The Holiday Season and Our Pets

It’s the time of year where the routine is forgotten, and in its place is the frenetic holiday season with parties, visits with loved ones and overindulgence in food. Although this time is often the period of festivities for us, it is often the time for stress in our companion animals. All the hustle and bustle, the smells of different foods, or sometimes boarding, can contribute to anxiety during this period.

Although a lot of the stresses cannot be evaded, here are some tricks to help your animal sail through the holiday season:

• Place your animal in a room where he/she is comfortable with a bed, food, and for cats, a litter box before the arrival of guests. This will reduce the excitement of noisy greetings, prevent unwanted jumping on grandma, and for our feline friends, avoid unexpected escapes when the doors are left open.
• Once visitors have arrived and are settled, you can let your animal out if desired, but make sure they have a safe place to retreat to if desired. Explain to guests, especially children, that if the animal disappears, they want to be left alone.
• You can also buy some natural anti-anxiety products available at our Boutique Pawville. For example Zylkene, Anxitane and Mellow chews. One of our technicians can give you more information on this.
• Pheromones like Adaptil, Feliway, are also a natural means to keep your animal less stressed. These odorless pheromones allow your companion animal to feel more secure. These are available at most veterinary clinics as well as our Boutique Pawville.

No matter what method you chose, it is important to keep your animal safe and secure to reduce his/her stress so that all of the family, four legged ones included, enjoy a safe and happy holiday season.