As Halloween approaches, it’s easy to get caught up in the fun of it and forget about keeping your pets safe. Here are 13 tips on keeping your cat safe and happy on Halloween, courtesy of PetSmart and The Cat’s Meow:
To ensure that your cat isn’t part of any Halloween mischief or pranks, don’t let her outside unattended, especially at night. Even if your cat does normally go outside, remember that on Halloween, she could get spooked by the loud noises and costumes, wander off and become disoriented.
Your cat should wear a collar and name tag with your phone number and address on it all times — if she does get out of the house, at least you can be contacted. Microchipping ensures that if the collar is lost, you and your cat can be reunited.
Candy is a hazard:
* Never leave candy or candy wrappers lying around or put it where your cat can get them. Small candy and errant candy wrappers are choking hazards and can cause intestinal blockage.
* Chocolate can be toxic to cats, and especially dogs. Symptoms of significant chocolate ingestion may include vomiting, diarrhea, hyperactivity, increased thirst, urination and heart rate—and even seizures.
* Candies containing the artificial sweetener xylitol can be poisonous to pets. Even small amounts of xylitol sweetener can cause a sudden drop in blood sugar, which leads to depression, lack of coordination and seizures. In cases of significantly low blood sugar, liver failure has been known to occur.
Confine your cat to one room in your house during parties or high-traffic trick-or-treating times. This way, you’ll be at ease when opening and shutting the door. And, if trick-or-treaters enter your home, your cat will be protected from pokes, prods and loud noises.
Lit pumpkins and candles can easily be knocked over and burn your cat. Curious kittens are especially at risk for getting hurt. Use a special battery-powered Jack-o-Lantern light or an electric candle.
Keep wires and cords from electric lights and other decorations out of reach of your pets. If chewed, your pet could damage her mouth from shards of glass or plastic, or receive a possibly life-threatening electrical shock.
Instead of sharing any of your trick-or-treating loot, celebrate Halloween with your cat by giving him goodies made especially for her. You could even find a cat-specific recipe for making homemade treats. Another way to get in the spirit is to switch out regular toys with some Halloween-themed toys.
If you plan to put a costume on your cat, try it on her well in advance of Halloween to see how she reacts to it. If she tolerates it without fuss, make sure that it fits well enough to allow her to see, breathe, hear and move around unencumbered.
Most Halloween costumes for cats are best used for photographing the cat, then removing. NEVER leave a costume on a cat unattended.
Resist the temptation to take your cat to a Halloween Pet Parade, unless she is extremely comfortable around barking dogs, shrieking kids and other noise. For most cats, it’s a little slice of hell. It’s much more humane to leave her at home and enter her in one of the many online Halloween photo contests — the PetSmart Howl-O-Ween photo contest, for example.
If your cat is mellow enough to attend a Halloween Pet Parade, keep her in a harness and on a leash at all times.
Resist the urge to take your pets trick-or-treating with you. Dogs especially are prone to picking up and eating candy or wrappers that have fallen to the ground, and in the dark, you’re unlikely to see it happen. Cats can be easily spooked by the noise and chaos and escape.
Because most cats dislike loud noises and shrieking, keep a television or radio on for your cats throughout the evening on Halloween to drown out the neighborhood sounds.
Concatulations to Skylar, the winner of an overnight stay and TLC in The Cat’s Meow’s Staycation Giveaway sponsored by PetSmart!
Skylar’s name was drawn at random from all the cats and cat lovers who left comments on or contributed to our series on Not Traveling with your Cat.
Even if you missed out, you still have time to enter the Iams Road Trip Giveaway. Just leave a comment on one–or all–of the posts in the Road Trip series on traveling with your cat, and you’ll be entered in random drawing for a pawsome prize package. You can enter once on each post in the series (one household per post, please). Click here to read the eligible posts and enter. Deadline: June 20th.
Last week we covered how to determine whether or not to travel with your cat, and what to do when you do. If you determined that Fluffy is better off at home, congratulate yourself on a wise decision. Most cats–even though they might miss your company–are happier not to join you on your trip.
Which brings us to this week’s series on NOT traveling with your cat.
This week we’ll look at different options for your cat’s staycation. Whether you just leave a pile of kibble and water and let the cats have the house to themselves, hire a catsitter, or opt for boarding, we’ll give you a few tips and tricks to ensure that your cat has as good a time during her staycation as you have on your trip.
And, we’re having a giveaway! PetSmart is sponsoring the prize: an overnight stay plus TLC at one of their pet hotels.
More than half of all pets are left behind when their families travel. PetSmart® knows pet parents want only the best care possible for their loved ones while away, so PetSmart PetsHotel® associates go to great lengths to give pet guests the personal TLC to make them feel right at home.
