Holidays bring joy and a chance to meet people you wouldn’t otherwise get the chance to talk to throughout the year. It is only logical that the week either side of New Year’s Eve would see a host of get-togethers between friends and family. However, pets often get the short end of the stick during these times. Quite a few people are unable to give the necessary attention to their pets amidst their preparations or travels. Therefore, we have decided to give our readers a few tips on how to take care of pets during the holiday seasons.
Safety during Parties
The safety of your pets should be one of your primary concerns if you are the host of a party during the holiday season. In the rush of coming guests, the doors always opening or in an instance of outdoor parties, pets can easily sneak out in their curiosity and meet an accident.
Consider reminding your guests either by politely asking them or leaving them a note to not feed your pet(s) with their food. Pets can get sick if they eat something not meant for them which would only compound your problems.
You can help the aforementioned situations by keeping your pets full and content before the party starts as those are generally an evening affair and usually go on till late night. Even if your pets are accustomed to gatherings and having people in the house, they may start to get really anxious after a while depending on the atmosphere, the attention they get, or the lack of it, during the party.
What you can do is give the pets their own space that is away from the noise and rush of the party and keep them occupied their one way or the other. So long as they are disconnected from the party, there is no reason to worry about their safety. You can try other things like hiring pet sitters but we will talk about that in detail later.
Holiday Plants
Christmas trees are a very common item during the holidays and any pet would be intrigued by something like that in a house. Therefore, your tree needs to be secured well enough so that pets aren’t able to push it down to the ground and ruin all your efforts at decorating the tree.
Don’t bring home plants that can be poisonous to your pets. Some of those holiday plants include mistletoe, rosemary, holly berries and daffodils among others. Do your research on what kind of plants are best suitable for your pets and then make your choice from those options.
Tree & Ornamentation
The decorations on your tree shouldn’t be in the reach of your pets. Pets try to grab and bite on the ornaments thinking them some sort of toy. That must not happen, especially with the presence of small decorative lights on the tree, they can cause an electrical shock and induce trauma to your pet. Avoid tinsel if you have a cat as they can be recklessly attractive towards that material.
Get Pet Sitters’ Service during Holidays
Finally, whether you are going to meet family, relatives or friends, or having a get-together at your own place, you can always call a pet sitter. While it is tempting to save money and ask a neighbour or someone you know, it is much better for the pet and yourself to hire a professional pet sitter. One who can do much more than just cleaning up and giving it food and water. That way, you will have a peace of mind as well as an actual guarantee that your pets are in good hands.
To know more about pet sitting and how to take care of pets, visit Sunnydayspets.co.uk or call us at 07828 876 660.