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Halloween Pet Safety Checklist

Easy 24 items · 1 hour
testuser's avatar
testuser Published 4 days ago
Lifestyle

On Halloween night the front door opens dozens of times, strangers in masks stand on the step, and a bowl of chocolate sits at nose height. For a dog or cat that is a lot at once. The common accidents are a pet that slips out the open door and a pet that gets into the candy.

Work through this list in the week before Halloween if you have a dog, a cat or both. Most of it is set up ahead of time: a quiet room, an up-to-date tag, candy stored out of reach, and your vet’s after-hours number saved in your phone.

Chocolate is the danger most people know about. Sugar-free gum and candy can be worse for dogs, because many contain xylitol, which is sometimes listed on the label as birch sugar.

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  1. Check that your pet's collar tag has your current phone number
  2. Confirm the microchip is registered to your current address and phone — Your vet can scan the chip and tell you the registry to call.
  3. Take a clear, current photo of your pet — A lost-pet post works better with a photo from this month than one from puppyhood.
  4. Save your vet's after-hours number and the nearest emergency vet in your phone — Add a pet poison control hotline too. Most of them charge a consultation fee.
  5. Set up a quiet room away from the front door — Give it water, a bed, a litter box for a cat, and a radio or fan to cover the doorbell.
  6. Let your pet spend time in that room on the days before Halloween
  7. Walk your dog before trick-or-treating starts — A tired dog settles faster, and you avoid meeting a crowd of costumes on the sidewalk.
  8. Bring outdoor cats inside for the evening
  9. Put pets in the quiet room before the first knock
  10. Hand out candy from the porch if your pet cannot be shut in a room — Sit outside with the bowl so the front door stays closed all evening.
  11. Keep the candy bowl on a high shelf or behind a closed door between visits
  12. Store the kids' candy hauls out of reach once they come home — A bag left on the floor or a low coffee table is within easy reach of a dog.
  13. Check sugar-free candy and gum for xylitol — It is dangerous to dogs even in small amounts.
  14. Keep raisins and chocolate-covered raisins away from dogs
  15. Pick up candy wrappers and lollipop sticks right away — Foil and plastic wrappers can block a pet's gut.
  16. Use battery lights in jack-o'-lanterns instead of candles — A wagging tail or a curious cat can knock over a lit pumpkin.
  17. Keep decoration cords out of reach or covered
  18. Skip stretchy fake cobwebs where pets can reach them — Cats especially like to chew and swallow the strands.
  19. Throw out carved pumpkins once they start to go soft or moldy
  20. Put glow sticks away after use — The liquid inside tastes bitter and makes pets drool and foam, which looks frightening but is usually not serious.
  21. Try any pet costume on a few days early — Take it off if your pet freezes, hides or keeps pawing at it.
  22. Check that the costume leaves eyes, ears, mouth and legs free — Remove buttons, bells or strings your pet could chew off.
  23. Never leave a pet alone while it is wearing a costume
  24. Call your vet if you think your pet ate chocolate, xylitol, raisins or a wrapper — Have the wrapper or package in hand so you can say what it was and roughly how much is missing.
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