Tuesday, December 18, 2007

Pet-Proof Your Holidays with Bob Vila!


If you're like Bob Vila, you've decorated for the holidays and are now experiencing the slow but steady destruction of all your hard work due to pets. Here are some tips on ways you can make your home more pet-friendly to protect your decorations and the safety of your animals. Some of these ideas will actually work on a toddler, too!

Tree etiquette. Anchor your tree to the wall or ceiling. Cover the stand as pine sap and water can be poisonous. Use unbreakable, nontoxic ornaments. Put decorations high out of pets' reach.

Decoration don'ts. Don't put decorations so low that pets can reach them. That includes bulbs, balls, tinsel or anything else they could put in their mouths. Keep lights and electrical cords out of your pets' way.

Floral with your fauna. Keep mistletoe, holly, amaryllis and poinsettias away from pets.

Food. Be careful your pets don't eat table scraps, which may be hard for them to digest and may contain bones. And, of course, remember that chocolate is toxic to most animals.

Guests. Your family and friends won't know the rules you've established for your pets, so be sure to let them know what foods, rooms and behavior are off-limits. To prevent your pets from becoming overstimulated, you may want to set up a quiet retreat for them.

With some preventative measures and a vigilant eye, your pets can enjoy the holidays as much as you do. Just don't forget they deserve their own stocking stuffers, too!

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