Here are just a few of the things PetSmart PetsHotel® associates do to keep their clients purring:
No Request too Great
Rising to these unique requests is just part of what makes a pet’s stay at the PetSmart PetsHotel so special. Whether it’s the spoon-fed care of an affectionate associate or an associate rocking a dog named Mitzi to sleep to her parent’s lullaby over the Bone Booth™ telephone, these are just a few examples of care provided at the PetsHotel. More unique requests fulfilled include:
Reading articles from the day’s newspaper to a kitty guest at bedtime. This kitty’s pet parents make it a nightly ritual, and the associates at the Overland Park, Kan. PetsHotel happily continue the tradition to help make their guest feel at home.
Willow Grove, Pa. PetsHotel associates welcoming a shepherd mix who was rescued from a shelter in Israel. This pet guest only understands Hebrew, so his pet parents provided a list of commands in the dog’s native language. The PetsHotel was happy to quickly learn the Hebrew commands, making the guest feel right at home.
Spending extra time with Georgia, a Hurricane Katrina survivor and very timid, anxious Bloodhound mix. She wasn’t very good at making friends or being away from home, so during her first overnight stay at the PetsHotel in Springfield, Mo., Georgia was scared of her new surroundings and hesitant to eat. Throughout her stay at the PetsHotel, the resident pet trainer worked with Georgia to help her make new friends, learn to enjoy group play and happily eat dinner out of the palm of associates’ hands.
Fun for Everyone
While their families travel, feline guests can relax in private Kitty Cottages with comforts from home and play with trained pet care specialists for exclusive “TLC time.” During a pet’s stay, pets can take calls from their parents on the Bone Booth to check in or just say “mrow!”
Security and Safety
Just like pet parents, PetSmart’s number one priority is the safety, happiness and well-being of pets — that’s why security and safety are cornerstones of the PetsHotel. Upon check-in, pet guests receive personalized I.D. collars. Throughout their stay, guests are supervised 24-hours a day by the watchful eyes of trained caregivers. For extra protection, the PetsHotel has closed-circuit video cameras throughout the hotel in addition to keypad-secured double doorways to the interior. And, with a veterinarian always on call and Banfield® veterinary hospital inside PetSmart, medical help is never far if needed.
Booking Reservations
All cats are welcome at the PetsHotel, provided they have necessary vaccinations (FVRCP and Rabies). Cats stay for $14 per night. A la carte services and upgrades range from $3 to $16. Click here to find a PetsHotel near you.
PETSMART GIVEAWAY
PRIZE
Winner will receive an overnight stay at a PetSmart PetsHotel, plus TLC time.
HOW TO ENTER THE PETSMART GIVEAWAY
Leave a comment on this post, and on every post in the series. Each comment counts as one entry in the contest. No more than one entry per household for each post. If there are five Staycation posts, you can leave five comments–on on each post– for a total of five entries. We reserve the right to disqualify anyone if it looks like you’re cheating. Comments left prior to 11:59 PT on June 14th will be entered in the drawing. The winner will be drawn at random from all entries.
WINNER ANNOUNCED
The winner will be drawn and announced on Monday, June 15th.
GOT A GOOD BOARDING/CATSITTER STORY?
Whether it’s a cautionary tale or a funny story, tell it to me. If it’s a good one and we feature it on The Cat’s Meow, you’ll get five extra entries in the contest.
WHAT ABOUT THE ROAD TRIP CONTEST?
You can still enter that contest (no more than one entry per post per household) until June 20th. The winner will be announced on June 21st. Click here for details.
Quite a few of you responded in a recent post which asked if you celebrate birthdays and special occasions with your cat. Do you have photos? If so, you should enter Petsmart’s Pet Birthday Photo Contest. Click here for details. Contest ends March 30th.
Thirty minutes before the ceremony, the bride hid under a cabinet and no amount of coaxing could lure her out. Not to be deterred, the wedding planner switched brides, and the ceremony took place on schedule.
It was a goofy event, dreamed up by the Baltimore County Humane Society to celebrate Valentine’s Day, and they did it in high style with roses and violins and salmon mousse. Comfrey, the original bride, had enjoyed a bridal shower earlier that morning at the Owings Mills Petsmart. But when bridal jitters got the best of her, Luna took her place at the altar. Both are silky black cats with green eyes. The cermony had even the most jaded in the crowd reaching for their kerchiefs:
Winslow, the 10-month-old groom, was first to the altar. His eyes said it all: He was afraid, very afraid. Then his whiskers began to twitch. Luna was carried in next. Her contented expression suggested she somehow understood that her day had suddenly grown more interesting. She sniffed Winslow’s face (the two had never met) and then curled up on the altar as if preparing for a nap.
