Dogs at Halloween: keeping your dog calm

Halloween is celebrated every year on 31 October all around the world.

The tradition dates back to the ancient Celtic festival of Samhain, 2,000 years ago. For more information on the history of Halloween: https://www.history.com/topics/halloween/history-of-halloween.

The traditions of Halloween

Trick or Treat began hundreds of years ago in medieval England, when people would go door to door offering a pray or a song in exchange for food.

This was known back then as Souling, taking place on All Saint's Day when Christians would traditionally pray for their loved ones.

Approaching the Victorian era, the food often given was a type of pastry called a soul cake. Something resembling a biscuit, or a cake.

Only in modern times has that tradition evolved into sweets and chocolate.

Well, we have the Celts to thank for that, too as that's when the costume wearing started.

Scary costumes and petrifying pumpkins

Spooky outfits were worn to scare away any evil spirits lurking in the shadows of the celebrations.

Pumpkins however... that's an American thing. It was brought over to the US by the Irish in the 19th century when many immigrated to America.

Whereas back home they used to carve faces in turnips, they found pumpkins were easier to grow in America, so the tradition evolved to carving the pumpkins we are familiar with today.

Trick-or-treating is a traditional Halloween custom for children and adults. During the evening of Halloween, on October 31, people in costumes travel from house to house, asking for treats with the phrase "trick or treat". The "treat" is some form of sweets or chocolate, usually

Your dog can get stressed at Halloween

Halloween can mean a steady stream of doorbell rings and knocks which can make your dog feel anxious.  Add in painted faces and masks which makes people look strange and also means dogs can’t read human facial expressions. Finally, in some cases, dogs are dressed up in uncomfortable costumes which they may really struggle to cope with. 

Is my dog stressed?

Stress can be a response to a stimulus from the surrounding environment. It is a natural response that prepares body and mind for a reaction or as an instinctive alert to something threatening. 

External things which your dog could encounter at Halloween can include (but are not limited to): 

• the presence of new unfamiliar people

• unknown objects

• loud noises including fireworks

• any of the above that have caused bad experiences in the past (e.g. manhandling from a person, fireworks etc.)

Some signs of stress in dogs include:

• Fiddle – scratching, sneezing, slow wagging tail, frantic spinning

• Displacement behaviours – slow circling, ‘grinning’, cowering, showing whites on eyes

• Flight – withdrawing, trying to escape

• Freeze – stiff body posture, reduced breathing rate, straight and rigid tail

• Fight – air snapping, baring teeth, biting, crouching, barking

Stress-busting advice for dogs at Halloween

1.    Take them for a walk early. Aim to get out before dark to avoid bumping into too many costumes which may confuse or upset them. Having plenty of exercise during the day will also increase the likelihood of them being tired and remaining calm throughout the evening.

2.    Distract them from loud noises. Put on the radio or TV to mask some of the noise from outside. You could do a few ‘trial runs’ where you ring your doorbell and if/when your dog remains calm, you can reward them with a tasty treat. If they remain stressed with the doorbell ringing frequently, you could consider removing it or switching it off for Halloween. Prepare a Kong with some of their dinner which you can give them at key ‘trick or treat’ time or giving your dog a chew can also help.

3.    Get familiar with your costume. If people in your household are dressing up for Halloween, encourage your dog or puppy to smell and investigate the costumes. Desensitise your dog to the costumes and make up. Put any masks on in front of them and turn the fact that you look strange into a nice experience by giving them a few treats. Ask children or adults that are visiting not to stand over your dog or suddenly approach them as this can be intimidating and potentially stressful.

4.    Keep some treats handy. Consider having a pot of dog treats by the door and if your dog does say hello to visitors nicely and happily, you could ask your Halloween visitors to give them a dog treat, if they’re comfortable doing that.

5.    Only dress them in their collar. Most dogs don’t enjoy wearing costumes and some can even be dangerous around candles and can make them feel anxious. So, rather than a costume, you could consider getting a Halloween-style collar and lead if you want to involve your dog in some fancy dress fun.  Make sure that you transfer your dogs’ ID tag to any new collar because if they suddenly escape, it’s vitally important that they can be safely returned to you.

6.    Lead on during ‘Trick or treat’ time. Put a lead on your dog during the time when groups come to your house. You may be destructed by the people on your doorstep and with the lead you can secure your dog next to you.

Safety tips for dogs at Halloween

It’s hugely important to keep chocolate, sweets and their wrappers well away from dogs.  Many sweets, especially those containing chocolate or xylitol (an artificial sweetener), are toxic to dogs.

Candles in pumpkins and around the home can be dangerous around wagging tails, so swap them for battery powered ones to reduce any risk

With an anxious dog I suggest to take steps to stop people from knocking or ringing the doorbell. Your dog may manage a couple of visitors but please bear in mind that some dogs bark louder and louder the more ‘trick or treaters’ come to your doorstep.

The unwritten rule in our road is to only knock on houses with Halloween decorations. I like this very much but if this not the case where you live you can put up a sign (credit for the poster to Kelly of Tails We Win, https://tailswewin.dog/) and place a bucket of sweets at a safe distance for your dog outside of your house. .