When festivals come around, it is usually a time of excesses. With cheer and happiness all pervasive, people have a tendency of mingling more with other people.
Though holidays and festivals are celebration time with friends and family, we also need to remember our pets.
So many guests, kinds of food, party decorations and gift boxes can put the health and safety of cats, dogs and other pets at risk.
Let’s look at how we can celebrate safely during the holiday season to ensure zero risks for our furry friends!
Do Gift Marking
Make sure you are watching gifts coming into your house. Why not start adding tags to all gifts, marking them as pet-friendly or not.
With some family and friends also having pets, putting the pet-safe tags on them is a nice and thoughtful way to keep them informed.
Doing this is a thoughtful way of showing your love and care for your friends and their pets too.
The tag could refer to the gift’s packaging, contents, labelling or the gift wrapping. This will allow homeowners to keep the gifts away from their naughty paws!
Gift Packaging and Décor
Not many people know that gift decorations like ribbons, shiny stickers and plastic label can be extremely dangerous for pets. If any of your pets happen to ingest it, it can even be fatal.
It is advisable to open the gifts, remove the packaging of ribbons, wrapping paper and keep them away in a place where no pet can access it.
Though ribbons and other decoration can be fun, they are not appropriate toys for your pets to play with. Any household décor and wall hanging items with loose parts hanging over can be risky as well.
Be Careful of Plants
Pets are inquisitive and naughty by nature, and this goes for both cats and dogs. At Christmas, there may be new plants in the house which are poisonous to pets.
Very few people know that certain plants are really harmful to pets. Like Lilies are toxic to cats. Few more plants which are dangerous include holly, mistletoe, Azaleas and poinsettias.
Do keep an eye on all the plants coming into the house. You can even advise your friends and family about what gifts items are not suitable for your pets.
Informing this to the family will help them spend their time and money on the gifts which you will love and appreciate.
You can’t really hope that pets will be careful themselves; they may just sniff at a plant and start nibbling away at it, unconscious of how it may affect them.
Food Safety
A lot of times, the holiday dishes prepared at home may taste and smell yummy, but they may be harmful to pets.
Like at the time of Christmas, many dishes have grapes or raisins in the recipe and are needed at the time of preparation. Think mince pies, plum cakes, plum puddings and many other food items which are not at all safe for your pets.
Do you know chewing gum is also not suitable for pets due to its ingredient, Xylitol which is harmful to pets? Some kinds of chocolate are also not safe for your pets to nibble or chew on.
Take the time to go through the labelling on all food items and make sure their ingredients are safe for your pets. If not, it is best to keep the food items away and ensure they do not have access to it at any time.
Hide Purses and Bags
It is essential to keep all purses, bags and jackets away from your pets. Things like medicines, prescription drugs, chewing gum are generally in our bags, purses and clothing.
Decongestants which are typically used in winter time which are harmful to pets. Ibuprofen is a drug which is also on the – ‘harmful for pets’ list.
Your dog or cat may come up to you to cuddle and start sniffing around. On finding something interesting, they can even start nibbling at it.
So, once you enter the house, keep your clothes and bags in a higher place so that they cannot have access to it.
Take Care
Creating designated places for keeping harmful items and advising your friends and family about what is on the ‘pet safe’ list is essential.
Do monitor your dog or cat to ensure your they remain safe and your holidays are memorable.
Once you take steps to keep all the harmful items away and prevent your pets from accessing them, you can rest assured and celebrate.
Your pet is an integral part of the family, and if he is safe, you are likely to feel at ease and holiday time will be a happy time.