Holiday Safety | Creating A Pet Friendly Home

Pet safety over the holidays can often be overlooked. Decking out your home in holiday fare is one thing, but making sure your own pets are safe is another. Our office is packed full of pet owners, and while we celebrate the holidays like anyone else, we want to make sure our homes are safe for our animals too. We have put together 5 tips to make holiday decorating easy and pet-friendly.

1. Keep decorations out of reach. This includes garland, tinsel, ribbons, gift wrap and glass ornaments. Even the most well-behaved pups can get curious. Set boundaries, and make sure to watch your pets to avoid an unnecessary trip to the vet.
2. Tiny human toys, look like dog toys right? Even if that’s, not the case keep gifts off the floor when not in use.
3. Batteries are dangerous and usually follow in tow with some Christmas gifts. They can lead to burns to the mouth and esophagus if punctured. This goes for your lights too, a chewed cord can lead to an electrical shock. So keep an eye out!
4. Did you know that Holiday plants such as mistletoe, holly, and poinsettias are naturally toxic for your dog? Stick to the twinkle lights and pine-scented air fresher.
5. Have a separate safe place for your animals to go and get away from the crowd. Dogs are typically super social, but even they can get overwhelmed. Let them have some down time, and a space to relax with their own animal safe stocking stuffers.
6. If you have to take your dog in the vehicle over the holidays (or anytime) make sure they too have the appropriate insurance coverage because vet bills are expensive. A great company like Trupanion is a fantastic option for medical coverage. Also contact us, because we have some companies that offer great pet coverage when in the vehicle specifically!

Happy Paw-lidays!