The holiday season is full of wonderful moments. A few safety tips can help you plan and prepare to avoid unhappy moments for you and your pets.

Now that you’ve settled your macho mutt down from the excitement—and anxiety—of Halloween trick or treaters and fireworks, more holiday mayhem is upon us. Having house pets adds another element to every holiday. A little planning and preparation will help to keep your pet safe and sound over this busy season.

Hang ’em high

No, no, not your pets! We’re talking tree ornaments and garlands. If your pet is attracted to all those shiny objects, placing them on higher branches may be your best bet. Don’t forget to keep electrical cords from the lights covered and out of the way, too; they can cause electrocution or oral burns if chewed.

Put a wrap on safety

Keeping gift wrapping under wraps is not only important to keep prying eyes from spoiling the surprise. It’s also a good idea to keep pets out of the room where colourful gift wrap, bows, ribbons as well as scissors can seem like enticing playthings for a cat or playful puppy. Swallowing ribbon can cause havoc for pets as it passes through their digestive system. And we don’t even want to contemplate what happens with the scissors.

Don’t share—your food

We don’t mean with your family and friends, of course! But do be sure to alert holiday guests to be stingy when it comes to feeding your pets. There are a number of dangerous food items that can cause serious problems if ingested:

• chocolate
• alcohol
• fatty meats
• gravies
• poultry skin and bones

Show them you care—without flowers

Many flowers and plants bring Christmas cheer into our homes. But many of them can spell disaster to our pets. Keep them out of the reach of pets to keep them safe from potential toxins. This includes mistletoe. Be sure to hang it out of the way of Snaggletooth the cat (but not too out of the way to snare the one you love!). Other holiday plants to keep out of the way of pets include:

• holly
• poinsettia
• lilies
• amaryllis
• mistletoe
• begonia
• azalea
• chrysanthemum
• cyclamen

Giving your pet the gift of a safe and happy holiday—and good health throughout the year—will reap rewards for you, too. And it will give you a holiday from worry—until your next holiday pet challenge: Fido chasing the Easter Bunny!