4 Things Pet Owners Should Do Before Halloween

Lots of us will be dressing up and eating sweets this month on the Gold Coast, sounds like a good time right? Your pets might not agree. Here are some easy steps you can take to keep your pets happy this Halloween. 

Make a safe place for your pet

Pets can get nervous or excited when the doorbell rings or somebody knocks on the door. The mystery and excitement of the door are enough to make your pet a little bit anxious... but on Halloween, you don’t know what you’ll be opening the door to.

Your dog or cat may not appreciate the stress of witches, superheroes, or zombies asking for lollies throughout the evening. 

To make it a little bit easier for your pet, you could give them the option of hiding and relaxing in a safe space for the evening.

A safe place for your pet might be a bed away from all the action of the night. That could be a quiet room towards the back of the house like a bedroom. Keeping them occupied with a long-lasting treat or a puzzle toy could also help reduce the stress of the evening.

Get your pet used to playing dress-up

If you like the idea of dressing your dog or cat up for the day, you should pick an outfit that is both safe and comfortable for them.

Knowing which outfits are best for your dog or cat can be hard, but here’s a pet costume safety checklist that has some things you can check for.

You should make sure that a pet costume doesn’t:

• Restrict any ability to move
• Affect any ability to breathe or express themselves vocally (bark or meow)
• Restrict vision

Australia is usually a lot warmer by October so you should also make sure that your pet won’t be too hot in their costume.

Additionally, you should make sure that the costume doesn’t have pieces that could fall off, or be chewed off, as they could become choking hazards.

And finally, but importantly, if your pet doesn’t like dressing up; don’t force them to. 

Hide the sweets

Sweets, lollies, candies; they’re delicious. But we know that they aren’t so good for our pets. 

On Halloween evening, there’s probably going to be a lot of these tasty treats going around. So whether the kids are bringing home their plunder or you’ve got a stockpile of sweets ready for trick or treaters, you need to be cautious with where you keep them. 

Consider:

• Keeping the trick or treat lolly bowl away from your pets reach
• Sealing leftover lollies away in closed containers
• Letting your kids know that they shouldn’t share with their furry friends

If you’re concerned that your pet may have eaten something that they shouldn’t have, call Reedy Creek Vet immediately on (07) 5593 8395 or come in and see us.

Reduce the risk of your pet running away

Your pets might want to get as far away from the excitement as they can on the night and end up getting lost. 

Preparing for this possibility is a lot easier and less stressful than trying to find them once they’re out.

Some tips to reduce the risk of your pet running away are:

• Closing doors and windows for the night
• Checking your fence and gate for any holes or access points and sealing them
• Removing objects near fences to reduce the risk pets of climbing or jumping over

As well as these, you should also prepare for the worst by making sure your pet is identifiable by authorities and neighbours. To do so, fit your pet with a collar with their name and your contact details.

If you haven’t already, you should also consider microchipping your pet in case they lose their collar or nametag.  And if your pet is already microchipped, make sure the contact details are up to date. 

Talk to Reedy Creek Vet about microchipping your pet today or click here to read more about our services.

For more help:

For more help and assistance, talk to Reedy Creek Vet today - call us on 07 5593 8395 or click here to book an appointment.

We’re open 8 am to 5:30 pm Monday to Friday and Saturday morning until midday.

And if you are dressing your furry friends up in cute outfits for Halloween, share the photos on our Facebook page - we can’t wait to see what you’ve come up with!