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Tips for Safe Halloween
TRY THESE TIPS TO KEEP PETS COMFORTABLE ON HALLOWEEN
Halloween can be a ghoulish time for your pets. Like most holidays, Halloween adds a lot of stress for your dog or cat, but a little advance preparation can keep them safe and comfortable. Pet Wellness Consultant Erik Johnson of Pet-Helper.com suggests these five ways to take the pain out of trick or treating for your favorite animal.
- If you are going trick or treating, leave them home. Even the best behaved dog can be unnerved by all those little ghosts and goblins in holiday spirit. For absolutely essential trips outside, put your dog on a shorter than normal leash to make sure he feels secure. That will help you maintain close control so he doesn’t scare small trick or treaters too.
- Find a quiet place away from the door for your cat or dog to enjoy the evening. Most dogs feel the need to respond to strangers at the door – why put your pet - and yourself - through the stress of answering the door together over and over and over? A little soothing music or even the television may help to mask some of the commotion on the porch so your pet can rest. If you know your pet gets stressed easily, try a gentle relaxing product like Calm Pet to keep him feeling comfortable.
- If your animal must be in the same room as the front door, be sure he is leashed, crated or otherwise under control before that door is opened. The intense excitement your pet will feel with all those visitors coming to the door can spark unusual behaviors and you don’t want to have to spend your Halloween night roaming the streets looking for a lost dog or trying to get the cat out of the neighbor’s tree.
- Having a Halloween party? A house full of noisy people in wild costumes, complete with loud music and rich food may be your idea of a good time, but to your dog or cat it is a recipe for way too much stress and possible digestive upsets. And a stressed out animal can react by biting or scratching – not a good way to impress the partygoers. Your dog or cat in a Halloween costume may be cute but he probably isn’t having the time of his life, so take pity on your pet and give him a quiet place away from the crowd.
- NO candy – those treats that play havoc with human waistlines and teeth are not a bit better for our pets. Chocolate can be downright deadly. Be sure children and party guests know that feeding the pet is off limits.
