During the pandemic Phoebe and Frank found their daily routines flipped upside down. Overnight, they went from being left alone for six hours a day, to never being home alone, and I’d be lying if I said it didn’t cause a few separation anxiety issues.
They quite quickly got used to having a lie in, a later breakfast and became pretty accostomed to a midday Lickimat on the odd occasion. But when things started to return to normal and we were out of the house more frequently, we got a Tapo dog security camera to keep an eye on them. We’ve since acquired an Arlo essential indoor camera too, so we can have eyes on the Scamps from all angles – and now we couldn’t be without a pet cam.
Read more: Tapo dog security camera where you can talk to your pet
I recommend getting a doggy spy camera to all my pet-owning friends for a number of reasons, but they’re particularly helpful for those owners who became pet parents in lockdown, for whom separation anxiety could be a much bigger issue leading to stressed pups and chewed furniture. They’re also great for rescued dogs who might have some issues where monitoring their behaviour might be helpful.
Not only that, but they offer priceless peace of mind. You know, sometimes I don’t know if it’s me or the dogs with the separation anxiety! So, here are six reasons why you should invest in a dog security camera for your home.
Safety
If your pet injures themselves or gets sick while you’re out, you’ll be able to cut your coffee date short to head home to them and make sure they’re okay. As well as making sure your pets are safe, the cameras can also be helpful in the case of a burglary or intruder in your home. Our Arlo camera can differentiate between humans and animals, and alerts my phone via the app so I can check if something out of the ordinary is going on. They’re also handy when we go on holiday as we can keep a check on the house, too.
Monitor behaviour
Through monitoring Phoebe and Frank’s behaviours via our dog security cameras, we’ve discovered that Phoebe couldn’t care less when we aren’t home. Frank, however, remains restless for around 20 minutes, checking the windows and pacing around before he settles. He also gets up at the slightest noise, from a car door to delivery drivers and neighbours chatting.
A camera can help owners learn more about their pets routines, their body language and whether being left alone is stressful for them. Some dogs are quite happy being left alone all day, whereas others can only cope with an hour or two before howling the house down. Being able to understand your dogs behaviour patterns and emotions makes them much easier to tackle, and if you choose to go to a trainer, you already have the incredibly useful footage they’ll need to help you unravel the behavioural issues.
Solve mysteries
Particularly helpful if you live in a multi-pet household, having a dog security camera helps solve a few mysteries. I mean, it’s not necessarily needed for that reason in our house, we already know it’s Frank that’s guilty of any wrong doings and a jury would agree. He hasn’t the best track record having chewed up the sofa, three TV remotes and swallowed five tealight candles while we were out – though I know you can’t go off previous convictions alone. But a spy cam means you’ll be able to catch your dogs in the act and expose the shoe snatchers and remote nibblers.
Talk to them
Most decent pet cams have a two way audio feature, meaning you can both hear your pet (and the shopping channel you’ve left on to entertain them), and speak to them. We don’t often use this feature if we’re going to be out for a while because we don’t want to upset them, but it has come in handy on occasion. For example, our dogs aren’t allowed on the sofa, much to Phoebe’s dismay, so we usually cover them up. But, I’ve been getting ready to hop in the bath and heard her get on the sofa downstairs, so have been able to tell her to get off the sofa without having to march downstairs in a towel.
We’ll occasionally speak to the dogs when we’re around 10 minutes from home, too, and find it too funny that they look around as if the voice of God has spoken. Frank’s head tilts have me in stitches as he tries to work out where the voice is coming from.
Curiosity
As well as the obvious safety benefits, one of the main reasons we invested in a pet security camera was curiosity. We wondered what our dogs were getting up to all day, and were pretty shocked that it wasn’t sitting by the front door waiting for us to come home all day like Max in Secret Life of Pets. It does come in pretty handy on weekends too, like when I want a lie in, I’ll check the camera – which has night vision – to see if the dogs are awake yet. If they’re not, I go back to my episode of Schitt’s Creek before getting up to let them out.
Capture hilarious moments
I love nothing more than watching TikTok videos of dogs causing absolute mayhem while their owners are out, from tearing down Christmas trees to counter surfing. If your dog is one of those kinds of pets, you might as well go viral from it. Our captured moments are less TikTok-worthy, but still super sweet and make us laugh. Frank often boops the camera lens with his nose, and he always grabs his blanket in preparation for someone entering the house to show them as a gift, and being able to watch his little routine melts my heart every time.
Peace of mind
Having the opportunity to check in on your pets while your not there offers priceless peace of mind. I no longer fret about them on the occasions that we are all out of the house, and don’t need to worry about rushing home if actually, they’re still pretty settled. I only wish I’d bought one sooner.
