How to make sure that Halloween is fun for your furry friend.
Halloween can be an exciting time for us humans, but to a
puppy who has never experienced it? It can be a scary time.
They are suddenly seeing a lot more people than usual, and many are dressed up as strange creatures they might have never seen. It might be worth moving walkies to an earlier time to avoid most of the crowds, especially for nervous pups.
We’ve put together a guide below on how to keep your canine safe.
Things to look out for:
- Carved pumpkins with candles in.
As an owner, you need to be careful that any pumpkins with lit candles are kept well out of the way of waggly tails. Dogs can easily burn themselves if their fur catches on the open flame.
- Trick or Treaters
Your dog is likely used to you having a few visitors. But you could end up having the number of knocks on the door in one night that you usually would have in a week.
This can make your dog feel anxious as they don’t know what’s going on. It might be worth putting up a sign to ask trick or treaters not to call at your house if you’re really concerned.
- Unsafe Tasty Treats
Everybody knows that chocolate is poisonous to dogs. As a rule, the darker the chocolate (the more theobromine it contains), the more deadly it is to dogs. However, all chocolate can cause harms to your canine companion.
You should also be careful around sweets – if your dog eats too much, it could cause pancreatitis which makes your dog sick and lethargic. Don’t be tempted to look at sugar free sweets as safe, most of them contain Xylitol which is poisonous to pooches.
- Wrappers, containers, and Halloween Costumes
If your dog eats any of the above, it can cause an obstruction in their gut which can be very dangerous.
What to do if your dog eats something it shouldn’t:
- Consult your vet immediately for advice.
- Make a note of what they’ve eaten, how much of it they ate and when it was eaten.
- Do not try and make your dog sick – this can make the situation worse.
In most cases, the holiday will pass without event, but it’s important to do what you can to keep your furry friend safe.
We hope that both you and your pooch have a lovely Halloween!