Most humans love Halloween and jump at the chance to dress up as a beloved character or spooky persona. We know that behind that scary mask is our best friend just playing around for the holiday, but our poor fur-children are often not as amused by the Halloween antics as we are. It’s important to think about them when gearing up for the festivities.
IN SHORT – Yes, your dog may scared of your costume and here’s why:
They Don’t Understand: Our pets can’t comprehend holidays like we can. They are baffled as to why certain months call for strange objects to be pulled from the attic and festooned around their home. Add the fact that during Halloween these decorations can make creepy sounds and be downright frightening for your dog. Then, all of a sudden you come out in your costume, you smell like you, you look like you, but you’re not really you in their eyes and that’s very confusing to them.
Too Much Activity: There is a lot that goes on Halloween night; from the decorations to the spooky music and the endless parade of little creatures ringing the doorbell screaming “trick or treat” and then getting candy, it can be a little hectic to say the least. Most dogs get pretty excited when someone is at the door, so just imagine how keyed up they can get on Halloween night. What’s worse is when they run to their trusted companion and find that they no longer look like their loved one.
All of these factors play into a very chaotic night for your pets. You can almost hear their thoughts play out during the month of October, “Hey! What is going on with that daunting black cat in the yard doesn’t move? And why is everything covered in white strings with spiders in them? Seriously guys, what’s up with that really skinny person that cackles and lights up every time you walk by?! Most importantly, what is going on with your face and who are all of these weird looking people coming to my door?!! HELP ME!!!”
As you can imagine, their minds are in overdrive and your costume can really add to that stress. If you have an extra pensive pup, it may be best to tone down the costume if you plan on staying at home and handing out candy. If you have a party to go to, hire a pet sitter and do most of your costume prep outside of the home. Just putting a little consideration into your how you dog feels will make that your Halloween costume doesn’t cause them any extra stress on an already nerve-wracking time of year.
Make sure to check back next week for tips about how to keep your dog calm on Halloween!
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