Happy Halloween Sonoma County!
Hope you have a spooktacular time at home or out n’ about. If you have a pet who wants to pawty this halloween take a moment to read some of the following precautions to assure your pet is as safe as you.
COSTUMES:
• Keep your dog or cat stress-free by choosing a costume that fits properly and isn’t too much of a distraction to your pet. While dressing up your dog or cat can be fun, there are a few things that should be considered when picking out a costume for your pet. A costume that is too large or too small can be problematic; too large and your pet could be injured. Tripping or getting caught on furniture or other obstacles can be dangerous. Too small a costume and your pet risks choking and discomfort. Also be sure the costume is free of small or dangling parts that can be torn off and ingested.
• Make sure your dog or cat can see – while masks and hoods might be cute, if your pet cannot see you, you could run into larger issues. Even pets with the sweetest temperament could bite, scratch or cause injury because they cannot see properly.
• As tempted as you might be, avoid dyes and face paints which may irritate your pet’s skin or be eaten. Even if a product states that it is nontoxic, it could still cause an upset tummy or reaction. It’s best to leave the face paint and dyes to the humans!
• Never leave your dogs and cats unattended while dressed in a costume.
• Remember it’s dark outside! If your pet will be traveling with you this Halloween, whether it is next door to a party or trick or treating for several blocks, consider adding a reflective collar, tape or other gear as part of their costume so that they can easily be seen
NO TRICKS…JUST TREAT!!!
• Sugar-free candy which contains Xylitol is dangerous. Even in small doses this ingredient can cause rapid low blood sugar and liver damage or failure in dogs.
• Chocolate, especially dark chocolate and baking chocolate, is poisonous and sometimes FATAL. It’s common for people to say a dog has to eat a lot of chocolate to cause health problems. To put this in perspective, a 50 pound dog need only ingest 50 ounces of dark chocolate or just 5 ounces of baking chocolate to cause problems such as tremors, nervousness, vomiting, high heart rate or even death in some cases.
• Raisins are often a healthy Halloween treat for kids, but can be deadly to dogs. Dogs can experience kidney failure after ingesting just a small amount of raisins (including currants and grapes in many cases).
• Make sure you discuss with children and visitors the dangers of sharing Halloween treats. Also make sure garbage cans are sealed and wrappers are disposed of properly. Dogs and cats can choke easily on cellophane and tinfoil wrappers which many of our favorite Halloween treats are wrapped in.
