Shelter Director Offers Holiday Pet Safety Tips

Toccoa-Stephens County Humane Shelter Director Jeff Roberts is offering some tips for people to deal with pets this holiday season.

Roberts said the biggest thing to keep in mind is all of the plants and making sure they will not harm a curious animal.

“They need to check their plants they have in the household and make sure they are not poisonous, especially poinsettias,” said Roberts. “A lot of times you may be given some but not be thinking if it is okay for the pet.”

Meanwhile, Roberts said it may be a good idea to put up pets if having a holiday party or large gathering in the home so that the animal does not get stressed out and accidentally get out of the house if it is an indoor pet.

Also, he said to keep an eye on food that is left around the house as a result of holiday gatherings to make sure that pets do not get into snacks that they shouldn’t.

As for those considering adopting an animal this holiday season, Roberts said to make the decision carefully.

“We recommend you bring all of your family members when selecting an animal because all of the family members are involved,” said Roberts. “Even if it is just for one person, it is kind of a family outing to come select your animal and make sure it is a good match for the household and for the family members.”

Finally, with the holiday season comes colder weather and Roberts said there are some important things people need to remember to do to make pets comfortable if they are outside during cold temperatures.

“We want to be able to provide them a nice, warm place and shelter,” said Roberts. “If it is a doghouse, it should have a flap on the front to protect them from the wind and also be thinking if it gets down to freezing, that bowl of water is going to be frozen, so make sure they have fresh water.”

Roberts also said people need to make sure that there is not any anti-freeze around any animals, as that is tempting to animals by taste, but is poisonous and deadly.