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Easing Back-to-School Stress for Pets

Steps to Help Your Pets Adjust to New Routines

As Greater Boston families settle back into the school-year routine, it’s easy to forget that our pets notice the change too. Dogs and cats, in particular, are deeply attuned to our daily patterns. When the morning rush returns, pets may begin to show signs of stress—such as following you from room to room, becoming clingier, or displaying more concerning behaviors like depression, excessive barking, house soiling, or destructive chewing.

The good news is that there are 6 simple steps you can take to ease your pet’s anxiety and keep them happy during back-to-school season:

  1. Make mornings playful. Add a few minutes of play to your pet’s morning walk and slip in a special treat. Keep goodbyes low-key when you leave, as too much fuss can make departures harder.
  2. Offer a distraction. A food puzzle, treat-stuffed toy, or small bits of kibble hidden around the house can keep pets busy during the first half-hour after you go.
  3. Turn on some background noise. A radio or soft music can be comforting because it mimics the sound of a full household.
  4. Consider midday care. A dog walker can offer a nice break during the day , while doggie daycare may be an option for pets left alone more than eight hours. (Don’t forget: all daycare facilities are not created equal, so check out ARL’s Board Safely® guidelines for important questions to ask!)
  5. Keep greetings calm. When arriving home, reward your dog for calm behavior rather than reinforcing their excitement with immediate eye contact, petting, or high-pitched greetings.
  6. Make evenings matter. Dedicate time after dinner for interactive play. For cats, bring out toys or a pinch of catnip; for dogs, family time and positive attention reinforce that they are loved and secure.

    ARL’s Free Pet Behavior Helpline

    If your pet seems overwhelmed by their new routine, contact the Animal Rescue League of Boston’s (ARL) FREE Pet Behavior Helpline at (617) 226-5666 or  behaviorhelpline@arlboston.org for support about your dog, cat, or small animal.

    Additionally, if you have school-aged children living in your household, remind them to keep backpacks off the floor. Packed lunches and snacks should stay out of reach, as grapes, raisins, chocolate, gum, candy, and other foods can be toxic to pets. Download our free Bark-to-School Guide.

    Our pets give us unconditional love, and with a little extra thought this season, we can help them adjust to the back-to-school bustle feeling safe, loved, and part of the family.

    A Moment of Paws: Ticks Remain Year-Round Concern for our Pets

    While many embrace the mild winter New England has experienced this year, one of the downsides to a winter filled with above-average temperatures is an explosion in the tick population in Massachusetts.

    With such a mild winter, tick-borne illnesses are no longer just a summer-time concern, and for pets who spend any time outdoors, pet owners should take steps now to better protect both themselves and their pets when venturing outside.

    With ticks seemingly everywhere outdoors, consider the following to help protect your pet: 

    1. Put your pet on a tick preventative. There are numerous to consider, so speak with your veterinarian to determine what’s best for your pet.
    2. Consider vaccination.  Speak with your veterinarian about the Lyme disease vaccine.
    3. Avoid outdoor areas where ticks are known to inhabit. After spending time outdoors, whether in the backyard or after a hike, check both yourself and your pet for ticks. For dogs, pay particular attention to their ears, eyelids, between toes, genital area, and around the collar.
    4. Maintain your yard. Keep the lawn mowed and shrubbery trimmed around your home.

    Tick preventatives can only go so far, the best way to protect your pet is to do a tick check as soon as returning from the outdoors. Start with your pet’s feet, paying special attention to areas between the toes. From there check the legs, then move onto the underbelly and finally check the head, neck, back, and tail.

    If your pet has been bitten by a tick, it needs to be removed immediately! Using tweezers, grasp the tick as close to your dog’s skin as possible. Remove the tick in a slow, steady, and straight motion – don’t jerk as anything left behind could cause an infection. Treat the bite wound with antiseptic and monitor the site over the next few days for localized skin infection.

    Some signs your dog has been infected by a tick-borne disease include fever, loss of appetite, acute lameness, and swelling in the joints, among others. A blood test can determine if your dog has been exposed to a tick-borne disease and follow up tests or an antibiotic may be recommended.

    Given that tick-borne diseases can trigger chronic health issues, it is also vital to follow recommendations for ongoing follow-up care after diagnosis and treatment. 

    A Moment of Paws: When Pet Care Becomes Overwhelming

    Recently, the Animal Rescue League of Boston (ARL) took in more than 75 cats from several homes that were overcrowded with pets. While situations like this may be surprising to some, homes overcrowded with pets are more common than you think. In fact, ARL sees numerous overcrowding situations annually—three already in 2023.

