The good
What’s not to love about Halloween, it’s where neighbourhoods and friends come together in a spootackular delight of costumes, celebrations and candy. What other time of the year can you and your pooch hit the streets in matching outfits and show off your alter ego and creativity.
If you’re preparing for Halloween and need of some inspiration for costumes look no further than Instragram. Using the hastags #doghalloweencostume and #doghalloween you will find an assortment ranging from the cute, through to nightmarish and from delightfully home-made rough and ready creations (nothing wrong with an old sheet) through to elaborate store bought costumes.
The bad
For some dogs Halloween night can be almost as stressful as fire cracker nights. They can feel confused, anxious and scared at what they’re hearing and seeing. If your dog is not used to, or dislikes having unannounced visitors of the small and spooky kind, then it can be distressing to them.
If your dog is reactive and frightened it is a wise to keep them away from parading the streets to avoid any behavioural issues, the last thing anyone needs is a dog reacting out of fear and scaring children.
If you’re keeping your dog at home keep it comfortable and away from windows and doors. A massage with our Bliss & Chill aromatherapy essential oils prior to the spooks hitting the town can help to keep your dog calm and relaxed and peaceful. Once they are settled you could also give them a treat to chew on to keep them occupied.
The ugly
The down side of Halloween can be trying to keep your dog away from well-meaning people who don’t understand that chocolate can be toxic to our four legged friends. If you are parading the streets with your dog, it might be wise to have a “do not feed” sign with the dog or at the very least you will have to keep an eye out for treats going in his or her direction. A very small amount of chocolate can give your dog an upset stomach with vomiting and/or diarrhoea.
Signs of chocolate poisoning usually appear within 6 to 12 hours after your dog has eaten it, may last up to 72 hours, and include the following:
- Vomiting
- Diarrhoea
- Restlessness
- Increased urination
- Tremors
- Elevated or abnormal heart rate
- Seizures
- Collapse and death
If you think your dog has eaten the Halloween stash, call your veterinarian immediately, they will want to know the size of your dog and an estimation of the type and quantity of chocolate that was consumed.
If you do want to spoil your pup with treats on Halloween find some that are dog appropriate, like the following:
Throw them a bone: We all know dog’s love a good bone and this skeleton bone treat from Irresisitible Pets is so simple you probably have all the ingredients already, though you may need to invest in a dog bone baking tray alternatively we think free-form bones will work just as well.
Zombie cookie treats: What more would a dog like to nom nom on than brains? Ok these Halloween zombie treats from Dalmation DIY aren’t brains but they’re still very cute and delicious (for dogs).
Pumpkin Spice Puppuccinos: 3 ingredients and 5 minutes what more could you ask for than these pawsome puppucinos from Lola the Pitty.
Frozen blueberry skull dog treats: These frozen treats from Golden Daily Scoop are super easy and super cute, all you need is blueberries and plain yoghurt (plus a skull mould if you want to get into the Halloween theme).
Happy trick or treating.
