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Original poster

Puppies and Christmas trees

20 replies

Whywhywhy1 · 20/11/2019 06:11

Just after some advise. We have a 5 month old puppy. We’ve had him since 8 weeks and as most puppies he’s lovable and very excitable. Anyway just thinking ahead to Christmas, will having a tree up be a disaster. We have 3 children who live having and decorating the tree but I’m just worried I’ll regret it this year. What do you do if/when you’ve had a puppy or young dog in the house?

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Original poster
Whywhywhy1 · 20/11/2019 06:12

Love not live

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Spotty528 · 20/11/2019 06:15

Watching with interest! We’re 5 days in with our 10 week old pup, the house has descended into chaos. We’re very much confined to the kitchen with him but I’m thinking we may have made it into the living room by Christmas. I think a tree would be carnage but can’t imagine not having one!

NomDeQwerty · 20/11/2019 06:19

I got cheap decorations and hung them a few branches up from the very bottom. I sprayed the lower branches with citrus pet spray and decorated while she was out for a walk. No problems here. She was 7 months though.

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Fakeflowersaremynewnormal · 20/11/2019 06:23

We always have a tree but try to block it off a bit so the dog can't just run into it. She can get to it but we trained her not to touch it and she is pretty good although sometimes has a sniff of it. I never put chocolate decorations and keep the ball shaped baubles only near the top. The first few years when she was a puppy I never put gifts round the tree but this year she is so well trained we did.

DisplayPurposesOnly · 20/11/2019 07:04

Put a puppy pen round the tree. Or get a smaller tree that can go on a table.

(I have house rabbits...)

Booboostwo · 20/11/2019 07:06

It’s kind of doable. Don’t put anything breakable on the tree, it’s just too dangerous, don’t leave the puppy unsupervised with the tree, avoid ornaments in the lower branches and hope for the best!

Original poster
Whywhywhy1 · 20/11/2019 09:27

Ok thanks for the advise. He is crated at night and if we go out so he isn’t left unsupervised. We shall see!!!!

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raspberryk · 20/11/2019 09:48

We haven't had one for 8/9 years because of the bloody cat!
I've got a tree made from a pallet and baubles- sounds strange but it's great.
We are upgrading to add one of those pre lit branch trees and avoiding pressies round the bottom.
Old fat lab i knew once bit each pressie and ate a box of quality street wrapper and all......
Very festive poops.

adaline · 20/11/2019 10:32

Get one and put a high puppy pen around the bottom so puppy can't jump up and try and eat the baubles....

SnowsInWater · 20/11/2019 10:36

Definitely some kind of barrier, we had a playpen thing for everyone's safety and sanity.

amusedbush · 20/11/2019 10:43

When DDog was little we had a 5' tree that sat on a table so he couldn't get at it anyway. A couple of years ago we got a 6.5' one that sits on the floor and I learned the hard way to only use large baubles. He managed to get at a couple of small ones, which fitted perfectly in his mouth (Jack Russell) and ended up chewed to bits Hmm

Muminabun · 20/11/2019 12:46

I am planning to wrap wrapping paper around some boxes and puT the wrapped presents into the boxes and arrange them as a barrier around the tree. I am hoping this will look nice and festive. He is not on the front room unsupervised but he is a land shark and anything chewable goes down the hatch and out the other end so I don’t fancy a huge vet bill on Christmas Eve

Muminabun · 20/11/2019 12:47

@amusedbush I have a jack Russel I feel your pain they are expert little shredders

PepsiLola · 20/11/2019 12:48

Our dogs were always fine with the tree, even as puppies.

Cats on the other hand...

Cyberworrier · 20/11/2019 12:49

Like Display we put the puppy playpen around ours, and had the tree raised, sat on a low table, so you could still see it. Luckily he was small enough then he couldn’t reach up for it!

negomi90 · 20/11/2019 12:53

Tree in a play pen. It works for dogs and toddlers.

Katinski · 20/11/2019 13:22

Second the tree in the play pen. Worked a treatGrin

KurriKurri · 20/11/2019 13:41

I got an artificial tree last year after my puppy spent the previous Christmas trying to eat pine needles. Continuously -however much I hoovered them up he still managed to find them (and was still finding them several months later even though DD and I spent ages hovering and rehoovering the living room to remove them.)

He's never been interested in the baubles, so there's been no problem since we got the fake tree. But he is a small dog and can't reach them.

I'd suggest artificial tree and put it on a table where puppy can't reach.
Also if you put gifts around the tree - assume he will try to open them. (My last dog got obsessed with one of the gifts - which turned out to be a torch for my DS - it was one of those rubber ones and she assumed it was for her and refused to give it back - having sneakily opened it when no one was looking Grin)

spiderlight · 20/11/2019 14:10

Would something like this work?

Original poster
Whywhywhy1 · 20/11/2019 14:15

Think I’m going to try it. May put a pen round it but I don’t put presents under it anyway as it’s too tempting for the kids!!!!

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