Halloween can be full of fun for people. But for a lot of dogs, this night of excitement feels more like a horror movie. First of all, it comes completely out of nowhere from their perspective. Dogs that are already on alert when someone knocks or rings the doorbell feel suddenly under a barrage of attacks. Not only is the doorbell ringing during the night, but when the door opens it’s to the grim reaper and a walking inflatable 6-foot giraffe.

Even though some of us live near enough to SeaWorld for their dogs to get used to the sound of fireworks, sometimes even these dogs can be startled and frightened by the sudden burst of explosions related to July 4^th weekend. If you know your dog is going to have a hard time with it, start this exercise now to help avoid unnecessary stress for everyone!

Your instinct is to say yes, of course! I would never hurt them and they know that. But whether or not you would hurt your dog isn't really the question. Does your dog trust you to handle any situation? If your dog barks at other dogs on-leash, guards things, or gets nervous when someone approaches them, they don't view you as in control.