these things that would be interesting to a puppy are removed or covered.
You should set up a safe area for your puppy. You can use a training pen for this (this is just a pen that has movable panels that can be configured in any shape) or any room that does not have anything in it that would hurt your puppy. You should not leave your puppy unsupervised, they are curious and will wander and investigate and this could cause them to get into mischief. Using a safe area in your home will eliminate this.
You will also need to be mindful of exit opportunities your puppy may find. Make sure all doors and windows are closed securely. As has been before mentioned, puppies are curious, they will explore and if they find an exit avenue, they will be off exploring in areas that could get them in trouble. Make sure there are not exit opportunities to balconies, upper porches, or high decks. These can be especially dangerous for a puppy.
As with baby proofing a home, you will also need to make sure that any cleaning supplies and chemicals are well out of puppy's reach. Store them in a secure location, preferably on high storage shelves or behind locked cabinet doors. The ideal place would be in a garage or storage building outside, just make sure puppy is not with you when you get these out.
Doing a "puppy check" before leaving home or going to sleep at night is a good habit to form. This will ensure that puppy does not get left in an unsafe area. Make sure that closet doors are kept securely shut and that they are in your puppy check.
Just as with babies, you will need to make sure all small objects are kept out of puppy's reach. This would include all sewing supplies (buttons, beads, needles, pins, yarn, and thread), and any hardware supplies (nails, screws, staples, and brads) as well as any other small items (paper clips, soda can tabs, etc.). All of these items can hurt your puppy's mouth if chewed on and can damage internal organs if swallowed.
Puppy proofing your home is not hard, but it is a necessary step in ensuring your puppy's safety. Taking a little time before you bring your puppy home can make his homecoming a little less stressful.