With the start of a new year often comes a New Year’s resolution – us promising to be a better version of ourselves than we were last year, or setting goals to keep us going. While most humans write a list of these for themselves, some have also started creating a list for their four-pawed pals too for 2021 – which we thought was a FURBULOUS idea!
We ran a poll in our Canine Club Facebook community group to find out exactly what kinds of goals most dogs (well, their humans) had planned for 2021. From fitness kicks to travelling more, being healthier to having more interaction with other puppers, a whole spectrum of amazing resolutions were being set by our canine community!
Here are the top 10 New Year’s resolutions for dogs for 2021, as chosen by our Canine Club members:
1. Enjoy a holiday together
In the top spot was ‘Enjoy a holiday together’. With dog ownership having soared during 2020, and dog holidays having been on the rise for a number of years, this comes as no surprise!
Thankfully, we here at Canine Cottages have more than 4,000 dog-friendly cottages around the UK – from the Cornish coast, via the Cotswolds countryside, and all the way up to the remote Highlands of Scotland – meaning you don’t have to look far to find your perfect property.
Welcoming up to five dogs, some with extra dog-friendly features like doggy welcome hampers, washing facilities, enclosed walking areas and more, browse our dog-friendly accommodation to find your ideal home from home – ready for when the world is fit to be explored again.
2. Visit new parts of the UK with our dogs
Second on this doggy New Year’s resolutions list was ‘Visit new parts of the UK’, another travel trend that emerged during 2020 which is set to take centre stage for the new year.
We’re not even biased when we say the UK has some AMAZING places to visit and explore – it’s a blatant fact. From incredible dog-friendly UK beaches all around the island, to some wonderfully welcoming dog-friendly locations, via cities and towns, country parks and National Trust properties with no dog restrictions – there’s plenty to see, do and enjoy across the British Isles.
3. Go on more dog walks
“Exercise more” is very often a resolution that pup-parents (aka humans) partake in themselves, so it’s no surprise to see it high up the list in our dog-friendly list. Walkies have become a big part of our lives over the last year, with exercise sometimes being the only means of getting out of the house, and so we’ve uncovered some of the UK’s best dog walks in our handy blog.
But do you know how fit your dog is? We’re all doing it, wearing smartwatches or devices on our wrists, measuring our activities on our phones - so why not do the same for our four-legged friends? Attaching to their collar, PitPat dog activity trackers give a breakdown of the time your pup has spent walking, running, playing and resting, how far they've gone and how many calories they've burned.
You get a tailored exercise goal based on your dog's age, weight and breed, and win stars and badges for hitting goals. It’s addictively fun, and what’s more, you get an exclusive discount when you sign up to Canine Club, our exclusive online community!
4. Take more photos of our dogs
One that we could potentially see going even higher in the coming years, with dog Instagram accounts becoming more and more popular (which we LOVE by the way). Not only that, though; by taking more photos we’re capturing moments we’ll be able to look back on in the future and reminisce on – whether they be cute, funny, naughty or sassy, they’ll all make wonderful memories, we promise you.
Just to clarify, we do mean the human taking photos of the dog, not the other way around (although that would be a sight to see!). But would you know where to start when it comes to capturing your pup’s best side? Could you snap a pic which would get you thousands of likes on Insta?
Don’t worry; we’ve got your back. We’ve put together 10 top tips for getting great photos of your dog, including some pro insight from Cara, pup-parent to our 2018 Canine Critic winner Poppy.
5. Make friends with other local canines
Oooh, four-legged friends! Paw pals! Mutt mates!
In all seriousness, we love this – and admittedly didn’t expect it to be this high in the top 10! If you’ve been out and about over the last year or so on your daily exercise or even just your regular walkies, chances are you’ve bumped into some four-legged neighbours and made acquaintance with a sniff and a lick (the dogs, that is).
Or perhaps you haven’t and would like to. Our friends at BorrowMyDoggy have been so kind as to offer up five top tips for meeting new dogs, ready for you to get out there and build your pack this year.
Funnily enough, the dieting and health kicks that usually make up most humans’ resolutions made up the bottom three of our Top 10, while playing together more and teaching new tricks completes our full list.
The remaining five of the top 10 were as follows:
- Play together more
- Teach your dog new tricks
- Better dental care
- Introduce a better diet
- More regular vets check-ups
What do you have planned for your pup this year? One - or some! - of the above, or something else? We'd love to know! Join our Canine Club Facebook community group and let us know!
Begin browsing through our dog-friendly holiday cottages across the UK and tick a few New Year resolutions off your dog's list!
We have a fantastic selection of cottages in a range of beautiful locations - great for discovering new places, dog walks and photo-ops - from the Lake District to Cornwall, the Highlands to Norfolk. Plan a New Year adventure today.
Disclaimer: Whilst every effort has been made to ensure the accuracy of the information at the time of writing,
please ensure you check carefully before making any decisions based on the contents within this article.