Finish the Year Off Safely
New Year’s Eve may be exciting for humans, but it can be stressful for our furry friends. Loud fireworks, music, and celebrations can easily frighten pets, increasing the risk of them running away. In fact, many shelters report a rise in lost pets after the holidays.
To ensure a safe and enjoyable New Year’s Eve for both you and your pets, follow these guidelines:
Fireworks
The sound of fireworks can be scary for many animals! If you can hear fireworks from your home, try to keep your pets inside in a quiet, cool, well-ventilated room with a radio or TV playing softly in the background. Make sure it is not a room they can easily escape from, and be sure to draw any window shades. A crate also works well. Don’t leave pets in the yard or loose indoors with windows or doors open, even when fitted with screens. They may attempt to escape when scared. Additionally, tuckering them out with playtime during the day can help them sleep soundly through the loud noises.
Never take your pet to a fireworks display, and never leave them outside while you enjoy the festivities.
Talk with your veterinarian ahead of time if your animal is prone to anxiety. If you are leaving town, be sure to alert your pet-sitter of your animal’s possible anxiety and give them directions accordingly.
Later on in the week, be on the lookout for possible firework debris when walking your dog, and be aware that people may continue using their leftover fireworks in the days following.
Pets and Guests
If you’re in charge of hosting the party (or if your pets are lucky enough to be invited to someone else’s house), plan ahead to make the experience less stressful for all parties involved. Some animals can be shy around new people, and some people can be equally shy around unfamiliar animals. Bring treats and distractions along, like a favorite toy or a delicious KONG, as a diversion.
Additionally, make sure everyone in the house knows what doors to keep closed. Nothing ruins holiday run like scouring the neighborhood for a runaway pet in the middle of dinner. As with all holidays, we recommend ensuring your pet’s identification tags have up-to-date information so they can be promptly returned to you if they become lost, and that their microchip is registered at 24Pet.
Cold Weather
If you are lucky to live in the Bay Area, most of your weather is manageable for your pets. However, there are a few points throughout the year that you may need to re-assess how you’re keeping your pets to better ensure their health and safety. The best strategy during cold or wet weather months is to keep pets indoors. You should also be considerate if you are traveling to cooler areas where dogs might not be used to the local weather conditions.
However, if you live in an area with harsh winter weather, be sure to visit our Cold Weather Pet Safety page to learn best practices for keeping your animals safe when temperatures dip!
Dangerous Holiday Decorations
While extravagant decorations can be one of the most fun elements of the winter holidays, they can also get your pet into some trouble. And we know it’s unlikely that you’ve already removed all those Christmas decorations.
For example, the Christmas tree in your living room presents a dangerous, new toy to chew on or an equally-dangerous climbing opportunity. And if the tree doesn’t get knocked over by that, Christmas lights are so tempting for your pet to play with. And pets who have a habit of chewing on wires should be kept away from that part of the house.
There are obvious fire hazards with your roaring fireplace (less so with a holiday Yule log streaming on TV), but accidently leaving a lit candle out also presents a fire hazard for curious pets.
