Puppies and Christmas trees?

[Mandy and Norman]

Hi everyone! Just wondering if anyone has any experience with new puppies and Christmas trees! If you have any experience, how did your puppy react? Are there precautionary measures we should take in preparation for setting up for the holidays? The thought of our little guy pulling down the tree or chewing apart/digesting wrapping paper from gifts under the tree makes me so nervous!

 

Any insight to this would be much appreciated!

 

Thanks!

[Jarka, Monty & Auggie]

We still had baby gates in the house when Auggie was 7 months old during his first Christmas. When he wanted to take something off the tree into his mouth, we just told him no. I know Norman will be much younger, so I think you will just have to watch him like a hawk when he is running around and restrict his access to the tree (if possible) when you can't watch him.

[Nadia]

I am so scared of this too. I work for 3 hours a day and I let Bentley have full access of the house when I am gone and at night when we are all asleep. I am so terrified of what will happen. I have thought about not putting up a tree but my 3 kids would be devastated if I didn't.

[Nicky, Riley & Boris]

This may seem extreme but we decided against a Christmas tree when we got Riley and even though he is over two years old Boris is just over one now so we won't get one this year either. We just decorate the house  and we get a lovely garland that hangs across the Fireplace. We just wouldn't take a chance, we have an open plan house so gating off areas isn't an option and why should the boys be crated just because we like to look at a tree and fairy lights for a few weeks.

[Heather Martinez]

This will be Teddy's third Christmas. For his first two, he did not have free reign in the house and so he wasn't often alone with the Christmas tree. We did keep all of our presents in baskets out of his reach to avoid temptation. When we first put up the tree, we supervised him and told him "leave it" when he got near the tree, so he would be aware that it was off limits. He did take a liking to a couple of ornaments on the tree (wooden ones, luckily!) and tried to chew them, but for the most part was very good. However, this year since he has free reign of the house, I will probably gate off the living room when we are not home, just to avoid giving him the opportunity to get into trouble. 

[Rosemary (Ro) and Enzo]

This will be Enzo's first Christmas.  She is just 5 months now....going to be REALLY,REALLY, interesting!

[jan mayes]

Our Dutch is now seven months old and it will be his first Christmas also.....We plan to elevate the tree on a coffee table about two feet tall in hopes that he will leave it alone, BUT.....He also has restricted access to the living room so we should be able to watch him.  Our cat loves the curling ribbon on the packages so it will be fun to see what will come of it all.

[Stella]

Put an x-pen around the tree if you go out and leave the puppy loose.

[Lucy & AnnaBelle's Mom]

Lucy and Sophie's 1st Christmas they were 10 months and we put up a table top tree in a corner and blocked the access to it with a ex-pen.  They didn't seem to pay much attention to it at all.  The second year we just put it up and didn't put up the ex pen.  They left it alone.  This year AnnaBelle will be 9 months and we aren't decorating so it won't be a problem.

[Lynda Kamrath]

Yep, puppies and trees can be a problem.  Our miniature poodle loved to stalk under the tree and rub his back under the branches.  He knocked off all the ornaments on the lower branches.  Hondo was no problem at all, but Groucho Too liked to snag an ornament (painted wood especially) and chew them up.  Harpo would pick an ornament off the tree and hide it somewhere.  Our friend, Pat, devised a little trick.  He painted up a mouse trap and hung it on the front of the tree.  When the dog took a smell, it snapped at him.  Worked for that year.  Last year, no problems with the tree.  This year, we will see.

[Lonnie & Libby Lu]

Libby's first Christmas was a nightmare.  As I decorated, she took it off.  Into all decorations and had to have her x-rayed twice because we thought she swallowed a hook off an ornament!  Both times, negative and thank goodness.  So we took out the tree and decorations from the family room and put them in the living room with a baby gate so she could not get to anything.  Her second Christmas, she was an angel and left everything alone!  We gave her a soft toy Reindeer to play with and that is the only thing she touched.  What a difference a year made:)

[Tammie Ciesielka]

Roxy was just 8 weeks old when we got her at Christmas time last year.  She loved the tree.  She always slept under it.  After a few weeks she liked to pee under it (lol) so we really had to keep a watch on her.  This year we will probably keep the bottom 2 feet ornament free.  :)

[Wendy and Myla]

Awww - what a gorgeous picture!!!  I would definitely frame this and hang it as an ornament from now on!!!!

So cute!!!!!