Preparing Your Pets for Back-To-School

When you’re thinking about back-to-school season, you think about the students returning to school and shopping for supplies and uniforms, often forgetting the furry friends that will now have to say goodbye to their companions for hours, days, or even months for college students.

Pets have routines, just like people do. Their routines are based on those of the people who take care of them. If your household has students, the home routines are always disrupted during school breaks or new semesters. While this is an easy distinction to make for children, teens, and the adults at home, pets are not aware of the changes that will be occurring until they happen. When their routine is broken, this can leave them confused. This is why it is important to prepare pets for the return to school during the summer.

Here are four ways you can prepare your pets for back-to-school season:

1. Maintain a Consistent Routine

To make sure your pets aren't left dumbfounded by the new routine, give it a few test runs before implementing it long-term. This can look like gradually shifting the time you feed them or when they go on walks.

The subtle changes over a couple of weeks help to readjust a pet’s routine without causing them shock; that way, whenever the big change comes around, it’s not as unexpected.

If the change of routine also includes the people who participate in the routine, gradually change that as well. If someone who is returning to college is in charge of feeding them, begin to make the changes now.

2. Keep Your Pets Entertained

Returning to school means that for at least a couple of hours of the day, your pet will either be alone or missing the company of some of their human friends. During this time, you’ll want to have ways to keep them entertained.

This can be done through purchasing additional toys, leaving the TV on while the house is empty, hiring a pet sitter, or sending them to pet daycare. This will all depend on your pet, the length of time away, and the overall lifestyle of your household.

But also, do you trust your pet to be alone? Do you want your pet to be alone? Can you afford other alternatives? The answers to those questions will come from conversations with the members of your household.

3. Manage Separation-Related Stress

Many will suffer separation anxiety, especially after a long period of time with constant attention from the people around them. Whether the student in your household is just going away for a couple of hours or leaving for college, pets can display behaviors that translate to separation anxiety.

How can you avoid this?

There are many ways to avoid or minimize separation anxiety in your pets. As mentioned earlier, it all comes down to routines and patterns; in this case, avoiding them.

1. Eliminate potential cues that let your pet know you’re leaving (ie, picking up the keys or opening the front door). You can do this by varying the way you depart every time you leave.

2. Another way you can do this is by simply not making a big deal of departures. Pets can sense when something is serious. Having your emotions under control lets your pet know they are fine.

3. Lastly, distracting your pet before you leave can also work as long as you don’t do this every time you leave, so they don’t sense the pattern.

The ASPCA has a detailed article on separation anxiety in pets, what it is, how it looks, and what to do.

4. Keep the Bond Strong

The most important thing you can do to prepare your pets for back to school is keep the bond as strong as ever. Just because there’s been a change in routine does not mean you will love your pet less or neglect them. If it ever were to come to that point, it is important to make that realization to realign priorities and seek alternatives that do not put the well-being of your pet at risk.

Keep loving, playing, and snuggling with your pet. Quality time and engaging activities are the best way to keep your pet-human bond strong, even after hours, days, or months of not seeing each other.

At The Humane Society of North Texas, we wish you all a happy back-to-school season!

Humane Society of North Texas - Pets and People, Saving Each Other®

HSNT’s mission is to save, shelter, protect, and advocate for all animals in need in North Texas. www.hsnt.org