Let's look back at some memorable moments and interesting insights from last year.

Your top 10 posts:

• "I is happy dog" by u/Pompouss
• "Yummy Homemade Dog Treats <3" by u/lamia28
• "Those of you who've adopted senior animals, how did you know you could handle it?" by u/katergator717
• "is it worth buy GPS dog collars ?" by u/Tinisha-Langosh
• "40% of dog owners don't pick up their dog's poop. It's gross - Do you always stoop & scoop? Both at home and out?" by u/sassleshack
• "Husky puppy singing" by u/Detailkingsgeorgia
• "Husky sings us a song" by u/Detailkingsgeorgia
• "Home is where my dogs are. ❤️🐺" by u/Detailkingsgeorgia
• "Dogs can get cancer just by sniffing each other" by u/UnixxinU
• "Happy Cakeday, r/HappyDogHappyLife! Today you're 2" by u/AutoModerator

I grew up around dogs weighing 55-80 lbs (25-36 kg).

I recently had to put down my cat. She was my baby: rescued at 3 weeks, bottle-fed, slept on my bed (half the time in my arms) every night. She had free reign of the house but my bedroom was her queendom.

!I don't want another cat. I love to cuddle/play with them, but don't like dealing with normal cat stuff (litterboxes, climbing, knocking stuff off shelves, shedding, etc). (My recently deceased cat was my fourth kitty, so please don't try to change my mind about it.)!<

My room feels so empty now. It's upstairs, where I spend most of my time. A 45 lb and 60 lb dog live in the same house, but rarely go upstairs, so I no longer have furry companionship within easy access or inside my Comfort Zone. (One dog is too old and the other grew up in a stairless house. He dislikes stairs or being picked up and WILL pee on anyone who tries to carry him upstairs.)

I'm thinking about getting a smallish dog to help fill the void left by my 13 lbs (6kg) cat's death.

The problem is, I don't know at what size a dog becomes too small to safely play with my other dogs or even just jump/fall off my bed. I want a small dog that isn't fragile but have no idea where the minimum size cut-off should be.

Dog breeds can be short and sturdy (like Dachshunds) or tall and fragile (like Whippets or Italian Greyhounds), so when I speak of size, I am specifically referring to and requesting a dog's (healthy) weight. Any suggestions about height that you want to give would be appreciated but please include some kind of context.

Maximum size is limited by the space (I'm willing to share) on my full-sized bed.

Minimum size must be considered more carefully.

• New Dog must be able to safely play with a rambunctious 45 lbs dog (and, eventually, after Old Dog passes, a puppy that will grow into 60ish-lb dog).

  • !(As a pup, Rambunctious Dog socialized/played with pugs, dachshund, beagle, mini schnauzer, corgi, etc, so I'm not worried he'll react badly to smallish dogs. Older 60 lbs dog was present for young-dog's playdates and had no problems. Now he is too old and arthritic to be accidentally dangerous and is patient and well behaved with cats and kids so I doubt he'll be intentionally dangerous unless seriously provoked.)!<

• New Dog must be able to safely jump (or fall) off my bed 30 inches above floor. (Carpeted pet stairs are present, so the dog decides jump vs stairs)

I'd LOVE for you to tell me that your dog, who weighed 𝕏 and was breed(s) 𝕐, got bowled over all the time by your bigger dog, who weighed 𝔸 and was breed(s) 𝔹 or held his own when rough-and-tumble wrestling.

How do you adopt a senior pet knowing that your heart will be broken far sooner than if you'd opened your home and heart to a younger animal?

How did you decide that you were CAPABLE of making the kind of commitment needed to adopt a senior pet when you don't have years of loving that animal to balance against the growing annoyance and expense of dealing with a senior animal who will slowly become more inconvenient to live with?

Other than the inevitably-much-sooner heartbreak, my greatest fear about adopting a senior pet is that I won't be willing to pay a similar amount on vet bills and that I won't fight for the life of a newly-gained senior pet the same way I'd fight for a pet I've loved for years. I terrified I'll take the easy/cheap out and have the pet euthanized.

I feel awful even typing this out, but I'm worried I'd put the pet down prematurely, at the first sign things might start to get expensive. Like, "Sorry, 12-year-old Fluffy, but I've only had you for 8 months and you just aren't worth $700 to me." What if, three months after I adopt a 10-year-old, the vet says "beginning stages of heart failure. Years to live if you give meds daily. Meds cost X per month." I'm terrified that I'll think "That's a lot of money for a pet I only kind of love, so let's just put him down now" even though I could afford the meds without suffering financially. Any pet I adopted deserves better than that!

