Halloween Pet Safety
As exciting as Halloween is for children, the same may not be said for our pets. In fact, Halloween can be an extremely stressful time for dogs and cats. The commotion of strangers ringing your doorbell, repeatedly knocking on the door and shouting “Trick or Treat” can be a confusing time for our pets.
Imagine what’s going through your dog and cat’s mind on Halloween evening? Groups of excited costumed people are yelling at your door standing with bags wide open, only to leave and then have it repeated over and over again!
Now I’m not suggesting we lock our doors and turn off the lights ( or am I?) on Halloween evening, but for the sake of our pets we must take precautions to ensure their safety.
Keeping our pets safe and calm(er) on Halloween
Ensure your dog or cat cannot slip out the door when greeting trick or treaters. It can happen in the blink of an eye!
Keep pets in a room where they feel safe, comfortable, and are unable to access an open door. Leave a collar or harness on your dog and cat and ensure they are wearing up to date identification with your contact information.
Keep cats indoors Halloween evening
Consider keeping your outdoor cat in for the evening. Black cats in particular have been known to be at risk of injury from cruel pranksters on Halloween.
Halloween food safety for pets
The candy, the chocolate, the chips and gum, the list of Halloween treats are endless! These treats, although yummy for children and adults alike, can be your pet’s worst nightmare!
Read labels and keep treats out of pet’s reach
Dog owners have always been made aware of the dangers of chocolate and how it can cause symptoms of vomiting, diarrhea, rapid breathing, even seizures, but now we must also be made aware of an ingredient called Xylitol. Xylitol can be found in many products, including, but not limited to, gum, candies, even some peanut butters. It only takes a small amount of Xylitol to be ingested by our dog to cause a sudden drop in blood sugar, loss of coordination, seizures, even death. Make sure to read all ingredient labels, but most importantly, keep the treats up and out of our pet’s reach.
In case of a pet health emergency, always have your vet’s contact information on hand, or that of the nearest Emergency Veterinarian Clinic.
For dogs and cats that are truly stressed by the activities of Halloween evening, the only answer may be to turn off your lights and close the door. Still want to participate in Halloween and treat those cute little trick or treaters? Enlist the help of a neighbour by giving them your Halloween treats and having them fill those treat bags on your behalf.
Have a safe, fun-filled Halloween
Let’s have a fun-filled, spooktacular Halloween, but most importantly, let’s make it a safe one for our pets!
November 1, 2017
I’m pretty lucky that my dogs don’t mind costumes, decor, and leave candy alone. We do keep an eye on candy, and store it up high anyways though. My boarding dogs do have some issues though depending on who is here each year! But we have a good system, great tips!
October 31, 2017
Good point about contact info – my dog has it all on a glow in the dark tag (silidog tag) on his collar constantly even though most of the neighbourhood knows him now.
October 31, 2017
What a great and timely post. I love this time of year but I know danger lurks, especially for our pets. Fantastic reminders.
October 30, 2017
Thank you for sharing. I’ve resorted to turning off the lights and going to the back of the house with the girls to avoid them being too stressed or escaping.
October 30, 2017
Halloween is really a miserable holiday for our dog. She wants all the candy the kids are eating and she refuses to get dressed up. My kids have bought her many costumes and she will allow them to be put on her, but she refuses to even take one step forward in it! It is pretty funny.
October 29, 2017
This is such an important post! I’m glad you took the time to write it and put all of these things out there, it’s easy for safety precautions to slip our minds around holidays like Halloween but I like that some of your steps include thinking ahead. I definitely think the harness or collar with identification attached especially when they can just slip out the door in the blink of an eye. Have a safe Halloween!!
October 29, 2017
Yes! All these tips are so crucial to keep your pet safe. When I was younger (and didn’t know better) I always fed our lab candy on halloween and now I feel so bad about it. Disclaimer: the candy never caused her any problems.
October 29, 2017
Great Post and so important to remind everyone about the hazards
October 29, 2017
LOVE the costume, first of all!! Second, great advice. Thank you for sharing the importance of making sure the peanut butter is safe as well. NO candy for the pets!
October 29, 2017
People tend to underestimate the stress that Halloween can cause pets. We love the costumes, decorations, and treats, but most of the time, our pets don’t feel the same!
October 29, 2017
Thanks for sharing these valuable tips! Halloween is my family’s big holiday, but we don’t include our dogs in any of it. They stay safely inside their crates and because we humans hang out in the yard and on the porch, no one even rings the doorbell.
October 29, 2017
Thank you for these useful tips! Our pets safety should always be our number one priority. Halloween can be stressful for them with all those masks and loud noises!
October 29, 2017
Great post! Safety at Halloween for pets is often overlooked amid all the fun! Slipping out an open door and ingesting candy are the biggest risks!
Love & Biscuits,
Dogs Luv Us and We Luv Them
October 29, 2017
Important safety tips that all pet owners can benefit from. I especially like the turn off your lights, bit. I have little kids so we go out right after school. That, and I live in a small neighborhood, so it’s a pretty quiet night thankfully. All my extra candy I bring to the barn for the teenagers.
October 29, 2017
I love Halloween and seeing all the kids but we usually put Kilo down in his crate for an hour of the peak time with a stuffed Kong and/or a Bully Stick as he gets very stressed. Then the rest of the night he is on his leash on my knee away from the door as he thinks every stranger who comes to the door is an alien invader out to get us and Halloween just confirms his worst fears. We are very careful with treats as Kilo will try to steal wrapper and all and he can jump like a ninja.
October 28, 2017
I love these tips and so many don’t think about FOOD safety. The kids bring so much into the house we wouldn’t usually have and the cats want to play/chew on many, which is NOT a good thing. Thank you for sharing these tips!
October 27, 2017
A great reminder for everyone! Halloween is such a scary time for many pets. Add fireworks to the mix and it’s double trouble.
I hope everyone stays safe while still having fun.
October 27, 2017
My dog loves the attention of the kids on Halloween and is good with them, but I only allow him on our front porch with us if he is leashed. With so many sounds and sights to distract him, I would hate for him to bolt unexpectedly. I also give him homeopathic drops that calm him. If your dog wants to be outside with you, this can make a real difference.
October 27, 2017
We hardly ever get trick-or-treaters so it’s like every other night. There’s a big community event so I think a lot of the kids go there instead. Especially when it rains!
October 27, 2017
Great post! I have one dog who LOVES visitors coming to the door and another who is afraid of strangers. Luckily we have a room in our house we can keep closed off and quiet where our fearful boy can relax.