How do your cats handle Halloween.

Mine hate the door bell on the best of days so they have a lot of trouble on Halloween night. Sugarly and Gweeky don't deal with with people so that makes it even worse. What we do now that we have a house is we set up a lawn chair out front and have the candy outside. That way the bell isn't wringing and kids aren't thumping on out porch? Merlin of course will be watching from the front door, sure that he is missing something. Hubby makes me some apple sider, tea hot chocolate or Abuelletta and I wear my warm woolies.

What do you do to keep the cats from being stressed?

I was thinking of doing the same thing this year... since I've had Spike, I haven't given out candy on Halloween. He's not fond of the doorbell, especially the one at the front door, and I hate to have it ringing all night. I guess we'll see... I can at least do it while it's still twilight for the little kids.

I haven't had hardly any trick or treaters come to my place in the past few years. We live in an apartment complex, and apparently the kids go to the "real" houses and not the apartments. I think I had maybe 2 last year. I've also noticed that they are almost all done trick or treating by 6:00. I remember being out until at least 9:00! My how times have changed.

Anyway, basically I'm no help on this because we don't get enough for it to be a problem. It's usually time for the kitties' nap, anyway.

Oh the joy of living in the UK - we just don't get hoards of trick or treaters - maybe one or two (if you are really unlucky). It's bonfire night that scares me and the cats (WHIZZ! BANG!WOOSH!BANG!)

NOTHING fazes my cats. My only concerns are Ike being protective and Rowdy trying to slip out.

Ike is going to be confined to the Arizona room, behind his gate and I'm going to shut Rowdy up in our bedroom. Opie wouldn't go out, on a bet so, I'm leaving him to his own devices.

The only one of the cats that gets stressed out is Fallon and she usually hides somewhere until the next day. She gets freaked out by a lot of things though like having a new guest over, loud noises, us walking by her. She's a spaz about everything.

The other cats don't seem to mind although last Halloween was when I first brought Sampson home so he pretty much camped out on the stairs. I'm going to have to keep a close eye on him this year since sometimes he wanders near the door when it's open to make a run for it. Maybe I'll keep him closed up in the computer room.

I am in the middle of no where and on a big hill. We also do not have a door bell. I don't think I will have to worry about the cats. I really wish I did get trick or treaters but I don't.

Bengal cats, I'll send mine your way. I may sound like a grump but trick-or-treaters annoy me. And it's certainly not because I have to get up every five minutes(Good exercise!) to hand out candy but rather I've found every year less and less kids are saying 'thank you' and they seem to be getting older and older.

Hey, if I'm giving you free candy you better be under ten and you better say thank you! But that's just my feeling. Ok I'll shut up, now on with the topic at hand...

My cats aren't too bad on halloween. Peppurr is freaked of loud noises and strangers, so he'll be kept in my bedroom with some food, water and light music. 3 of my cats haven't had a halloween yet so I think I'll also put them into rooms. Mimi and Vader are pretty good. My dog hates the firecrackers! Twinkles loves to lay outside on the front lawn in fall. Nothing bothers her and she never leaves my yard.

Some really great tips I found at Halloween Hints

Halloween Hazards
Protect your pets

Things to Watch For
Halloween is a fun time for kids and many adults, but can be a frightening and stressful time for your pets. As a pet owner, you know your pet best, but here are some points to consider for your pet's safety.

Continual doorbell ringing and people at the door (in costume, no less!) can be stressful for a pet. Some pets may experience stress-related diarrhea or potentially injure themselves if crated or otherwise contained. Keep your pet in a quiet and safe place on Halloween.

Watch your pet around strangers in costume-- some animals may become unexpectedly aggressive or fearful, even normally friendly pets.

Candles and Jack-o'-lanterns within a pet's range are a fire hazard.

Candy- many pets have a sweet tooth. General overindulgence, chocolate, and plastic/cardboard candy-filled toys can cause added problems if ingested.

Keep your pets indoors on Halloween night, especially black cats. Animals are at risk for cruel treatment by some Halloween pranksters. Many adoption agencies and humane societies will not allow adoption of black cats around Halloween for this reason.

Look at all of that candy!

For many people, Halloween = candy. Please warn children not to share their goodies with the family pet.

Chocolate is toxic to pets. Granted, a 50 pound dog would have to eat about 50 ounces of milk chocolate (but only 5 ounces of baking chocolate) for a toxic dose, but much smaller amounts can cause vomiting and diarrhea. Signs of chocolate toxicity include tremors, nervousness, vomiting, diarrhea, increased heart rate, and in severe cases, seizures and death. If you suspect that your pet has eaten chocolate, consult your veterinarian.

Other candies, such as lollipops and those with plastic components, pose a danger if ingested. Lollipop sticks and plastic parts can cause intestinal obstruction and potentially rupture the intestines, which is a life-threatening emergency.

He looks so cute in his little red suit...

Sometimes pet owners can't resist dressing up their pets in costume for halloween and other holidays. While this may be "cute" for photos, caution is advised for the costume-wearing pets. A pet in costume should NEVER be left alone and unsupervised.

Tight elastics on the costumes can get lost in the pet's hair, potentially causing owners to overlook them, leading to swelling and pain in the area of the elastic.

Some pets, if left alone in costume, may chew it up and ingest it. This could cause intestinal obstruction if more than small shreds of material are consumed.

If the costumed pet escapes or is frightened away, the costume could entangle the pet on trees, fences, etc.

Play it safe and have fun
With a little caution and some common sense, Halloween can be a fun time for kids and pets alike. If any acts of animal cruelty are seen or suspected, please call your local shelter or animal authorities. Happy and safe Halloween to everyone.

BadHabit I'll take them any day. I love Halloween!

Snowball gets stressed by the noise and activity of Halloween so we keep him closed up in one room while the trick or treaters are out getting candy.

We used to have an all black cat, Midnight, (now deceased). We were always extra careful to keep her out of sight on Halloween. Here's a picture of her taken on Halloween Eve one year...Hopefully, you can see her, she is against some dark woodwork.

I work every halloween so I never have to deal with that sort of stuff. I just worry about the cats being home alone and all the holligans out there creating havoc just to amuse themselves.

No Halloween door-ringers here ... ; pumpkins everywhere , but the habit of "trick-or-treat" does not exist here ....

I lived in a very small town last year, with lots of kids, so I decided to try to be a good neighbor and give out candy. I put the cats in the back of the house during what I thought would be trick or treat time. They were fine with that. I got a couple little kids before dark, but after it got dark, and pretty late, I got a bunch of teenagers that bunched up on the porch, grabbing the candy, and almost seemed like they were going to try to get in the house. They stole or broke my plants and I ended up having to call the police. It turned out they were my next door neighbors. With masks, I couldn't tell. No more trick or treat for me!