Making Halloween Safe for Pets

Courtesy of Joan Morris of www.bayareanewsgroup.com:

With lots of folks headed out soon for trick-or-treating, it pays to give some thought to those furry "kids," our pets, who may be freaked out by all of the odd creatures showing up on our doorsteps.

More and more, people are including their pets in the celebration, joining in on Halloween pet parades and dressing them on Halloween night.

However, not every pet likes the loud noises, costumes and general creepiness of the day. To help with pets that don't embrace the macabre the folks at the Pet Industry Joint Advisory Council offer some tips to help keep pets safe until all the goblins go home.

Quiet places

Noise such as constant doorbell ringing and door knocking may stress your pets. Find a quiet room in the house with food, water, litter box or crate and give your pet a safe, quiet haven until it's all over.

Keep away

Candy and candy wrappers can be toxic to pets. Never leave candy unattended or within reach of your cat or dog. While chocolate is toxic to pets, the wrappers can cause just as much damage. Foil and cellophane wrapper, if ingested, could lead to emergency surgery or death.

If your pet eats candy or other toxic substances, consult your veterinarian, local animal emergency hospital or call the Pet Poison Helpline at 800-213-6680. The helpline, which sees a 21 percent increase in the number of calls each Halloween, is staffed around the clock. There is a $39 per incident fee for the consultation and follow-up calls.

Play nice

 Reports of animal cruelty seem to increase during the Halloween season. Keep your pets - especially black cats - indoors to reduce the possibility of harmful pranks.

Beware the flame

Be especially careful with your pets around jack-o'-lanterns and other decorations with flames. Cats and dogs have been known to knock over lighted candles, resulting in fires. Consider flameless candles as part of your decor and try to eliminate as many electrical cords as possible to prevent an anxious pet from chewing on them.

Buckle up

If you're going outside with your animals, keep them on a leash. All the excitement and strange sights can cause a normally obedient animal to make a dash for it. Also, make sure they are wearing tags.

For cats and other pets that usually aren't on leashes, be sure to secure them in another part of the house where they won't have the ability to run out of an open door.

To costume or not

There's no denying that our pets look cute in costumes, but some animals just don't like them. If your pet is one of those, don't force him or her into a costume. Experts say it can make them overly anxious.

If your pet is okay with dressing up, be sure the costume doesn't restrict the animal's vision, movement or hearing.

Calm down

Ask children not to run or make quick movements around animals. These actions could be perceived by your pet as an act of aggression, which could then lead to someone being bitten or scratched. If your pet appears agitated, remove him or her from the action.

BirdLodges.com wishes you a happy and haunted Halloween! And to continue the Halloween theme, if you'd like to help keep the bat population thriving, consider installing a bat house!

Christmas Gifts for Wild Birds: Seed-covered Birdhouses and Edible Ornaments

Join us for some holiday spirit with new candy cane edible ornaments and seed covered birdhouses from BirdLodges.com: 

Candy Cane Bird Seed Covered Ornaments

Colorful candy cane bird seed ornaments - a set of six are waiting to add a festive winter holiday touch to your home. Just transfer them to the garden in the spring and the wild birds will eat them like candy!

We use a combination of red groat oats, green groat oats, white safflower, and sunflower seeds to cover the wooden-base candy cane ornaments and each one includes a jute rope for hanging. 

Candy Cane Edible Birdhouse

Colorful candy cane edible birdhouse will add a festive winter holiday touch to your home. Just transfer the bird seed house to the garden in the spring and the wild birds will eat from it like candy!

We attach a combination of white proso millet and red milo to a wooden birdhouse frame and top it off with a ribbon bow, cedar, and small pine cones. A wire or cord is included and the Christmas birdhouse arrives ready to hang.

 A Christmas Holiday Edible Birdhouse
Cheery colors makes this a truly decorative Holiday Edible Birdhouse. White roof and gable enhance the red and green winter theme.

Yellow pine bird seed birdhouse is covered with decorative red and white proso millet, grits, canola, green groat oats, and sunflower seeds. The wood frame is decorated with cedar, red berries, and pearl millet columns - a real beauty!

Wild animals love to eat Jack-o'-Lanterns

How to keep wild critters from eating our Jack-o'-Lanterns?

by Joan Morris of ANG newspapers:

There are a number of things you can try.

Hot peppers. Buy the largest, cheapest bottle of hot sauce you can find and either paint or spray it on the pumpkins. You can make your own by mixing powdered chili, water and a drop or two of dish washing liquid in a spray bottle. Squirrels really don't like spicy things, and it can deter other critters, too. The oil in the peppers will saturate the skin of the pumpkin, so even if you don't see the hot sauce, anything taking a bite out of it will immediately taste it.Also, a note of caution: Some folks recommend sprinkling dried peppers around the pumpkins, but the pepper can blow away and can be harmful if the creature or a human gets it in their eyes.

Lacquer. Spray the pumpkin with lacquer and let it dry. This could help preserve the appearance of the jack-o'-lantern, too.

Dog and cat hair. If you have a pet, then take a blanket from their favorite snoozing spot and place it under the pumpkins. Squirrels especially don't like the aroma of eau de dog, and it might warn them away from the pumpkins. Raccoons are less likely to be bothered.

Vinegar. In fact, vinegar may be the most useful thing you can have in your house, good for so many household chores. The astringent smell is effective shooing away creatures with sensitive noses. Because the vinegar can damage the pumpkin, apply sparingly. Pour some on a rag and wipe down the surface of the pumpkin.

Eucalyptus oil. Pour some onto a rag and wipe the surface, or soak a cotton ball in the oil and drop it inside the pumpkin, but not near the flame.

Commercial animal repellents. I have limited faith in these. Some of these sprays can be rather pricey, and if they worked consistently well, everyone with issues would be buying them. However, some folks have great luck with them. Spray the outside of the pumpkin and repeat as necessary.

Hair spray. This creates a sticky texture on your pumpkin, which the creatures won't appreciate. Spray the entire pumpkin but be sure to get the exposed flesh of the gourd.

Petroleum jelly or a menthol chest rub. But be aware, this approach also can be messy, and if birds get it on their wings, it can be a problem.

http://www.insidebayarea.com/ci_24284218/morris-whats-been-eating-our-pumpkins?IADID=Search-www.insidebayarea.com-www.insidebayarea.com