Wag The Tail # 5-Dogs On Holiday

Some dogs may act differently to the holidays we celebrate in my country or any other land. The prominent holidays where I live are Independence Day, Thanksgiving, Christmas and New Years. During those times my neighborhood and city shuts down and celebrate. I live in New York City which is called the most diverse and eclectic in the world and whose boundaries are inhabited by people from every nook and cranny of the earth. Despite the different cultures my town on those holidays have a I'm out to lunch look to it and people have a glint in their eyes as if to say It's not business as usual.

But in the city that never sleeps and as people are caught blinking during the holiday, it is business as usual in a dog's mind -as it should be. The dogs still bark, chew, defecate, urinate, protect his master, eat etc. The dog goes through the day steady and regular like a heartbeat and the turning of night to day and vice-a-versa. However the holiday may emerge as an unwelcomed visitor to a dog if a human lets it.

Let's stroll down to July 4 which is celebrated as Independence Day In the USA. My three dogs would take all that it could offer like sizzling hot dogs on a grill followed by smokey hamburgers with Barbecue Sauce. But alas the thunder and crackle of fireworks scare them away-so much so that they hide under my bed. I live in an apartment building and don't have a spacious backyard so on Independence Day I take them out at dawn so they don't have to deal with the fireworks. I don't give them any charcoal grilled food because it is not good for them so it's ixnay for any barbecue but I give them healthy treats.

Thanksgiving day is when everyone is in the eating and shopping mood and your long lost relative who you really don't want to see ends up on your doorstep bringing either good but mostly bad tidings. It is easy to forget and/or neglect our pet during this festive holiday. It is best to take care and keep things normal for them. If you give them a little scrap of the food make sure that it is not one of these foods that can poison dogs like onions and chocolate-for heavens sake don't give the dog a turkey bone because it may get stuck in his innards. My dogs are crumb bums and are always on the prowl for any crumb they can get their hands on. As I'm slaving over the stove cooking the Turkey the dogs are getting intoxicated from watching the oven door pop open and close as the bird is stretched out being cooked ; they are watching over the oven as if they are guarding gold at Fort Knox. I have eyes in the back of my head so I'm miindful of their every move.

Christmas is another holiday that can throw a monkey wrench into our dog's well being and turn a lovely day into a horror story for our pets if we are not careful. If we get a Christmas Tree it may wreck havoc if your dog is a nibbler and he eats either the real and/or synthetic one. If he eats it he could get sick and it could be curtains for him-the final call.Hence you may find it necessary to block the tree from the dog so that he does come into contact with it. via a gate or anything else creative. The ornaments on the tree are a problem because some can be broken and could wind up in the dog's stomach. One of my dogs Allen use to be like Mikey and he'd eat anything. He'd nibble plastic gloves and poop it out-lucky him. I have kept him from temptation by getting a desk Tree every year so I don't have any problems with trees. Please remember that mistletoe and poinsettas are poisonous for dogs just as they are for people. Give the dogs healthy treats like cooked carrots, cooked celery and boiled eggs so you won't feel like a complete killjoy.

New Years Day has the potential of being a real bummer for a dog. If you're drinking and leave your glass somewhere and your dog imbibes you could get a drunk and dead dog. Some sections of the country like to blast guns at the stroke of midnight and if your dog doesn't cotton to firecrackers he won't cotton to gunshot. If you're having a party or a lot of guests are coming to your house, reserve a quiet and/or normal spot for your pet, keep them occupied with the toys they love and take them for extra long walks during this period so that their bodies can be spent.

There are other holidays not as prominent which a pet owner should be wary of like Halloween or what some people call satan's paw because it may bring trouble into a dog's paradise. One of my dog bark at the drop of a hat which I believe she is talking and is savoring every word. When the children ring the bell during Halloween she goes into barking heaven and it sounds like an opera. Therefore I am mindful of this and either turn off my bell or put her in another room. You may ask why don't you train her not to bark? I won't because that is one of her jobs, that's how she pays the rent for various reasons of course. One of my neighbors suggested that I have an operation to remove her vocal cords. but I don't deal that way.

Another holiday that is surprising to me is Good Friday. In my region I have seen more drunk people on the subways on this holiday than on New Years in the last couple of years. These folks seemed to be the nasty drunks not the nice benign ones. As a pet owner I scrutinize the knucklehead behavior of humans because this may seem like a threat to my dogs and it well may be, for dogs have a sixth sense about spirits.

As humans we often wonder if we can survive the holidays. The holiday season begins on October 31 and ends with the last drink of the new year. From October 31 we are caught in the whirlwind of the holiday unitl the season ends. As pet owners we should try to walk in the paws of our dogs or cats and if possible get on our knees and crawl around to see how our pets are living down yonder so that they can have the best holiday possible