Essential Items For Living in an Apartment With Pets

Living with a pet in an apartment isn't always easy. Since these pets usually don't have as much space as pets with full yards, they need extra care to keep healthy and entertained. Review the following tips on essential items for pet care in your apartment.

Feeding

It's important to regulate your pet's eating schedule. Dogs should be fed at a time that correlates well with a bathroom break following soon after, and both cats and dogs that are left home alone all day with a full bowl may develop weight problems, increase the incidence of bathroom accidents in the apartment and let your pets grow bored. For water, the problem is the opposite - you should always make sure that water is available for your pet.

Luckily, today's modern world provides a variety of tools that let us regulate our pets' feeding environment. Automatic feeders allow you to program times to feed your pet, and more advanced models will even allow you to specify how much food to release at specific times. Automatic water dispensers work the same way, and pet water fountains make sure that water is always flowing for your cat or dog.

Entertainment & Exercise

The best way to keep your pet entertained while you're not around is to have some really great toys. For dogs, Kongs are a great toy that provide hours of entertainment. By sticking a treat (such as a spoonful of peanut butter), you can entice your dog to bite, lick, and roll around with a Kong for hours. Cats will respond well to a scratching post and some catnip toys - and a scratching post will pull double duty by providing an alternative to furniture and carpet for your cat to scratch at.

Another great tactic to make sure your pets don't become bored with their toys is to make sure that you have a variety of toys that you put out on an alternating schedule. This will keep toys fresh and new, and keep your dog or cat's interest for a longer period of time.

And of course, the most essential tool you need to keep your dog healthy and entertained is a leash. Your dog will need regular walks around the apartment community or neighborhood for exercise and to go to the bathroom. A good, quality leash will let you lead your dog while giving him the option to run around and enjoy the outdoors.

Apartment Care

While all the above will help you keep your apartment in good shape while living with a pet, there are two tools that will really help you control your apartment's appearance. A good pet brush and a litter box. The litter box is essential if you have a cat - and daily upkeep will keep smells out of your apartment. As with feeding, there are litter boxes that will automatically clean themselves, but you will still have to maintain the removal process. Regularly brushing your pet will help prevent your cat or dog's fur from ending up on your clothes, sofa, and carpet.

The Blairs is a pet friendly apartment community located in Silver Spring, MD near Washington, DC.