3 Things You Must Do Before Bringing Home A New Pet

Do you have a young child who has been demanding to be able to get a pet? Are you considering agreeing to their demands and bringing a new dog or cat into your family's life? Although it can be both fun and rewarding, pet ownership is more than simply bringing home a new puppy or kitten and hoping that everything falls into place from there. In order to be a successful pet owner, there are a number of things that you should do first. The most important of these include the following.

Find a vet: This is especially important if you're getting a puppy or a kitten instead of an adult animal. Not only will your new pet need vaccinations and a general checkup at a local animal hospital, the new environment could make them sick or appear to be sick. This could simply be from the stress of being in a new home, or they may get into something that they shouldn't because they're unfamiliar with everything. They may also pick up sickness from one of the cats or dogs that already live in your neighborhood. If something like this happens, the only way to be sure of the cause of the illness is to take your pet to the vet.

Get a professional trainer: When getting a new dog, it's tempting to consider training your new canine companion yourself or to simply leave the training to your kid. However, if you don't have the experience that a professional trainer does, this can take a long time, and the training may be incomplete. It's much better to spend a few extra dollars on training now than to wind up with a half-trained dog who needs to be taken to the nearest emergency animal hospital because he or she wouldn't listen and wouldn't come back when the leash slipped off.

Research foods: Feeding your pet the right foods can make a huge difference in how many times you have to take that same pet to your local animal hospital. Some of the less expensive foods are almost the animal equivalent of feeding him or her nothing but fast food all of the time. If you or your child were to eat nothing but fast food, you'd eventually wind up with various health ailments due to too many calories and other issues. If you're not sure what to feed your new cat or dog, talk with your vet. But simply buying the first food you see when you enter the store and calling it good is a bad idea in the long run.