How to host holiday guests with a dog by your side

It’s that time of year again. For all the next-in-line family hosts, here’s how to put on a dog drama-free holiday.

Imagine: You’ve been reluctantly appointed the official holiday season host of the family. It’s a heavy burden to carry, but someone has to do it. Your first guests are arriving, and suddenly Scout’s acting like he’s never met anyone in his whole life. There’s barking, crying, yelling—and all you wanted was a peaceful holiday.

As much as it may not seem, dog-induced holiday stress is easily avoidable with a handful of pre-arrival preparations. And as always, we’ve rounded them up in a single scroll-length checklist.

One week prior to arrival, designate a room for your dog while you’re entertaining.

Whether it’s a room or tucked corner, choose somewhere that’s reasonably separate from the commotion, but not totally quiet. Be sure to stock the area with their favorite bed, toys, and blankets beforehand—plus a gate if you want to leave the door open (this helps ward off feelings of isolation).

A week before your guests arrive, introduce your dog to the space and let them get acquainted. Give them time to sniff around, settle in, maybe even play for an hour or two. So when it’s time to usher them inside, they don’t perceive it as punishment.

Brush up on dinner manners beforehand.

Practice basic tricks like getting them to lie down or go to their bed, but while you’re sitting at the dining table. This helps simulate what behavior you’re expecting from them later on, when you’re trying to keep an all-out war from erupting at family dinner.

Now’s also the time to check your own impulses—avoid enabling bad behavior like slipping table scraps. It also helps to align their eating schedule with yours, so everyone’s preoccupied at the same time.

Just like a drama-free dinner, good habits take weeks to prep (and an instant to break), so start training early.

Brief your guests on house rules before they come.

Good manners go both ways. Inform your guests of any essential house rules like: double check that doors are shut behind you, don’t feed the dog unless I’ve ok’d it, let me know ahead of time if you’re bringing a pet of your own.

Gently remind them again as they’re settling into your house. You’d be surprised how much a simple nudge can squash drama before it happens.

A few hours before guests arrive, get out the pre-arrival jitters.

Before your guests show up, take your dog for a longer-than-usual walk to release some pent-up energy.

As guests arrive, try to space the “meet and greets” with your dog as best as you can to avoid too much cognitive stimulation at once. In other words: Try not to overwhelm your dog so they don’t overwhelm your guests. Making sure your dog’s belly is full pre-arrival doesn’t hurt either.

Include your dog on the itinerary when you can.

Find pockets of the day to bring your dog in on the fun. Walk dinner off together, catch up at the dog park, or let your dog show off some tricks between courses. Showing your dog that you’re not intentionally shelving them away helps ease any feelings of jealousy or threat. Plus, it’s one less activity you have to plan.

Enjoy yourself.

A reminder that you’re doing great, and hosting is never an easy feat. Show yourself some grace, and accept that you’ve already done everything you can to prepare. All that’s left is to celebrate what goes right—and laugh it off when it doesn’t. At least you’re in good company.