With December comes holiday decorations! It is a wonderful time of the year where we get to decorate our homes with tinsel and ornaments and trees while we watch classic movies with loved ones. It is also a time of year that our pets find a lot more “toys”. From cats climbing trees to dogs eating ornaments, things can get a little hectic during the holiday season! Below are 7 holiday tips on how to avoid chaos and trips to the vet, that otherwise may slip our minds!
Keep Pets from Drinking Tree Stand Water
You may have heard of people putting Christmas tree preservative that contains poisonous ingredients, in their tree stand. In fact, most people do and do not think of the possibility of their pets using it as their new water dish. There are a variety of harmful ingredients depending on whether you purchase your preservative from the store or if you make your own. These ingredients range from bleach to whisky to aspirin. None of which should be consumed by our pets of course. The National Christmas Tree Association does recommend using only plain water in your tree stands.
Avoid Using Tinsel, String or Ribbons
This tip may be the most obvious but still one that is overlooked until your decorations are destroyed or when your pet has ingested any of these and has to go to the vet. Our pets are curious creatures as we know, and tinsel, string, and ribbons are tempting objects to play with, resulting in occasionally ingesting it. Save yourself the hassle of having to clean up, redecorate, and an expensive vet bill by avoiding the tinsel, ribbons, and string this holiday season!
Keep Breakable or any Edible Ornaments out of Pets Reach
You likely have fragile, easy to break ornaments set up for the holiday season and there is no reason to keep them boxed up just because you have a curious pet. Reserve these decorations for the out of reach areas such as high up on shelves, on the table, high up on the Christmas tree perhaps. This will allow the other space to be available for the decorations that don’t run the risk of being broken. There are even shatterproof Christmas ornaments that are perfect for a household with pets!
Securely Anchor Your Tree
Avoid a falling Christmas tree but securing it properly. There are a variety of ways you can do this from standing it in the corner and wrapping it in fishing line around the trunk before placing the hooks on the wall or windowsill to anchoring it from the ceiling. We suggest going on google and finding a method that best suits you. A properly anchored tree will definitely help make the holiday season less stressful and much safer.
Hide electrical cords
Electrical cords are a very popular toy it seems, especially for cats, however dogs don’t stray away from the fun either. The best method to avoid issues with electrical cords is by hiding them the best you can behind furniture or shelves, and other places like behind TVs. If you see this being an unavoidable safety concern, consider looking into “Pet Cords”.
Candles
Candles and pets don’t mesh very well together. Between burnt whiskers and burnt houses, candles pose as a big safety concern that we as pet owners should take into consideration when decorating. Having fake candles or electric candles are good options. Otherwise having candles in out of reach areas or staying away from candles as a whole is a good option with pets around.
Ingesting Poisonous Plants
Poinsettias, mistletoe, and holly all come to mind when we think of the holiday season. However, not a lot of pet owners realize that these can be quite harmful to our pets and make them very sick or worse! If you have pets it is encouraged to avoid decorating with these plants. It is also important to note that pine needles should be swept up regularly to avoid being ingested by our pets.
Incorporating all of these tips should result in a safe holiday season! Our staff at Pisces Pet Emporium wish you and your families a safe and happy holiday season!
