Caring For Little Dogs +WIN a Small Dog Gift Basket #SpringForSmallDogs

In 2009, that we added 2 brand new little babies to our household…2 soft & fluffy puppies which we named Molly & Rigley. Our kids were beyond excited to have two new puppies to love and adore. Prior to this we had owned a large dog, so this was our family’s first experience with a small breed. We had decided to go with a small breed because we wanted little dogs that our kids could take for a walk safely on their own and cuddle with. And we wanted a sturdy smaller bread that could share our small our home comfortably. Small dogs are classified as dogs who weigh less than 35 pounds and did you know that 60% of households in Canada own a small dog? It’s the largest dog-owning segment because small dogs not only work well for families with children, but for seniors as well as families living in apartments and high-rise buildings. Our small dogs fit well into our family and we were immediately smitten with our little girls. We couldn’t wait to go shopping for them to get them new little collars, leashes and toys.

Never having owned small dogs before, there are a few things we quickly learned. Small dogs tend to live much longer than large dogs (almost twice as long in some cases). Small dogs reach maturity much faster than larger dogs, and we noticed this right away when our dogs turned 1 year, they seemed to be much calmer and were getting into mischief less often. {But even if they do get into mischief, how could we be mad at these sweet little faces?}

Our little dogs seem to be much more active throughout the day. Did you know that pound for pound, small dogs need more energy than large dogs, so two small meals a day are a must. For the first time ever, I was shopping for food for specifically designed for smaller mouths and found that our little dogs prefer smaller-sized kibble and treats as they fit their small jawlines better and are easier for them to chew. Small dogs also tend to be fussier eaters and will often refuse their food, so it’s important to offer food that tastes good and to sometimes be creative by adding in some wet food to add variety and a different texture. As a pet parent, I found that CESAR®, IAMS ® and PEDIGREE® dog food provide all of their nutritional needs with specially designed recipes for small dogs, and what’s more is that our dogs love these foods! In fact, they eat them with gusto! And recently, a friend of mine was visiting and she mentioned that her little dog was not eating her food, so I gave her a baggy of CESAR® to try and she reported back that her little girl loved it as well.

I have to admit that our dogs have never tried CESAR® wet food before when recently we were sent the amazing gift basket below filled with different foods for them to try. As I opened the CESAR® wet food, Molly & Rigley were intrigued right away with much sniffing while I opened the packages, and then they swiftly gobbled it up.

And we also had too much fun trying out all of the other goodies in the basket…like these adorable little rain coats for small dogs. Little dogs do get cold sometimes when they get wet, and we were grateful for these little raincoats this spring because we have had a ton of rain this spring.