Keeping your dogs safe and secure during the spookiest night of the year does not have to be tricky! Halloween safety is pretty common sense and easy to implement! Here are the best practices you, as a dog owner, can follow!
Hide The Treats
A small human’s favorite part of Halloween is the trick-or-treating! But this can be deadly to our canine family members. Most of our favorite Halloween sweets are toxic to dogs. All forms of chocolate, but mostly dark chocolate and baking chocolate, are not good for dogs. Also, sugar free treats that have xylitol in them can cause serious problems for dogs.
Have the candy bowl stored up high and away from the reach of dogs, to prevent a pup from getting things that they shouldn’t. After a successful Halloween night, have the dog put away in a crate or in a spare room while everyone is sorting through the candy stash.
If you believe your dog got into anything toxic, call your Veterinarian or Poison Control at 1-800-222-1222.
Decorations and Halloween Safety
Decorating your house for the holiday is always fun for the entire family. When it comes to the furry family members, be cautious of what decorations you have out and where. If there are real pumpkins or corn stalks on display, they are not relatively toxic to pets but can cause upset stomach and digestive discomfort. Also, if you chose to put a real light inside your Jack-O-Lantern, be careful where you display it. If a canine family member bumps into it, the flame can catch other things on fire.
If you have a learning puppy or naughty dog, keep in mind what other decorations you have out. You dog will need to be supervised at all times when in areas where your decorations are displayed. It is never a good day when a dog accidentally ingests a decoration piece or chews an exposed wire.
Halloween Safety for Costumes
Doggie Costumes
As cute as some costumes are, your dog may not be in love with the idea of joining in the family’s group costume. Make sure your dog is comfortable wearing costumes by doing some trial runs. If a costume is not for your pup, you will know right away. They will show signs of stress when wearing their attire. Always check costumes to make sure it does not restrict movement or obstruct from breathing properly.
If your dog is content in a costume, let them show off their look! Just look over the costume for dangling or loose pieces. If your dog starts chewing the costume, this can quickly turn into a choking hazard.
If your dog is not one for costumes, every dog looks good in a festive bandana! There are even some that can be purchased that can be customized or monogrammed for the holiday!
Human Costumes
Halloween is all about dressing up so that you can get yummy treats when you go Trick-O-Treating. To dogs, this can be absolutely terrifying. Dogs are hard wired to read human body language and movements. When someone wears a costume, dogs cannot read their body language properly. This results in fearful behavior.
Even if the dog knows you and your smell, they will be too overwhelmed with the costume to understand that it is you. If you have a dog that is showing signs of fearfulness, it is best to create a safety plan for them for Halloween night.
Create a Safe Space For Fearful Dogs
If Halloween is not your dog’s favorite holiday, the best thing to do for them is to create a safety plan. Safety plans can keep everyone safe and happy. All family members need to follow the rules and make sure your dog gets through the holiday stress free.
The dog should have a space that they go to for the duration of the Halloween activities. During the peak of the night, the doorbell may be going off, children in costumes laughing, and lots of movement in the home. Have your dog in their crate or in a spare room behind a puppy gate. This way they are away from the commotion. Make sure there are a lot of visual blockers for either the crate or spare room. You can cover the crate in a blanket or close the spare room door.
When the dog is in their crate or spare room, you should set up some soft playing music. This can help drown out the commotion happening on the other side of the house. Some dogs even enjoy watching television, so feel free to have Animal Planet playing.
Some amazing ways to keep your dog distracted while Halloween is occurring in the other room is to give them some mind games to work through. Using a frozen peanut butter in a Kong or even interactive treat dispensing toys can keep even the most distractible dog entertained for hours. For more ideas check out Exercising Your Dog’s Mind.
Make sure your dog has their ID on them at all times during Halloween night. The situation of your dog could getting spooked and running away is a possibility. If they have a clean and legible ID tag, whoever finds them can get in contact with you as soon as possible. Also, your dog being microchipped is the best way possible to get your dog home if they happen to be missing.