How To Keep Your Dog Safe During Holi Festival

We are all excited to celebrate Holi with our loved ones. However, sometimes during the excitement of the festival, we often forget that our furry friends might not like being colored with Holi colors. The chemicals in the colors irritate their skin and if they lick it, they might ingest it which can result in fatal poisoning.

So this Holi, we want everyone to take note and realize that Holi is not a festival of colors that you can celebrate with your furry friends. There are some important things that you need to know in order to keep dogs safe during this Holi festival.

Colors contain harmful chemicals

The “gulal” powder or liquid color that we use during the festival are made up of a synthetic substance that contains harmful/ toxic chemicals. It causes skin allergies, itching, or even blindness in people, let alone animals. Dogs can lick these harmful chemicals that can cause severe conditions and illnesses. So, even when you are playing with your human friends, use natural colors only. And keep other colors away from your furry friends.

Make sure to keep your pets indoor

During Holi festival celebrations, there are chances of getting hit with water balloons or colored powder. So the best way to keep your pets safe is to keep them indoors. And ensure that you keep the celebration away from stray dogs too. Put out clean drinking water for stray dogs so that they don’t drink contaminated water on the roads.

Teach your children not to throw water balloons at dogs

Throwing water balloons can cause injury to the delicate body parts of a dog. Children may not realize that this terrifies and hurts the dogs. So, teach your children not to throw water balloons at dogs during the celebrations.

Create awareness in your area

Ask your building head to put up notices that remind residents to keep their animal companions indoors during Holi and never throw colored powder or water at animals.

Keep an eye on your pets and stray dogs for any signs of trouble

If you see an animal or your dog with colored powder on their body or face, quickly clean it with clean water. If irritation persists, seek help of a veterinarian for medical care.

What to do if your dog gets color on its fur?

Use good quality dog shampoo to remove colors from your dog’s body. Use it with warm water to wash the colors off. Do not try to remove color from dog’s coat with spirit or paint remover.

Keep the sweets away from your pets

Holi is about sharing sweets with your loved ones but you need to keep them away from your pet dogs. You can share dog treats with them.

Wishing you a happy and animal friendly Holi!