    Pets are family and give us so much, and for some, having just one pet isn’t enough. But for a variety of reasons, sometimes the love for animals can become overwhelming and lead to having too many animals in the home.

    There are a number of concerns regarding pet overcrowding, which has an impact on not only the animals involved but also the caretakers.

    A primary concern is cost. According to the national animal welfare organization the American Society for the Prevention of Cruelty to Animals (ASPCA), the average cost of owning just one pet ranges from $700-1,000 annually. Multiply that by 10-fold or more, and the cost of providing care for a large number of animals can quickly become out of reach for many pet owners and may lead to scaling back on food and basic necessities.

    Potential health issues are also something to consider. A large number of animals in the home can present a multitude of health hazards, both for animals and people. Maintaining a sanitary environment for a large number of animals is a daunting task, and the presence of animal waste reduces air quality and introduces the risk of illness, some of which can be passed from animals to humans.

    Additionally, ensuring that every animal in the home is receiving proper nutrition, grooming, veterinary care, and socialization is also difficult. In overcrowding situations, oftentimes we see animals, primarily cats, that are shy, fearful, and need extensive and sometimes long-term care to become more comfortable in a home setting.

    Overcrowding also raises the issue of the importance of spay and neuter. The population of animals in a home can multiply rapidly when the animals are kept intact, which can make a situation more difficult. If you are caring for a large number of animals in the home, spaying and neutering them will eliminate unwanted litters.

    Overcrowding is not an uncommon occurrence and it’s important to know that there are resources available. More often than not, caretakers in these situations start out with the best of intentions and simply let the situation evolve over time.

    If you or someone you know is dealing with pet overcrowding, reach out to local animal control, or an organization like ARL for assistance. When assisting an overwhelmed caretaker, organizations like ARL care for both the animals and people involved. Whether it’s providing spay and neuter services, or removing some or all pets from the home, the goal is to ensure that the animals receive the care they need, and that the caretaker returns to a manageable number of pets in the home.

    A Moment of Paws: Start the Year Off on the Right Paw

    A Moment of Paws is a monthly column written by ARL President and CEO Dr. Edward Schettino and aims to offer pet owners advice and tips to use in our everyday adventure with our furry and feathered family members.

    As we kick off 2023, it’s tradition for many to consider resolutions in the New Year, but instead of resolving to “improve” ourselves this year, we should all embrace who we are, and focus on our overall well-being, which of course includes our pets!

    No matter the age of your pet, there are always small things we can do to positively impact their health, behavior, safety, and overall well-being.

    Here are five things to consider for your pet in the New Year:

    1. Consider a Training Course. Perhaps your dog could walk better on a leash, or your cat continues to scratch at your furniture. Now is the perfect time to consider additional training for your pet. The Animal Rescue League of Boston (ARL) offers a variety of group and private dog training courses for dogs of all ages and abilities, and also offers a free pet behavior helpline to assist you when you have behavioral questions or concerns. Training is an excellent way to strengthen the bond between you and your pet, and also gives them an opportunity to learn new skills.
    2. Increase Activity. An additional daily play session with our pets, no matter the species, can go a long way in improving their overall health, particularly as our pets age. More activity also decreases boredom and helps keeps their bodies and minds in peak condition.
    3. Improve Their Diet. When bringing in your pet for their annual wellness check with your veterinarian, you can discuss your pet’s diet to see if there’s anything we can improve upon to fulfill the animal’s dietary needs. This is key especially for our aging pets as their nutritional needs change over the years.
    4. Try Something New. Whether it be a play date with a new dog, bringing your pup on a hike or to the beach, or introducing your cat or small animal to interactive toys like food puzzles, allowing your pet to try something new is a great way for them to increase activity and engagement, practice social skills, and helps improve their overall happiness and well-being.
    5. Get Your Pet Microchipped. A microchip drastically increases the likelihood of being reunited with your pet should they go missing, so if you have not microchipped your pet, please consider doing so. The process for your pet is pain-free and it is a low-cost and lifelong added piece of mind for you and your pet.

    For a complete listing and descriptions of all the pet services that ARL provides, please visit our Services page , and remember, we are here to help any pet owner in need, even if you didn’t adopt your furry family member from ARL!

    We all want to start the year off on the right foot or paw, and it’s important to remember that you are not alone in the journey of pet ownership and to take advantage of all the resources you can to ensure your pet is happy and healthy in 2023 and beyond.