Halloween Pet Safety

Halloween may be exciting for humans, but to our pets it is just another day. Still, many people enjoy including their pets in Halloween festivities. There is nothing wrong with wanting your pet to be a part of your families Halloween celebration. However, it is important to keep their safety and comfort in mind when you want to include them.

First and foremost, pets should never share our Halloween treats. They will beg when they see us enjoying something tasty, but chocolate is like poison to our pets. Chocolate should never be given to a pet, even in small quantities. Search the internet for homemade treats for your pets. This way you have something new and tasty for your pets on Halloween.

Halloween candy can create a mess of candy wrappers. Always make sure that your children throw their wrappers in the trash can immediately. Pets will often eat things off the ground and the foil and plastic that Halloween candy is wrapped in can be dangerous to a pet if eaten. Even the tiniest piece of foil or plastic from a candy wrapper can cause a potentially deadly intestinal blockage.

Additionally, you should make sure any Halloween decorations that have candles such as Jack-O-Lanterns are placed out of reach of pets. You want to make certain that tails and paws aren't able to knock over or touch candles. Not only could this start a fire, but it could burn you pet.

Often people like to dress their pets up in Halloween costumes. Of course weather or not pets should be dressed up at all is a source of much debate for many, but that isn't the issue at hand. If your pet is comfortable in clothes and you don't feel that dressing them up will cause them any undue stress, putting them in a Halloween costume is fine. The most important thing to keep in mind when it comes to pet Halloween costumes is comfort. Make sure that the Halloween costume does not obstruct your pets vision, ears, tail or their ability to walk, eat or go the bathroom.

If you have a particularly nervous pet you may want to isolate them during any Halloween festivities. Some pets get worked up when someone knocks at the door. Naturally, if you are expecting a large amount of trick or treating traffic you may not want to subject a nervous pet to the constant knocking. If you are having a Halloween gathering you may want to limit a nervous pets exposure to noise and people in costumes. All of these normal Halloween activities can be quite nerve racking to a nervous pet.