Pets love Christmas trees, too! Photo: azrainman, Flickr
- Avoid tinsel. Cats find it delicious and fun to chew, but it can cause serious damage to their digestive systems.
- That pan of water that is keeping your tree from drying out can be very attractive to thirsty pets. But that sticky water can also make them very sick. Discourage drinking by cutting a piece of screen or other sturdy mesh fabric to fit and duct tape it over the pan. This will keep little tongues out while still allowing you to replenish the water supply.
- Cats love to bat balls around -- especially bright, shiny ones that are attached to a Christmas tree. Prevent breakage and possible injury by decorating your tree with plastic or wooden ornaments.
- That little metal stand that is holding your tree in the vertical position is no match for a rowdy pet with a running start. Get rid of it and invest in a large, sturdy tree stand. For extra protection, attach a string of fishing line from the top of the tree to a small hook in the ceiling.
- Puppies like to chew on things and those lower limbs of your Christmas tree may prove irresistible even to the most well-behaved little dog. Surrounding your tree with a baby pen might not be the most attractive solution, but is surely the safest. Otherwise, don't allow your puppy to be alone in the same room as the Christmas tree.
- To discourage chewing on your light cords, spray them with bitter apple. Unplug the lights when not in use.
- Clean up fallen needles regularly. Some dogs will eat just about anything and these sharp pine needles can cause internal injuries if ingested.
- Don't decorate with edible ornaments. If it smells like food, a determined pet will find a way to reach it.
salome,11-28-2009, 6:50PM
guess ""mikey"" doesn't bother to even sweep/vacuum his own home,never mind to keep his animals clean and parasite free......animal hair on a stove/table ?????
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zeldafan,11-28-2009, 7:23PM
cats can make just a good loving pets as any other ones. my little cat has been there for me through what was probably the most emotionally scarring time of my life. believe it or not pets can be a very coforting outlet during times of abuse. i hd a abusive stepfather and little Bubz was always ther for me. animals can tell human emotoins as well. Bubz came to the sound of tears and slamming doors like it was her name. kc6iih you are an ignorant freak and should not make comments such as that unless you are talking privately to friends and not on a public website where you don't know the people you are talking to and what the've expericenced. i think i've made my point, goodbye.
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I LOVE YOU MOM!,11-28-2009, 7:39PM
I kept an abused (limping, sore, starving 8 to 10 month old German Shepherd) dog that was dumped from a car in the parking lot I was driving into to. This was July. The intact male dog (since neutered) was housebroken and slept in the house with my old rottweiller until I put up my Xmas tree! He came in from the backyard, took one look at the tree and If he could have spoken he would have said: WOW, INDOOR PLUMBING. He looked at me & immediately lifted his leg & peed on the tree. I had to spray the tee with 409 before hosing it off. Dog stayed in the covered porch area until Xmas tree came down.
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dave,11-28-2009, 8:03PM
Our cats love to climb up the tree. We only use things they cant break. We have 7 cats and no odor as we have 2 kitty robot litter boxes. Expensive but well worth the price if you havent seen them
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bill,11-28-2009, 8:25PM
cats love antifreeze too
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chris,11-28-2009, 10:14PM
love my yorkie he is so much company
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vlwood,11-28-2009, 8:46PM
Mikey said:
"Keep the varmints in the yard where they BELONG!!! I love my dog but NOT in my house with fleas and other animal parasites. "-------------Mikey, if your pets have fleas and parasites, you are guilty of abuse. If your area has hot summers or cold winters, it is also abuse to leave them outdoors. Since you are not willing to care for your pets, at least take them to your local Humane Society.
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Michelle,11-28-2009, 9:26PM
My cats loved to climb our Christmas trees. They are all gone now and I have two dogs this year. I cannot wait to see how differently they react.
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TommyT,11-28-2009, 9:37PM
I just twist the metal hooks so those shiny round ornaments (and all the rest of my ornaments) stay attached to the tree. My cats look like they're boxing, hitting a punching bag over and over. It entertains them while keeping the ornament on the tree. We're both happy.
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BONNIE,11-28-2009, 10:39PM
WTG to those who relize that pets are not to be owned by heartless humans, why indeed own a pet just to make it stay outside.. my pets are family and I treat them as such,give those poor uncared for pets, to real people, that will love and care for them.. can anyone imagine being married to such cold people..
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vickie,11-28-2009, 11:17PM
kc6iih......your neighbors should be warned about you......people like you can't handle failure ...thats why you are hateful and would harm a cat....because you feel more manly when you can control something smaller than you ......Failure will follow you where ever you go....and....I always wonder what kind of rotten womb you came from?
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vickie,11-28-2009, 11:21PM
bill ....and you can see you aren't welcome on this blog so go find another........Are all the redneck blogs closed?
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vickie,11-28-2009, 11:28PM
Kat....the babies would of eventually got bored with the tree......keep allot of climbing toys and scratching post around.If they were born outside they know nothing else....Cats are wonderful animals and little tiny babies can be shown the litter box....scratch their paws back and forth like after they eat and they will go in the litter with no problem.I have been rescuing kittens and cats my whole and I will untilll the day I die.....
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lilphilly,11-29-2009, 12:57AM
you know its funny that this article is about keeping your animal away from trees and one guy says one little thing and it all of a sudden goes out of control lol. but to you mikey, i have a saint bernard, a golden retriever, two cats and a chinchilla. when people come into my house they dont even realize i have so many animals that shed, if you lock your animals outside thats fine but at least keep the fleas and other parasites off them its not hard ive been an animal owner for 23 years and have never had a flea problem it isnt hard so grow some balls and take care of your animals
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sandy,11-29-2009, 2:53AM
his comment was very cruel. i love my cats alot more than people like him!
sandy,11-29-2009, 2:44AM
the only goof cat is a dead cat. how cruel, i have 2 and i love them dearly. shame on you. you're mean.
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Susan,11-29-2009, 5:23AM
Don't worry, folks, kc6iih is a subhuman freak whose no-skill parents obviously hated him because they failed to teach him proper manners and social skills. He will always be a loser and a failure so will have a well-deserved miserable life. Jerks like him can't stand
to be kind and civil so they have to be hateful and vicious in an attempt to make others
feel bad. He should be shunned and isolated.
Cats are wonderful companions who belong only indoors. If someone is so prissy that
he can't take a bit of animal hair around, then he has real "issues" with obsessive
compulsive disorder and should be pitied because life will never please his shallow
flawed nature.
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Roberta Antonia,11-29-2009, 11:14AM
I'm amazed that most people think the answer to fleas is to put chemicals on our pets? Has it EVER occurred to ya'll people to simply bath or shower your pet on a regular basis? Another simple solution: (I found this out from a chemical engineer I briefly dated)...give your cat a clove of garlic a week to keep fleas away. My grandpa would sprinkle sulfur in the dog's drinking water but I don't know how much you give a dog for it to be effective.
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john,12-01-2009, 8:53AM
Fortunately our dogs are older and not interested in the tree or its hazardous features. Advice to those cat owners out there, catnip filled toys will distract them from the tree and its hazards,preferably if they are kept across the room away from the tree.
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