With two young, small dogs, I have my hands full much of the time, and pet safety is always a concern. All good pet parents (like myself, of course!) know that pets like dogs and cats need adequate exercise, nutrition, medical care, and many other "basic needs" to be met. But have you ever thought as a pet owner about the things you can do to ensure the safety of your pet? We all know that our pets' instincts can drive them to do some silly or even scary things, especially outdoors, but what about inside your house?

Let's take, for instance, a pet's sense of smell. How many times have you come home to garbage cans tipped over? Forget the mess they made... did you know that garbage can be toxic? Your pet can be tempted by the smell, ingest something toxic, choke on something, or cut themselves on sharp objects. The solution is relatively simple: use a trash can with a secure lid and/or keep your trash can in the cabinet under your sink.

Now think about your pet's desire to play with things, especially things that crinkle or make rattling noises. What does that make you think of? Pill bottles! Some common things you have in your medicine cabinet like aspirin and ibuprofen can kill your pet. The simple solution: keep them in a high location, preferably behind a secure door, like the cabinet over your fridge or a medicine cabinet. Plastic bags, power cords, blind cords, floss, and other things can lead to a number of problems too.

So my solution: keep anything and everything questionable out of reach of my pups. I've had too many issues already to take the chance anymore! Once, Jax ate a box of K-Cups. That was terrifying because, of course, there was caffeine in the K-Cups. Then, there was a time that Rusko chewed the metal part of a lighter off, which was terrifying too because of the lighter fluid and the risk of the metal part not passing through.

I talked to our team of pet experts so many times in the early months of having both dogs, that I've since learned my lesson! Don't learn the hard way like I did. Don't let yourself be terrified by your pet getting into something even potentially life-threatening. Just think about their senses and move anything they might be attracted to out of reach!