Protect Pets on Halloween

The following is a list of precautions suggested and recommended by numerous animal shelters and veterinarians designed to keep pets safe on Halloween.

NOISES and STRANGE STRANGERS:
Trick or treaters can cause loud and excessive noise and frighten your pet, so try to keep your pets inside in a quiet room where they are insulated from the Halloween rukus. : )

Pets, especially dogs, that are easily excitable or threatened by strangers should be kept from the front door so they cannot bite anyone or run into the street. With many people visiting the home in strange attire, even normally calm pets might overreact.

Keep pets on a shorter-than-normal leash if you plan on walking outside on Halloween. Again, scary and weird looking trick-or-treaters could provoke aggression in even the nicest pet.

KISS OF DEATH
Candy, especially chocolate, is toxic for animals and can cause vomiting, restlessness, heart disturbances, and even death. Ask kids not to share candy with pets.

CANDLES
Be careful with lit pumpkins and candles because pets can knock them over and start a fire. Therefore ensure that all burning objects are out of pet’s reach. Remember that cats can jump high, and birds can fly, so try to confine a pet if it demonstrates an “unhealthy” interest in flames (e.g. it puts its paws in lit pumpkins or tries to play with candles).

PETS IN DISGUISE
Avoid costumes held in place by rubber bands, which can be uncomfortable and, more important, rubber bands mistakenly left on a pet can quickly burrow into the animal’s skin and cause injury. Additionally, rubber bands in the wrong place can choke a bird.

If a pet wears a costume, make sure it is not constricting, causing your pet to trip, or blocking its vision. Do not force a pet to wear a costume if it demonstrates discomfort. All of the above can cause undue stress and possibly cause aggression in even the nicest dog, goldfish, or iguana.

EVIL IN THE NIGHT
Don’t leave pets outside on Halloween. Many animals disappear as pranksters and those with darker intentions tease, abduct, torture, or even kill pets.

Be especially watchful of black cats, who which are frequent targets of cruel activities on Halloween. Try to keep black cats inside for the week of Halloween. Many animal shelters make black cats unavailable for adoption the week before Halloween because of black cat abuse.

Read more: Pets, Everyday Pet Care, Safety

By Hilary Stamper, Environmental Activism Manager, Care2.com

Disclaimer: The views expressed above are solely those of the author and may not reflect those of
Care2, Inc., its employees or advertisers.

Vrisha D.

12:35AM PST on Jan 17, 2012

awesome writing, nice one... :)

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send a green star

Faith B.

1:56AM PDT on Oct 27, 2011

thank you for this article :)

Carole R.

6:13PM PDT on Oct 25, 2011

Great reminders. We have to be sure our pets enjoy Halloween, too. Especially those precious black cats. Take special care of them this week.
Happy Halloween people and pets.

Sue C.

6:44PM PDT on Oct 19, 2011

Yes, be very protective of your pets. A number of years ago our cat got so scared by the fireworks on Halloween, he ran and ran and ended up miles from home. Took us 3 weeks to find him. Many lost pet stories don't end so well as ours did. And, there are people who do evil ritual harm to pets, and make them suffer terribly. Please DON'T let Pets be harmed in ANY way!

Jon H.

11:04AM PDT on May 23, 2011

If you love your pet, keep them in on Halloween. We did every year due to crazy people being suspicious on Halloween.

11:02AM PDT on May 23, 2011

So sad when a black cat is killed due to some people think their bad luck when their not and just as friendly as any other cat. Killing a black cat is raceist. Sounds funny but true when you think of it. We had a black cat one time that died of old age and weighed 32 pounds. Bundle of joy. And a yellow tomcat that always brought you birds or snakes as a way of saying thank you for caring for me. He was a cat of nine lives even though he had been shot many time he still lived through it all till he died of old age.

Suzannah S.

2:11AM PST on Dec 20, 2010

Thanks for the helpful and informative article!

Gloria H.

12:05PM PDT on Oct 31, 2010

People who wear furs have no ability to make the connection between suffering of trapped, caged animals and a house pet. duh. fur is fur. Big cat, tiny cat. Keep your kitties inside and the fur coats outside-where they belong..on the backs of the original owners...the big cats.
May all little/big cats be safe on Halloween and the rest of 364 days! Blessed Be!

leyna s.

9:19AM PDT on Oct 31, 2010

Thanks! I had a friend whose black cat got shot on halloween! so sad!

Spamm H.

5:48PM PDT on Sep 23, 2010

I hadn't really though about Halloween being dangerous for pets. I have a yellow lab, and she is absolutely wonderful. I guess, she'll need to be put in the garage that night. Poor girl.

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