Halloween Safety Tips for Dogs
This article comes to us from Brice Cavanugh, of Team Dog!, a dog training company with locations in Chicago and St. Louis. Team Dog! prides themselves in providing an educational, entertaining, friendly, functional and innovative experience of uncompromising quality that meets the dog training needs of the entire family, building balanced relationships through clear communication. Brice has written an excellent article on Halloween tips that will help keep our pets and ourselves safe this Halloween. Enjoy!
Halloween can be an especially trying time for our furry friends, so Team Dog! has put together a list of 13 tips to help you and yours avoid the common problems associated with the most dangerous holiday for dogs!
1. Make sure that your dog’s ID tag is up to date and secure on their collar…just in case!
2. Keep candy away from your dog! Many candies can be toxic to dogs as well as being a choking hazard! Wrappers of eaten candies can be of concern as well!
3. Supervise! Children and dogs should always be supervised together, and this is especially true during this high energy holiday!
4. Protect dogs from Jack-O-Lanterns, candles and the like. Besides the obvious problems of getting into a flame, wagging tails can knock over items that can cause big trouble!
5. Costumes. Many can be chewing/choking hazards, and some dogs just don’t like the constricting nature that most costumes create. It may be fun for us, but consider your dog! Make sure that your dog has good peripheral vision to enable them to fully use their senses…
6. The eyes have it! Costumes worn by humans can take away a dog’s ability to see strangers as they are accustomed to meeting them (in addition to scent). Hidden eyes can create insecurity in your dog, which can elicit defensive postures and actions. Let your dog smell your costumes prior to your putting them on, and ease them into this new phenomena!
7. Don’t take your dog out Trick or Treating with you! Many dogs are balanced and comfortable with this, but many are not. It is human nature on this holiday to play pranks and scare fellow holiday goers, but your dog may not understand, and therefore protect his family! Be aware of this! It is only one day, he will probably be just as content to sleep through it, which leads us to…
8. Provide a safe and quiet place for your dog. Many dogs look at their crates as a sanctuary (good training!), or a quiet room will serve the same purpose. Allowing your dog to avoid the craziness of doorbells, strange costumes and the volume of visitors is an excellent way to help your dog through the evening.
9. Practice your recall! Dog s should come when called, and practicing this skill can be life-saving! Door bolting is a huge concern when the door is answered and opened dozens of times within an evening.
10. Holiday decorations, like Silly String™ are fun to play with, for both you and your pet…but they should only be playing with toys designed for them and under your supervision.
11. Exercise your dog prior to the festivities kicking off! Having them mentally and physically spent helps them to relax better!
12. Help your dog through trying times. Reassurance can be helpful, but make sure that you are not encouraging undesired behavior. Optimally, refer to #8, but if you want your dog out and about, be aware of their state of mind and reward/discourage accordingly!
13. Have fun! Our pets can be a wonderful part of our celebration, but if they are overwhelmed, the opposite can be true! There is no need to create a problem that could take weeks to fix just to have a good time for a couple of hours, but if your dog can handle it, then have a blast!
For more great information, dog training tips, and videos, or if you are looking for Dog Training in Chicago, be sure to visit the website of Team Dog!
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[...] Paul wrote an interesting post today onHalloween Safety Tips for DogsHere’s a quick excerptCostumes. Many can be chewing/choking hazards, and some dogs just don’t like the constricting nature that most costumes create. It may be fun for us, but consider your dog! Make sure that your dog has good peripheral vision to enable … [...]
[...] Paul wrote an interesting post today onHalloween Safety Tips for DogsHere’s a quick excerptHalloween can be an especially trying time for our furry friends, so Team Dog! has put together a list of 13 tips to help you and yours avoid the common problems associated with the most dangerous holiday for dogs! … [...]