Do you celebrate Halloween with your animals? If you don’t, that’s great. No right or wrong.
I’ll be sharing some tips to keep your animal companions safe and if your animals are stressed or scared. Things that you can do right now beforehand and also to get ready for the little trick-or-treaters.
I also share something called Rescue Remedy and how you can use it with your animal companions and yourself because this can be very stressful for you and your animals. There are a lot of things we don’t think about when it comes to Halloween and keeping our animals safe.
Here are some tips to keep your animal companions safe:
No sweets for your sweetie. Keep your animal companions away from candy, especially chocolate. I did a little research about that. Back in the day when I was little, everything was made with natural ingredients. They didn’t have the preservatives and the chemicals they have now. It’s really more the chemicals that we have to be careful of. We should be careful ourselves too, but especially for our animals, because some of these things can cause kidney failure and all kinds of things.
I think raisins might be dangerous also for dogs and cats. I’m not sure about that, but I hear a lot of people talking about the dangers. Raisins!? I’m like, What? When did that happen? So just be aware and you can do your research if you really want to find out more about the things that are dangerous.
When the kids bring home candy or you have candy, a lot of things are in little crinkly wrappers, right? So when my Kitties hear a crinkle, they think it’s treat time and they come running. If they are triggered by that, your animals, dogs, cats might just think it is a treat for them. So just be aware of those kinds of things.
Avoid placing bowls of candy on the ground. This might be dangerous for your dogs or cats because they get curious, they have an excellent sense of smell… better than ours, their sense of hearing, their sense of taste, and they’re going to be really drawn to those kinds of things. Be aware and just check out your surroundings and be aware of your animals, because it’s really easy not to.
Keep your pumpkin away. The real pumpkin without things being done to it is really healthy for your animal companion. It’s really good for you, even canned pumpkin, it’s really good for digestion, for diarrhea, for constipation. But there are safety hazards to be careful of. If you use flames like a candle, be aware. Cats, dogs put their noses in it and then the whiskers get burned. Be aware of your surroundings and what you’re doing.
If you have to have a lit candle in a pumpkin, it might be good to do it outside. Or you can use the electric candles, the little battery operated ones, even though they’re not as bright as the real thing. Nothing’s better than the real thing, but you have to be careful.
Costumes are very optional. A lot of you love to dress your animals up in costumes. That’s fantastic if they like it, but a lot of animals don’t like it. Really tap into and connect with your animal companion. And if they’re giving you a yes, then have fun. If they’re giving you a no, please don’t force them.
I’m not going go off on a little tangent or a pet peeve, but don’t force them because it’s so stressful for them. If you do have a costume for them and they’re really happy and you’re happy make sure they can breathe and see, that’s really, really important. Don’t block their air passages or their vision and also their hearing because there’s a lot going on that usually doesn’t happen if you’re going out for Halloween or if people are coming and going.
I do know animals that love to be dressed up. I have a friend who has a kitty that had to have a ribbon tied around. So she would always get a seasonal, different color ribbons and the kitty was so happy and so proud to wear it. You know your animals, listen to them, pay attention to them. If they’re not happy with a costume, there’s alternatives, especially if it’s a dog or a cat that’ll go on a leash. You could have a Halloween collar or harness and then a leash. I’m sure they have all kinds of funny leashes now that are really festive. By doing this, your animals can feel happy and safe and you’re still able to do the fun stuff for we humans. We have to just really pay attention and listen to the animal companions.
No trick or treater. Greeters. What do you mean by that? So it’s not the trick or treaters, it’s your animals. Most of us have dogs or cats that are inside. There’s other animals too to consider that are inside. Just because they’re really good when somebody comes to the door, it’s really different when you have trick or treaters coming to the door.
People have masks on or different costumes and the kids get so excited. The dogs or cats can get very excited too, or scared. They can get really upset and this is a time where animals can get out, they can get lost. I shared about that in my video; Your Animal IS MISSING! Part 1 & 2 It’s so important to update those chips. If your animal is chipped, make sure that the information is correct.
Their identification tags are correct. Make sure you’ve got a tag on the collar, and make sure it’s got the correct information on it. Be sure to have the collar and tag on for Halloween. If the worst did happen and they got loose and they got lost, they could easily find their way back to you. Somebody could help them get back. That’s just really, really, really important.
I had a family member whose cat got out. It was an indoor outdoor cat, but got out during holiday when people were coming and going from the house, and the kitty ended up living in a feral colony. It was a miracle because the kitty was chipped and somebody actually picked up the kitty and took him to a vet. That’s the only way that kitty cat got back to them.
And then party poopers are okay if you have an animal that stresses easily or you stress easily too. The best way to keep them safe and calm is to give them a space all to themselves with a door that closes. Some animals are much happier just being in their safe, cozy place.
When my animals get stressed or I get stressed before Halloween, I like to use Rescue Remedy for me and my animal companions. You can get this online. It is a liquid with a little dropper bottle. I like to use the human version with my animal companions, but it does have alcohol in it, just as a preservative. I tasted the animal version and it is very sweet, sugary, but no alcohol. My kitties hate anything sweet, so I take a few drops and put it in their water bowl. Mix it up and then they can drink it. You can put a few drops on your palms, fingers and rub your palms together and then rub their ears. A little goes a long way. You can put it in a little spray bottle of distilled water and then a couple of drops and shake it up. And then just mist the air. Don’t spray it on them.
If you are taking it for yourself, just take a drop or two, stick it under your tongue and you can put it in water to dilute it like a couple of drops in a bottle of water and drink it that way. If you’re giving it to them, give it to yourself. It’ll help you calm down. It’s really helpful, especially for an animal or a human that is feeling nervous or jittery.
This can be a stressful time along with being a really, really fun time. For those of you that are celebrating Halloween, I’m so happy that you came to celebrate with us, and will be keeping the animals safe.
For more information on keeping your animal companions safe during Halloween, watch my video here.
