It’s a fun time of the year with costumes, kids dressed up like animals and animals dressed up like people, candy everywhere, scary noises and special effects, everybody wandering around at night, haunted houses and many out of the ordinary events.   Pet owners might think ahead to some special precautions in order to protect our furry friends and keep them comfortable and safe.   We don’t want doggie to react defensively by biting what might be perceived as a scary threat.   We don’t want our cats and dogs to be the victims of pranks either.

  With all this noise and commotion, what steps can we take so that Halloween craziness will not over stress our little family members?  Consider these tips from wikihow.com and suite101.com:

10 Ways to Keep your pets safe on Halloween”

• Have a dog crate or secure spare bedroom where your pet can feel safe and not feel anxious with the opening and closing of the front door when trick-or-treaters come and pets might escape.
• No open flames at party time or for decorations around pets
• Keep candy up and away from  your dog; especially chocolates and foil wrapped candies.
• Kids and their sudden movements and startling noises can upset pets.   Scary costumes do the same so do not leave your dog alone unsupervised around kids.
• Careful about electrical cords and decorations.
• If your dog wears a costume, make certain it fits right and that there is nothing dangerous that can be chewed on.  It might be safer to leave your dog at home.
• Remind kids about the dangers of treats and not to feed the dog.
• Do not take your dog up to a strangers door/ have someone wait at the end of the driveway if you must take your dog.
• Animals are often taunted  and teased on Halloween night so do not leave your dog outside.  Black cats are especially vulnerable.
• We all want to show off how cute our kids and pets look all dressed up, but remembering these simple precautions can help keep this fun holiday safe and comfortable.