Avoiding Halloween Horrors for Pets

Remember: They’re more afraid of you (when you dress up like a blood-sucking vampire and chase them around the house), than you are of them.

Black cats, pet snakes and other things that go hiss in the night absolutely hate Halloween--so as the eve approaches, please don’t rub it in, warns the Pasadena Humane Society.

For their own safety and sanity, don’t allow your outdoor animals to wander freely on Halloween, and keep your indoor pets locked in a bedroom or a bathroom until the very last trick-or-treater rings your doorbell.

And never--during Halloween or at any other time--squeeze your pet into a costume.

“Dressing up animals is just an obnoxious thing to do,” said Steve McNall, executive director of the humane society.

As a precaution, the humane society puts a freeze on black cat adoptions two weeks before Halloween.

One more warning: Candy, particularly chocolate, is toxic to some animals and has been known to kill dogs, so don’t share your goodies with your pooch.