Holidays can add extra stress to some routine-driven pets
I think about the stress we subject ourselves to over the holidays and I know that has to feel doubled for our pets, who are completely routine-driven creatures (much like my husband).
The holidays are a step out of the norm for everyone and can have an adverse effect on man and beast alike.
For Thanksgiving, we welcomed close to 30 family members to our home to feast and frolic.
The first order of business was to strategically stage each pet in the safest, quietest place during the day’s festivities.
Rio goes in her crate upstairs, Katie and Krusher, our two oldest cats, go into the cozy front bedroom. BoBo, Gracie, Grayer and Odilia are stealthily captured and placed in the front room downstairs with their tree house, litter boxes, food and water.
I also place Hope and Brady (our newest boy) in there with them for as long as Hope will stay before she starts scratching on the French doors that barricade that room from the rest of the downstairs.
As for Mabel and Chase, the most laid-back pets in our brood, we let them roam among the general population until it becomes a hazard for them or our guests, then sequester them to the confines of the front room, especially during dinnertime.
This year, we didn’t have to sequester them. Rather, Mabel sat nobly on the couch all night and received loving pats from anyone who sat next to her. She was in her glory. Chase roamed from room to room waiting for the next unsuspecting person to get up from “his” loveseat so he could plop down.
Mabel and Chase do take up too much prime real estate on the living room furniture and become stiff totems when you try to shoo them off their favorite chair but they seem to settle in best with crowds.
We have too many little people (the kids) around and it would make me nervous having all the pets intermingled with all the people in such a confined space.
On top of changes in where your pets are allowed at holiday time come other stressors like changes in their feeding or walking time.
To add to the holiday stressors, you must remember a list of items that are potentially toxic to pets.
Pet-proofing the house is a must this time of year. Having guests over adds to the complexity of this chore because each guest brings their own set of routines that our pets are not accustomed to.
In our home, we do our best to pet-proof and then pray we did a good enough job to get us through the holidays.
Next week we’ll review the list of toxic foods that are to be avoided this time of year — and all year long for that matter!
Amy J. Hanna-Eckenrode is the author of “Have Dog Will Blog,” editor of the Central PA Pets magazine and director of the Central PA Pet Expo. She can be contacted at ahanna
@altoonamirror.com or by mail: Paws and Reflect, c/o Amy J. Hanna-Eckenrode, Altoona Mirror, 301 Cayuga Ave., Altoona, PA 16602.
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