The minister, Roy List, not in on the switcheroo, said the crowd was gathered to witness the “meowly catrimony” of Comfrey and Winslow. Rather than deal with cumbersome rings, he had the two exchange collars, placing pink charm-filled bands around their necks and declaring them mates. The crowd cheered and rose to its feet.
The cats didn’t stay; they were escorted back to their cages.
At the reception, guests remarked that this bride and groom were better behaved than the cats from last year’s wedding, who swatted at each other. The three-tier wedding cake by local foodie and animal lover, Diane Feffer Neas, went fast. And wedding gifts piled up: a 12-pack of Bounty paper towels, two bottles of bleach, a 40-pound bag of cat litter.
Luna and Winslow had one more treat ahead. They were going to spend the night in the Humane Society’s honeymoon suites, separate but larger cages.
“We’ll see what the future brings,” the minister said after the ceremony. “Like most brides and grooms, they behave themselves on their wedding day, and it goes downhill from there.”
Our Catster friend Bogdan (right), pointed us to this update to our December post, in which we shared the story of Lucky, a black kitten who was trapped in a planter near Petsmart in San Luis Obispo. After an extraordinary 4-day demolition effort which involved the help of the center’s management company, Madonna Enterprises, Petsmart employee Paul Williams extricated the kitten. Lucky went to Central Coast Pet Emergency in Arroyo Grande for medical care and recuperation. There she was renamed “Berlin” in honor of her “wall” experience.
Recuperation was a challenge. While treating her for dehydration and wounds related to her extraction, the vet found an older, more serious wound. “She was probably hit by a car a number of weeks earlier,” explained Dr. Eric Anderson, Animal Services manager for the county. The wound had exposed the bone in a back leg. “The joint itself wasn’t mobile,” says Anderson. “There wasn’t any contraction of muscles and tendons. On top of that, she was incontinent.”
Tyler Collins, 7, tends to Berlin (aka Lucky) while the kitten recuperated from an amputated hind leg. Photo by Bill Morem, Tribune News
Berlin was placed in foster care with vet tech Gabby Collins. Despite having her bandages changed several times daily, Collins couldn’t keep the leg wound dry from urine. After consulting with another vet, they decided to amputate the leg.
“Cats can actually do very well with an amputated back leg,” says Anderson.
Berlin did very well through the surgery and continued to respond well, although her incontinence left chemical burns on the remaining hind leg.
But then she had a setback. She couldn’t pass her stools and she became impacted, an indication of nerve damage to the spinal area.
“Dribbling is one thing,” Anderson said, “but not being able to pass stools is another.”
“It wasn’t something that one surgery could correct,” Collins said. “It was going to be a problem that she would have to deal with for the rest of her life.”
So the difficult decision was made to euthanize Berlin.
“She came to us very frightened. Everyone thought she was feral, but she turned out to be a really sweet cat,” Collins said. “We gave her the best of care, but in the long run, she would have suffered.”
“It’s a sad ending to a great story,” Anderson said. “It’s still a story of good intentions and commitment by people and organizations.”
Those good intentions were underwritten by numerous people working for four days to get Berlin out of the wall, damage to the entrapping wall/planter, surgery, intensive care in the pet hospital and later, ministrations by Collins. Anderson estimated that the cost of rescuing and caring for Berlin was between $10,000 and $15,000.
“Our community, as a whole, is pet loving,” Anderson said. “But (Berlin) got to where she did because at some point somebody wasn’t on the ball in taking care of her. Despite a lot of great effort by a number of people, there will be suffering by unwanted pets. If we all acted responsibly, we wouldn’t be talking about these issues.”
Christopher is a year-old blind kitten who loves to run and play just like any other kitteh. And as you can plainly see, he’s a snappy dresser!
Here’s Christopher’s arrival story:
I was a throwaway left behind with a bowl of food. Luckily I didn’t run into traffic or something. I am very loving and trusting. Mommy noticed my eyes wandered and then I walked into the wall at her job (I hadn’t learned my way around there yet.) She took me home. I am fragile and it looks like I might be a shrimpy boy. Thats ok. Shrimps are cool =)
Concats, Christopher, on your win, and thanks to all the entrants! And thank you, Petsmart!
As Halloween approaches, it’s easy to get caught up in the fun of it and forget about keeping your pets safe. Here are 13 tips on keeping your cat safe and happy on Halloween, courtesy of PetSmart and The Cat’s Meow:
Concatulations to 
