Halloween Safety Tips for Pets
Learn how to celebrate Halloween safely with your pet with the help of Invisible Fence® Brand Solutions.
Invisible Fence Brand
Published 10/30/2018
Updated 10/1/2026
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Costumes? Check! Candy? Check! Now cross off the last (and most important) thing on your Halloween checklist, which is keeping your pets comfortable and safe during trick-or-treating. Follow these Halloween safety tips for pets to ensure fun festivities for all.
Keep Your Dog Out of Halloween Candy
The candy bowl is for trick-or-treaters, not for pets. Not only can cats and dogs choke on lollipop sticks and plastic wrappers, but sweets and sugar substitutes can be extremely dangerous for animals as well. In case your dog or cat gets into poisonous candies like chocolate, bookmark the Pet Poison Helpline and familiarize yourself with symptoms. To help prevent these types of emergencies, several of our customers use our Indoor Shields® Solutions to set avoidance boundaries in advance to protect dogs from eating Halloween candy in the first place.
Use Pet-Friendly Halloween Decorations
You may aim to have the spookiest house on the block, but remember that some decorations can be hazardous for pets. Don’t leave curious cats unattended near lit jack-o-lanterns or tempting wires and cords for your dog to chew. Likewise, if you plan to put out carved pumpkins, corn or hay, make sure pets don’t nibble on them, as they can cause choking and digestive issues.
Don’t Leave Your Pets in the Yard on Halloween
While Invisible Fence® Brand systems help keep your pet safe and protected in your yard year-round, Halloween brings an unusual level of activity including trick-or-treaters, costumes, decorations, and unexpected noises that can be stressful or distracting for pets. For their safety and comfort, it's best to keep pets indoors during peak trick-or-treat hours. With so many unfamiliar people passing by, even well-trained pets may become anxious or overstimulated. As an added precaution, pet identification and microchips are recommended year-round.
Keep Pets Away from the Door
The sounds of goblins, lots of unfamiliar faces and smells, and scary costumes can be a real nightmare for some animals. Dogs and cats who get anxious or territorial around strangers and loud noises should be placed somewhere safe in the house and skip the trick-or-treating. When opening the front door for children, be sure your pet can’t escape. Depending on your pet, we recommend crating or trying our Indoor Shields® Plus Solutions, which protects your pets form entering or leaving certain areas of your home.
HAPPY HOWLOWEEN!
