Keeping Pets' Halloween Fright In-Check

is a time for some great memories of going door to door and dressing up as your favorite superhero or most scary goul and getting tons of free candy! 

The best part was knowing which house gave the really big candy bars, and knowing which house to skip because they gave toothbrushes.

However, Halloween typically is much less fun for our household pets. It is very important that a pet owner takes extra steps to ensure the safety of their pets during this festive day. 

Although we know the goblins and ghouls are just costumes, this can be very frightening to our animals.  This can cause stress, and anxiety that could cause our furry friends to run from the house, bite an unsuspecting ghost or generally cause them to be in a high state of stress. 

Stress can cause upset stomachs, diarrhea, or just be generally unpleasant for our pets. Stress can also lead to behavioral changes in our pets, though temporary, these changes can put the animal and the humans in some level of danger. 

With all the candy floating about, along with pumpkin seeds, pumpkins and the occasional tossed egg or two, it is also important to be aware that our pets do not consume anything that could be potentially harmful or toxic. 

The wrappers of most yummy candy can be a potential hazard for our pets as they can cause an upset stomach or even intestinal blockage. Chocolate is generally known to be toxic to dogs.  

Different types of chocolate have different amounts of caffeine in them.  What we crave in chocolate is the theobromine and caffeine, combined with sugary sweetness chocolate is hard to resist. 

Small amounts of chocolate are actually good for humans as it contains healthy antioxidants. 

However, this same positive effect in humans can cause jitters, diarrhea, disturb the heart rhythm, cause seizures, or even death for dogs. 

More dangerous than chocolate is actually sugar free gum.  The active ingredient in sugarless gum is called xylitol.  This ingredient can cause blood sugar or liver problem for your dogs.  A mere one and a half pieces of this gum can cause serious problems for a ten-pound dog. 

Bakers chocolate is actually much more dangerous than regular chocolate because of the high amounts of theobromine. 

There are six times the amount of theobromine in bakers chocolate, making the amount a dog would need to consume before showing signs of toxicity, a mere three ounces for a thirty pound dog. In comparison, it would take 1.5 pounds of milk chocolate to show the same effects. 

So on this scary day during this beautiful time of year, take care to not make the real scare one with our pets. Happy Halloween!