Is me worrying so much about this a good sign (like, this person is being careful & thorough and is taking this seriously) or a bad sign (like, you haven't even adopted an animal yet and you're already counting pennies and planning how you'll euthanize it so you clearly don't have what it takes to do this.)

Is there anyone here who adopted a senior pet and regrets it?

Who here has adopted a senior pet(s) and can give any advice or words of wisdom?

Help!

(I want a senior because I'm mostly looking for cuddly companionship and don't want to have to deal with too much exercise or adventures.)

My dog always runs away into the neighborhood and gets lost; some of my friends recommended a good Dog chip tracker or Dog GPS tracker; I'm really confused which one to buy; previously, I purchased a GPS but it still does not work perfectly for me; my dog always finds a way to run away and the tracker is of little help. I had to place my neighbors behind the virtual fence, and it still gave me false warnings. Before the app, that alarm was not very effective; it occasionally triggered at the end of my walk, and I was warned by neighbors when my dog did get away. When I know my dog is missing or merely want to locate her in the garden, I use live tracking, but I have to wait between 1m and 10min for it to start. Do you realize how long 10 minutes is while you're gone? You have time to wander around your area and ask strangers questions. 

Let's look back at some memorable moments and interesting insights from last year.

Your top 9 posts:

• "SNOWDOG! It's been snowing in London, and so many pups have been seeing snow for the first time! Send us a picture of yours :)!" by u/PetlabCo
• "Happy loves the snow, anybody else have dogs that are obsessed with snow?" by u/PetlabCo
• ""We posing for pictures again..?" Anyone else's dog feeling the holiday spirit? 😅" by u/PetlabCo
• "Holiday Season Dress up!" by u/PetlabCo
• "How beautiful the summer is, surely he is enjoying it to the fullest!" by u/Ciardozzi
• "Does your dog get anxious around fireworks on NYE? Read from our specialists below :)" by u/PetlabCo
• "Happy Cakeday, r/HappyDogHappyLife! Today you're 1" by u/AutoModerator
• "Marking??" by u/DudleyJoey
• "Today's the seeing eye guide dog anniversary!" by u/PetlabCo

I have had our black lab for 5 years, he is now 7. We recently inherited a Maine Coon from my daughter. Dudley is very possessive of his toys and his food. Last week I noticed a bad odor and discovered his bed (which we have had in the TV room for several years) had a large urine stain and odor which I could not wash out. I week later I replaced it with one like the first one. A few days later, it too was soaked through with urine. Due to the volume of urine, I suspect Dudley was the culprit. I don't think a cat would produce that much. Any advice about what to do?

The first school of seeing eye guide dog was established over 90 years ago can you believe it!? WE SALUTE THESE PUPS AND THEIR WORK! <3

https://thepetlabco.com/blogs/dogs/7-tips-to-calm-your-dog-this-new-year-s-eve

​

https://preview.redd.it/o7gzs2bhnk661.jpg?width=1086&format=pjpg&auto=webp&s=0c1672c44ca35deb259ffaa8ee255b4fc365427b

Heyy, so who is dressing up their pets for Christmas? I might go for a lil santa outfit, but they rarely want to keep them on for long. Any other good outfit suggestions that the dogs might like?

Let's look back at some memorable moments and interesting insights from last year.

Your top 10 posts:

• "Mr Steal Your Dinner 😉❤️" by u/PetlabCo
• "I just eat yogurt.... can you tell?" by u/remkox
• "Bo looking very pleased with his new cushions!" by u/OliWells
• "My happy doggo, Cézár." by u/berczi17
• "This is Oscar, my 13 year old Shih Tzu. He is grumpy and grouchy, just like his name suggests, lol!" by u/furmomma6
• "This is Stevie. He’s a 4year old Maltese and the cutest boy ever! Glad to be part of this group!" by u/Steviesmom25
• "This is Gracie (white) and Gabbie (black), they are my happy girls and they are my heart!💜🐾💜" by u/Spedgal
• "Christmas might be all said and done but its never too late for a new leopard plush! ❤️" by u/OliWells
• "The magical and mysterious orange tennis ball ft terrifying shadow 😅❤" by u/workaweeksally
• "could he be any cuter 😭" by u/OliWells

Introducing Zeeko, Winnie and Bertie, who will now help run the petlab reddit for the foreseeable future.

Anyone dressing up their pups for halloween? in that case, any ideas? :D

Hey u/PetlabCo is this a vibe or is this not a vibe for a Friday? #FridayVibe

https://preview.redd.it/uhdw8vd443s51.png?width=952&format=png&auto=webp&s=ef1d91cf2bdee0d36550585191506d6bb278443c

Anyone else sad when you *pss pss* at cats and they ignore you:( ?