Halloween Pet Safety

Halloween Pet Safety Tips

Halloween can be one of the spookiest times of the year, especially for our pets. With all the haunts and hubbub, keeping your pets safe doesn’t have to be tricky.

LA Animal Services is offering the following pet safety tips to keep our furry family members safe during Halloween festivities:

• No candy or chocolate for pets. Candies and chocolate can be poisonous to dogs and cats. Ensure sweet treats are out of the pet's reach and throw wrappers away in the trash. This may be a good teaching opportunity for children who may not understand why pets can’t share their treats.

• Not all pets enjoy dressing up. A decorative collar is far more comfortable than a costume for your pet. Make sure your pet thinks a costume is as much fun as you do before dressing them up. If you do put your pet in a costume, try it on to make sure they are comfortable, and ensure it will not get wrapped around their neck or tangled around their legs.

• Be careful around Jack-o’-lanterns and other Halloween decor. Tail wagging is a good thing – unless it’s done around a lit candle! Keep candles and candle-lit carved pumpkins at an appropriate height where your pets can’t knock them over or get burned. Electric cords from decorative lights can entice your pet to play or chew them, potentially leading to strangulation, burns, or death. Keep all cords, strings, and Halloween decorations out of your pet’s reach.

• Keep glow sticks out of reach. Glow sticks can help keep children safe, but should be kept out away from your pets. The liquid inside glow sticks are non-toxic, but it can agitate your pet and in some cases, cause your pet to get sick.

• Keep pets indoors and create a calming environment. Before the trick-or-treating starts, keep pets indoors where they will feel safe from scary-looking and unfamiliar costumes, loud noises, and strangers appearing at their doorsteps. Help reduce your pet’s anxiety by creating a calm and quiet environment for your pet, in a quiet room or crate where they’ll feel safe from the Halloween activities.

• Ensure your pet is licensed and microchipped with current identification. If for any reason your pet becomes lost, ensuring they have a collar with a current LA City dog license and/or ID tag on them and a microchip that’s registered with your most up-to-date contact information, will help reunite you with your furry family member. If your pet is not microchipped, microchipping is available at all six LA Animal Services Centers for $15 without an appointment.

For more information, visit laanimalservices.com

www.SylmarNC.org