The holidays can be a stressful time for pets and humans alike. Making a holiday plan for our pets can feel overwhelming, especially as we’re also scrambling to clean, decorate, and have food on the table when guests arrive.
When it comes to preparing pets for holiday visitors, the most important thing to remember is this: boundaries, boundaries, boundaries. This might mean giving your pet a quiet area to retreat, making sure guests don’t overwhelm them, or even enforcing human boundaries by keeping your dog on a leash.
In this article, we’ll discuss 12 ways to prepare your pets for holiday visitors, whether you have a dog, cat, or an exotic pet.
Set Your Pet Up for Success with Management Techniques
While directly training your pet is great, sometimes it’s not necessary–or, it takes too long and the holiday is fast approaching!
“Management” in pet training means setting your pet up for success by taking away the opportunity to make bad choices. Examples of this include:
Keeping your pet out of the kitchen and dining areas while you cook and eat, or otherwise keeping food out of reach, rather than expecting your pet to avoid it on their own.
Using a short leash to stop your dog from jumping on guests as they walk through the door.
Choosing pet-safe decor and avoiding dangerous items like tinsel garlands and poinsettia plants.
Give Your Pet a Safe, Quiet Space to Rest
Another way to manage your pet’s behavior is to give them a safe, quiet space where they can be alone. This might be your dog’s crate, an enclosure for small animals, or a room with all of your pet’s needs.
It can be someplace your pet can come and go from, if they’re generally comfortable around people. Or, you may choose to keep your pet in this space the entire time your guests are over.
Advocate for Your Pet
It’s important to know your pet and how, or if, they like to interact with people. Although it’s tempting to introduce them to guests, only do so if your pet will be comfortable.
If your pet is comfortable interacting, still make sure to enforce boundaries for them. This may mean letting your guests know ahead of time that your bunny prefers calm, quiet interactions, or that they should leave your dog alone while they’re in their crate.
Make sure guests follow safety rules as well, such as latching a small pet’s cage when they’re done interacting or not feeding your dog or cat table scraps.
Stick to a Familiar Routine
If at all possible, stick to a familiar routine with your pet. Make sure their exercise and meals come at the same time as usual so that they aren’t stressed leading up to the holiday.
A dog walker can be a huge help here, as they can make sure your dog gets their walk in while you cook the turkey or clean the house. Also consider enlisting family members or friends to help–the holidays can be a busy time for pet parents.
Socialize Your Pet Prior to the Holidays
If possible, socialize your pet before the holidays. This allows you to go at their pace so that they aren’t overwhelmed by guests all showing up at once. People and animals can become overexcited or stressed during the holiday season, and it’s better to train in a calm environment.
You can also work on desensitizing your pet to guests walking through the door, which can be especially exciting to dogs or scary for cats. Get dogs used to the doorbell or people knocking so that they aren’t barking every time someone arrives.
If you can’t socialize your pet before the holiday and you think they’d rather be left alone, that’s okay! Let your guests know that they can come back one by one to meet your pet at a less hectic time, or that they’ll be more prepared for meet-and-greets next year.
Monitor Holiday Foods
Many holiday foods are toxic or unhealthy for our pets. Emergency vet clinics see a rise in things like poisoning, bloat, and pancreatitis around the holidays due to pets eating table scraps.
If you can, keep your pet out of the kitchen and dining room altogether–especially cats and dogs who can climb onto counters. If this isn’t possible, keep food well out of reach, cover dishes with lids, and don’t leave food unattended.
Make sure that your guests know not to feed table scraps to your pet. You can always give them some pet-safe treats to feed after dinner is finished!
Teach Safety Cues to Your Dog
A great way to prepare dogs for holiday guests is to teach, or refresh, safety cues. These include:
“Sit” and “stay”
Keeping all four paws on the floor while greeting guests
Approaching new people calmly
“Drop it” and “leave it” in case they get into anything they shouldn’t
Waiting for permission to walk out the door, rather than rushing outside when it opens
Exercise, Exercise, Exercise!
Tire your pet out before your guests arrive to keep them from growing bored while you host the festivities. Pets who won’t interact with guests should be exercised just before guests arrive.
Pets who will interact should be tired out
a few hours prior, then given some time to rest. This way, they aren’t acting out because they’re overtired. Keep in mind that having guests over can be mentally tiring for pets just like it can for people!
Provide Independent Activities
There may be times when the humans of the house are busy and pets need to occupy themselves. Make sure they have safe and appropriate outlets so they don’t get into trouble!
For dogs, this might mean a puzzle toy or lick mat. Cats tend to be more independent, but you can also provide them with puzzle toys or electronic motion toys to keep them busy. This is especially helpful if you don’t have time for hands-on play.
For small pets, consider providing some extra mental enrichment within their enclosure, especially if they won’t get as much floor time as they’re used to.
Make Time for Naps
Puppies and kittens especially can act out if they don’t get enough sleep, like a tired human toddler. Prior to the holidays, take note of when your pet rests and make sure they have time to sleep while guests are over.
Keep in mind that many small animals, such as hamsters, are nocturnal. Don’t disrupt their sleep schedules for the sake of guests, but instead allow them to keep their normal routine.
Reward Good Behavior
Be sure to keep treats on hand and praise your pet for good behavior, especially if being around strangers is new or difficult for them. Especially when we’re stressed, we sometimes focus on misbehavior from our pets without letting them know what we like to see.
If your pet isn’t behaving well, remove them from the situation and into a quieter location where they can calm down. Have patience and remember that holidays can be difficult for some pets.
Supervise Pet-Child Interactions
Lastly, if you have children over for the holidays, make sure that a responsible adult is supervising all pet-child interactions. Many people focus on how large dogs can hurt children if unsupervised, but children can also hurt smaller pets if left unattended with them.
Teach the child how to interact with your pet and don’t be afraid to say “no” if you don’t think your pet will enjoy spending time with kids!
With a little preparation and a lot of love, you can make the holidays enjoyable for everyone—two-legged and four-legged alike. By following these 12 tips, your home will be a welcoming space where pets and guests can feel comfortable and happy.
Do you have a favorite tip or a special way you prepare your pets for visitors? We’d love to hear your ideas in the comments below! And if you found this helpful, don’t forget to share it with fellow pet lovers—because the best holiday celebrations include everyone in the family, fur and all.
Happy holidays to you and your furry friends! 🐾🎄
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