Howloween Podcast- Having a Good Time with Your Dashing Doggo

Howloween Podcast- Having a Good Time with Your Dashing Doggo

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Transcript: Hey hey good morning all.  It’s Sammy the Dog Trainer here for doggy podcast.  It’s been a fun week here at Camp Sammy.  The doggy Halloween events are in full swing.  I’ve been getting awesome pictures from my clients having fun with their dogs, and I encourage you to do the same.  I really love this time of year.  Here in Florida the fall foliage is not as impressive as where I’m from in Ohio, but that doesn’t deter me from celebrating all the same.  I went to the Strut Wag and Roll event at Ferg’s live this past weekend benefiting Vets 4 Pets and it was awesome to see all the dogs out.  Whuffo was dressed like a skunk for a little while, but he peed on his costume so that didn’t last long lol.

This time of year as a dog trainer I get a few Howloween related questions.  The first one is should I take my dog trick or treating?  Now the answer to that one depends entirely on your dog.  Is your dog well socialized?  Does he or she like crowds?  Will the costumes weird your dog out and cause him or her to act irrationally?  On the other hand, does your dog love the hustle and bustle of social events?  Are they more go with the flow types?  If that’s the case, then I say go for it.  As always, keep your doggo on a leash and make sure they are visible- lights, LED collars or leashes, that kind of thing.  I just wrote an article on some nifty dog products and some bright LED collars and leashes were mentioned in it.  Check it out on Sammythedogtrainer.com if you’re interested.

Sammy, why does my dog act like a psycho nut job on beggar’s night?  Well…your dog is probably not acting differently than he or she normally would except the instances for psycho behavior go up exponentially.  Instead of one or two visitors causing your dog to go into a frenzy at the door, you have hundreds.  I have seen some dogs that are just incredibly weirded out by the costumes people wear too.  Keep your treats at the ready to teach your pooch that people in costumes mean good things! Check out my podcast on barking if you want a succinct solution to the psycho barking problem.  It’s not actually psycho…I just say that because it sounds like it.  I have actually seen psychotic dogs before.  That’s a whole other story.

Can I dress my dog up for Halloween?  Why yes you can.  It does not necessarily mean your dog will like or tolerate it, but have at it my friend.  If you want your reluctant pooch to be more accepting of costume pieces, try introducing them slowly with lots of treats.  I was blessed with a super vain dog who loves attention.  He is also smart and has figured out if he wears a costume he gets lots more attention.  Therefore he loves costumes.  He struts around like Look at me!  I’m so cool!  My mom gave me these duds!  Dogs are better at wearing shirt type things than hats, shoes, or glasses.  Oh by the way if doggy glasses or doggles if you will are a part of your dog’s costume make sure they are just clear and not prescriptive.  The blur from the lenses freaks dogs out majorly and it’s not that fair to them to do that.   But if they’re just decorative they can make your dog look super smart.  One of my clients sent me the cutest pic of her dog in glasses.  I will share it on my Instagram Sammythedogtrainer, Twitter @SammyDogTrainer, and Facebook page Camp Sammy Tampa Dog Training if you want some comic relief.  Please follow me so I can someday eventually publish my darn dog training book.

Oh check out my online super easy dog training course as well!

my dog eat Halloween candy?  NOOOOOOOOOO.  Well mostly no.  I had a border collie growing up that would root through our candy stashes when she knew we weren’t looking and picked out all the smarties.  She would hide them in her doggy bed.  Thank goodness her taste was in candy that was not toxic.  Not terribly good for her, but not poisonous.  Hey they say you are what you eat…smarties…get it?  Anyways NO chocolate and definitely no sugar free anything.  And just don’t feed your dog candy.  It’s terrible.  Keep it out of their reach.  If they accidentally ingest some, it depends on their size, metabolism, and a couple other factors whether or not they will be violently ill or just poo shiny wrapper turds for a while.  Always contact your vet.  I say again, always contact your vet if you dog eats something like that.

What if my dog is a nervous wreck and hates beggar’s night?  There are a few things you can do to help calm your pooch.  There are of course the big hitting items you can get from your vet like Solliquin or other sedatives.  On the less extreme side, make sure your dog’s favorite place to hide is ready with snugly blankets.  Usually somewhere dark and cave like.  Check out dog appeasing pheromone spray as well.  It did well in the clinical trials and comes in a room spray and a diffuser.  It also comes in a collar but I’m not as big of a fan of the collar.  Lavender is a nice essential oil to diffuse for calming as well if you’re into aromatherapy.  It makes me happy too so win-win. 

*Not an endorsement of CBD oil.  Check with your veterinarian

Oh, and by the way, just to dispel the old wives’ tale- it is okay to sooth your dog if he or she is frightened.  Big long strokes in the direction of the fur are calming as well as two handed ear massage.  It reminds them of mamma dog grooming them. Some people have the mistaken impression that petting your dog when he or she is frightened is reinforcing the frightened state.  That has been found to be inaccurate.  The undesirable nature of being in a frightened state is not reinforced by your attention.  Just don’t mistake aggression or possessiveness for fear.  A lot of people do that and try to pet their dogs then.  That actually is reinforcing bad behavior then.  If you aren’t sure contact a dog trainer or behaviorist. 

So to sum up, think about your dog and what your dog wants at this time of the year.  Do they want to be included in all the family fun or are they not ready yet for all the activity?  Gauge your dog and where he or she is at before making plans for your pooch.  It’s not fair to make them miserable for our own enjoyment…just saying.  But I encourage you not to leave your dog behind, especially if Rover is down for the ride.  Halloween can be a super fun exciting time! 

As always, I am going to beg and plead for you to support this podcast either through the link on Anchor.com or by going to my Patreon page and looking for Sammythedogtrainer.  Your support allows me to make these podcasts and talk to you about dogs.  Let’s keep it going!

Cheers and Happy Howloween!