Holiday food and decorations in a home with pets

Plan the season before the first guest arrives

Holiday weeks change a home quickly. The kitchen fills with rich food, a tree or new plants appear in the living room, candles come out, and the front door opens far more often than usual. Each change is small. Together they create new things for a dog or cat to reach, chew, knock over or slip past.

The American Veterinary Medical Association’s winter holiday pet safety guidance starts with planning: know how to reach your 24/7 emergency veterinary clinic before you need it, and keep key numbers posted where they are easy to find. That is the first job in this guide, because it takes five minutes and is hard to do in a hurry.

• Your usual veterinary clinic’s phone number.
• The nearest 24/7 emergency veterinary clinic, if different, and the route to get there.
• ASPCA Animal Poison Control: 888-426-4435. AVMA notes that a fee may apply.
• Pet Poison Helpline: 855-764-7661. AVMA notes that a fee may apply.

Put the list on the refrigerator or inside a cupboard door, and share it with anyone who will help with the pets during the holidays.

Keep the holiday menu on the people side of the room

AVMA recommends keeping people food away from pets and asking everyone else to do the same. It names chocolate, sweets and baked goods that may contain xylitol, table scraps such as gravy, fat and poultry skin, bones, onions, raisins, grapes and unbaked yeast dough among the foods that are especially risky. The ASPCA’s holiday safety tips add fatty, sweet and spicy foods and cooked turkey or chicken bones, and suggest keeping your pet’s diet the same as on any other day.

Rules work better when the room supports them. Before cooking starts, look at where food will actually sit: the counter edge, the coffee table during snacks, the low serving table, a plate on a guest’s lap. Ask who will clear each place, and when. A kind guest who slips a scrap under the table is the most common gap, so tell visitors the household rule when they arrive rather than after something has been eaten.

If you would like to include your pet in the celebration, AVMA suggests treats made or bought for pets. Keep the amount within the pet’s usual feeding plan.

Walk the route from counter to trash

This is an original Housemates exercise. It follows food after the meal, which is where many households lose track of it. Do it once, on paper, before the main holiday meal.

1. Name every place food will rest. Counters, the stove top, the table, a side table for drinks, the car on the way home with leftovers.
2. Mark each place your pet can reach. Think about jumping cats and tall dogs, and about chairs that become steps once they are pulled out.
3. Follow the scraps. Where do bones, carcasses, strings and wrappers go? AVMA recommends a covered, tightly secured bag in a closed trash container outdoors, or behind a closed door.
4. Name one person for clearing. Write their name beside the table and the trash, so the job does not wait for whoever notices first.

Take the trash out at the end of the evening instead of leaving a full bag by the back door overnight. The ASPCA also points out that pets can smell wrapped food or candy under a tree, so keep edible gifts off the floor.

Decorate with reach in mind

Both organizations describe the same group of decoration risks. Ornaments can break or be swallowed. Tinsel, ribbon and similar materials are tempting to play with and can cause choking or intestinal blockage; the ASPCA suggests skipping tinsel in homes with cats. Chewed electrical cords can cause burns or shock. Candles and oil lamps can be knocked over by a tail or a paw.

• The tree. AVMA suggests securing it so it cannot tip, for example to the ceiling or a doorframe with fishing line. Keep the tree water covered or out of reach, and do not add anything to it.
• Plants. AVMA lists poinsettias, amaryllis, mistletoe, balsam, pine, cedar and holly among the holiday plants that can be dangerous if eaten. The ASPCA warns that many lilies in holiday bouquets are highly toxic to cats.
• Lights and cords. Route cords along walls and unplug decorations when nobody is home.
• Candles. Never leave a pet alone with a lit candle or lamp.
• Other items. The ASPCA notes that snow globes can contain ethylene glycol and that salt-dough ornaments are a hazard even when dry. Keep both well out of reach.

A useful test is to kneel at your pet’s eye level, or look from the top of the sofa for a climbing cat, and see what is now within reach that was not there last month.

Give your pet a quiet room during gatherings

AVMA recommends that all pets have access to a comfortable, quiet place indoors where guests will not follow and where the pet can go at any time. The ASPCA suggests an interior room for pets who are sensitive to loud music, poppers or fireworks. Set the room up the day before with water, bedding, familiar toys and, for a cat, a litter tray.

Tell guests about your pets ahead of time, partly for the pet and partly for visitors with allergies. If a guest asks to bring their own pet and you do not know how the animals will get along, AVMA says you can politely decline, or plan to supervise and manage introductions. Our visitor-and-room plan has a printable page for agreeing these details before the doorbell rings.

The ASPCA also asks hosts to have overnight guests keep their medicines in a closed cabinet rather than an open bag or suitcase. It is an easy request to add to the welcome conversation.

Watch the door and check identification

Coats, bags and greetings make the front door a busy place. AVMA reminds hosts to watch pets closely when people are arriving and leaving, and to make sure identification tags and microchip registration carry current contact details. Before the first gathering, check that your pet’s tag is readable and that the microchip registry has your current phone number.

Decide who is responsible for the door during the busiest half hour, and whether your pet will be in its quiet room during that time. That small agreement is often easier than asking every guest to remember.

Know when to call

AVMA lists sudden behavior changes, depression, pain, loss of appetite, vomiting and diarrhea as signs that a pet may have eaten something it should not have. If you see these signs or suspect your pet has eaten something harmful, call your veterinarian or the nearest emergency clinic straight away. AVMA notes that quick action can save lives.

This guide is a household planning aid. It does not replace advice from a veterinarian, and it cannot list every food or decoration that could cause a problem.