Christmas Gifts Your Dog Will Love

It’s almost Christmas time, which means it’s time to choose a gift for your furry family member. With so many new dog products created each year, here are my favorite 2017 Christmas dog gifts. As a professional dog trainer, I’m extremely picky about dog products, so you can rest assured I’ve tested these Christmas gifts for dogs thoroughly with my own and my clients’ dogs.

A quick tip: It’s best to place your dog’s toy, treat and chew gifts on the fireplace mantel. This prevents your dog from unwrapping his gifts before Christmas. 🙂

Comfy New Harness

Everyone needs a new spiffy outfit to start off 2018. Choose a fashionable, yet comfortable, harness for your dog to wear while trotting around town. Comfortable dog harnesses should offer full range of motion for front leg movement, and they should never chafe your dog’s skin.

My favorite harness is RuffWear’s Front Range harness. It comes in beautiful colors for every dog. This harness is easy to put on and take off your dog as well as offers lots of padding and front and back leash clip options.

Snuffle Mat

Mental enrichment is so important for dogs; that’s why I like the snuffle mat. Dogs love to forage for food, and a snuffle mat fulfills your dog’s foraging behavior. Snuffle mats contain long fleece strands tied to a rubber mat. They look like super long shag carpeting.

Sprinkle your dog’s daily kibble meal or treats into the fleece strands, and your dog will forage for an hour. Snuffle mats can be purchased online or easily created at home. Check out this DIY snuffle mat video. Oh, these mats are super easy to clean too—just toss into the washer and air dry.

Get Fit Gifts

Most dogs are stuck in the house all day, so splurge on a fun activity for your dog.

• FitPaws offers balance boards, inflatable peanuts and cavaletti sets to keep your dog’s mind and body fit. Purchase online or create a DIY version, and then practice in your living room.
• If your dog needs to lose a bit of weight, sign him up for hydrotherapy, which incorporates swimming in a heated pool or underwater treadmill. Hydrotherapy is not only reserved for injured dogs. It’s great for dogs that need to lose some weight too. Contact a certified pet physical therapist in your area for details.
• Enroll in a fun class! Nose work is so much fun for dogs, and it’s a super easy activity for pet owners too. You’ll be shocked how good your dog’s nose really is. 🙂

Good Tried-and-True Dog Favorites

Of course, there are several tried-and-true gifts every dog will love. You can’t go wrong with any of these inexpensive Christmas gifts for dogs. 🙂

• Kong Squeaky Tennis Balls are always a favorite. Balls are offered in two different sizes and come in three per package.
• Stinky treats, such as bully stick chews or fish skin treats, will make any dog lose his mind.
• Kong toys and Wobblers are always a hit with dogs. Just stuff stinky and yummy dog treats inside them, and your dog will stay busy for awhile.