Caring for Your Over-stimulated Pet on Halloween

Halloween is a spooky time with all the ghouls and ghosts running around! Its can also be a spooky time for our pets with all the trick-or-treaters coming to the door throughout the night. Loud knocks, loud voices, and unfamiliar people can give our pets a lot of anxiety or even trigger aggression which of course we want to avoid altogether! But do not worry there are some great ways to help prevent our pets getting scared on Halloween.

Now of course all of our pets are different in what sets them off, so some methods will work for some, and different methods for others. Creating a barrier will likely be the easiest method. If you have a bi-level home, try having your pet on a different floor than the front door. Out of sight, out of mind works for some dogs. This will also quiet the noise as well. If you have a pet with separation anxiety this may not work for you, but we encourage everyone to try this method first. Other barriers can include having your pet relax in a separate room, or even a gate to create a divide from the front door can make a world of a difference. Remember, our pets are not aware of what Halloween is, so these trick-or-treaters can come off as a threat as they are essentially entering our pets safe place.

Perhaps having your dog in a separate room will give them more anxiety in the first place, so we recommend trying a natural anxiety relief treat such as the True Leaf Calming Support Chews which is hemp based and has a unique formula that can help calm your dog. An alternative for cat is the Meowijauna Mice Dreams Catnip that works like a mild sedative for your kitty. Both of these are available at Pisces Pet Emporium! Although these products contain only hemp and no THC, we still recommend checking with a vet before hand to get the okay.

Running to and from the front door every 3 minutes to handout Halloween candy can make it difficult for both your dog and cat to settle down and relax. Something that works very well is the Thunder Shirt. Much like swaddling an infant, the thunder buddy applies gentle constant pressure to calm all types of anxiety, fear, and over-excitement issues. It is quick and easy to put on and to wash, so the Thunder Shirt is a great remedy.

On the flip side of anxiety, we have overly excited dogs and that can scare trick-or-treaters which we also do not want. Again, using a barrier is best in this case. If your dog has been trained with a bark collar, then this might also be a good night to use it. These are just a few ways that you can help make our Halloween a little less stressful for you, your pet, and the trick-or-treaters!