By: | | Dogs

Thanksgiving is a holiday which involves giving thanks not only to the people in your life, but everything that’s good in your life. There can never be anything better than having a dog who loves you unconditionally and who can brighten even the darkest days. So when the time comes, here are a few ways to celebrate Thanksgiving with your dog.

Go Somewhere Special

While dogs will enjoy their walks a lot, and every walk will be exciting, there’s nothing like being in a strange place with new and exciting smells. Remember that your dog has a finely-tuned sense of smell – to them, a new place poses so much more than new sights to see. It’s the new smells and the freedom to explore something that’s out of their regular routine. Thanksgiving is also a great opportunity to do so, if you’re not into the whole Thanksgiving dinner thing and prefer a vacation or a short trip to disconnect from your own routine.

Prepare Some Special Treats

There’s plenty of things your dog is likely to love to eat, but Thanksgiving can give you an opportunity to do something festive and holiday-themed instead. From turkey meat, to a whole bunch of diverse vegetables, you have a lot of choices to mix and match foods for your dog. Just make sure that you stay away from citrus, grapes, garlic, onions, candy, or chocolate – all of these can pose significant health problems for your pup.

Get Them Something

Sure, Christmas may not be that far away, but any excuse is a good excuse to get something new for your dog. Take advantage of those black Friday sales! Be it a new toy, a new bed, a new frisbee, squeaky toy, ball, or pulling rope, you have plenty of options to gift them. They’ll appreciate anything really, and it’ll be a great way to get them a bit more active and have something new to play with them. Alternatively, you can combine this idea with the one before, and instead spring for some delicious treat or some expensive dog chow which you can use to truly pamper them. Speaking of which, a gift can also be a day at the dog spa, where they can get a massage, a haircut, and a proper bath.

The sky is the limit when it comes to celebrating Thanksgiving with your dog! When in doubt, just remember that your dog just wants to be loved on and interact with you as much as he can. Don’t let him down.

Regardless of your choice, your dog will surely appreciate it, and this holiday will also give you a reason to break the routine and do something special for both you and your dog. Just make sure to make the best of it, and always play it safe. Don’t over exhaust your dog either just cause it’s a celebration – and make sure not to overfeed them either; we’re much more apt to recover from an exaggerated thanksgiving meal than they are.