Tips for Keeping Your Pets Safe This Holiday Season

As a mobile veterinarian in Kalamazoo, we feel it’s our duty to help our clients and patients get through the holidays with no serious issues. This time of year can cause anxiety, upheaval, and drama as well as some danger. In this post, we will look at some things that could cause potential problems for your our your pets this holiday season.

For cats especially, the holiday tree can be a nuisance or even a danger. As anyone with a cat probably knows, they love to climb. In order to prevent a fallen tree and shattered ornaments, it’s a good idea to use heavyweight fishing line to anchor the tree to the wall or ceiling. In order to avoid broken glass brought on by the tail of your dog, try shatter proof ornaments. You should also avoid tinsel, as cats and dogs alike may ingest it.

There is a lot more food around than normal during the holidays. Besides risking overeating, there are foods that are particularly dangerous to dogs if ingested, including chocolate, onions, and grapes. It’s important to make sure you keep these foods away and let your guests know to watch their food and not feed any to your pets.

Your pets, like you, can also experience a lot of anxiety during the holiday season. Whether it be because they are left alone for long periods of time, or that they are surrounded by too many people. If you’re going to be gone for long periods of time, maybe enlist the help of a pet sitter, and if there are going to be a lot of people (especially young children), consider separating your dog or cat from the commotion.