And Meow, A Word About Pet Holidays

Happy Holidays! This is a busy month for many folks, with so many seasonal celebrations. Christmas, Solstice, Kwanzaa, Hanukkah, and New Year’s Eve are the big ones here in the US. There’s also Boxing Day, a UK holiday. Our furry patients also have some special days on the calendar this month, such as Twin With Your Dog Day, Shelter Pets Day, and National Cat Herders Day. In fact, pets have a whole slew of somewhat-official holidays and awareness days. For instance, there’s Wolfenoot, a celebration of wolves and dogs, which took place last week. A local Fort Myers, FL vet goes over some of the others in this article. 

January

The start of a new year is often a time for people to set new goals, which makes this the perfect time for Train Your Dog Month. It’s also Unchain A Dog Month and Walk Your Dog Month. For single-day observances, we have to start with Fluffy’s new year, or Mew Year, which is the 2nd. January also contains single-day awareness events for pet travel safety and seeing eye dogs. 

Quite a few breeds have special days in January: the list includes the Standard Poodle, Alaskan Malamute, Labrador Retriever, Australian Shepherd, French Bulldog, American Eskimo Dog, Bouvier De Flandres, Boxer, Yorkie, and Tuxedo Cats. Our canine patients will also be more than happy to help you observe Peanut Butter Day. 

February

Romance is in the air in February, so it’s no surprise that we have Beat The Heat Month, Prevent A Litter Month, Spay/Neuter Awareness Month, World Spay Day, and Responsible Pet Owners Month being observed.

Other issues in the spotlight include pet dental health, Black Cat And Dog Syndrome, chained dogs, animal justice, and pet theft awareness. On a lighter note, you’ll be able to celebrate Drink Wine With Your Cat Week, Love Your Pet Day, Doggy Date Night, Cat Day, and Dog Biscuit Appreciation Day. We’ll also be tipping our hats to Galgos, Sled Dogs, Brown Dogs, Golden Retrievers, Boston Terriers, and Whippets. Those who are interested in holistic practices may also celebrate World Animal Reiki Day. 

March

As winter winds down, humans break up those winter blues with St. Patrick’s Day. Our furry friends will instead be celebrating Respect Your Cat Day, Cuddly Kitten Day, and one of the most important pet holidays of all, What If Pets Had Thumbs Day. 

There are some more serious topics on the calendar, though. It’s Poison Prevention Awareness Month. This is a crucial topic for pet owners, as it’s so easy for our animal friends to ingest something unsafe. 

Other March holidays include celebrations of the Welsh Corgi, Westie, Podenco, Akita, Terrier, and Newfoundland Dog. Rescue cats, three-legged pets, K-9 Veterans, and anxious dogs also get time in the spotlight. Our feline friends will likely be thrilled to note a new addition: National Catio Day. 

April

By April, many of our furry friends are more than happy to enjoy some warm weather. Of course, those higher temperatures also bring some less-welcome elements, such as parasites. That makes April the perfect time for Heartworm Awareness Month. It’s also Active Dog Month, Canine Fitness Month, Prevent Lyme Disease in Dogs Month, National Pet First Aid Awareness Month, and Prevention of Cruelty To Animals Month. 

April’s week-long holidays include Raw Feeding Week, Animal Care And Control Appreciation Week, National Pet ID Week, and Dog Bite Prevention Week. 

There’s no shortage of single-day celebrations, either. We’ve got International Bull Terrier Day, National Siamese Cat Day, Tortoiseshell Cat Appreciation Day, Beagle Day, Bulldogs Are Beautiful Day, National Tabby Day, and National Little Pampered Dog Day. There’s also Don’t Walk Your Dog Day, which is really just encouraging people to try different ways of keeping Fido active, Every Day Is Tag Day, Pet Health Insurance Day, Hug Your Dog Day, Dog Therapy Appreciation Day, International Search and Rescue Dog Day, and World Stray Animals Day. These are all serious and important aspects of pet care. 

April does also offer a few lighter days, such as Cat Lady Day and Sylvester The Cat’s birthday. 

May

May’s pet holidays are very much focused on preventative care, health, and safety. It’s Chip Your Pet Month, National Pet Month, Pet Cancer Awareness Month, and Responsible Animal Guardian Month. A bit less glamorous, but still relevant, Scoop The Poop Week ends during the first week of May. We also have Be Kind To Animals Week, National Pet Week, and Puppy Mill Action Week, all of which are very important causes. 

Pets also have quite a few one-day holidays in May. The first is National Purebred Day. Don’t feel bad for mixed breeds, though: they get the Fifth, which is MayDay For Mutts. The German Shepherd, Podenco, Samoyed, Chihuahua, and Cavalier King Charles all have special honorary days. Finally, we have Dog Mom’s Day on the 11th and Do Lunch With Your Dog Day on the 15th. 

June

June is a big one! First and foremost, it’s Adopt A Cat Month and Adopt A Shelter Cat Month. There’s no such thing as a bad time to adopt Fluffy, but we’re happy to spread the word about adoptable kitties. It’s also National Foster A Pet Month, which makes sense as June is peak kitten season in many places. We’re not done yet! June is also National Pet Preparedness Month, National Microchipping Month, and Social PETworking Month. 

A few breeds also have special days in June. The 1st is International Sheltie Day, the 2nd is Greyhound Day, the 4th is Corgi Day, and the 12th is Peruvian Hairless Dog Day. 

Then there are a few more fun pet holidays, which we always have to chuckle at. Hug Your Cat Day is the 4th. The 17th is Take Your Cat To Work Day, which is followed immediately by National Internet Cat Day on the 18th. Pet Wedding Week starts on the 9th. June 19 is National Garfield the Cat Day, while the 20th is Ugliest Dog Day. We can’t forget about Cat World Domination Day, which is on the 24th. 

July

Independence Day is the main summer holiday here in the States. It’s also one of the most dangerous ones: pets are often very scared of the noise and commotion from fireworks, which makes them prone to bolting out of fear. This is also reflected in the fact that July is National Lost Pet Prevention Month. 

July is Dog House Repair Month, which we are pretty sure our canine buddies would approve of. It’s also National Pet Hydration Awareness Month. We also have some one-day events: July 1st is ID Your Pet Day and Pet Travel Safety Day. 

August

August has a lot going on! It’s of course the Dog Days of Summer, and Fido certainly has claimed the lion’s share of the calendar. 

We have National Dog Month, Mutt-i-grees Rescue Month, International Assistance Dog Week,  Give a Dog a Bone Week, DOGust (Universal Birthday for Shelter Dogs), Assistance Dog Day, Work Like a Dog Day, National Spoil Your Dog Day, International Blind Dog Day, and National Dog Day. 

Beloved cartoon canines Odie and Snoopy both celebrate their birthdays in August, with the Catahoula and Yorkie also celebrating special days. 

The month may have gone to the dogs, but there is some room for Fluffy, who is definitely included in Itchy Pet Awareness Month, Clear The Shelters Month, and both national and international cat days. (Fluffy probably won’t be as thrilled about Take Your Cat To The Vet Day, but that’s another topic. )

August winds down by paying respects to our furry friends that have passed on, with Rainbow Bridge Remembrance Day. Last but not least, we have National Holistic Pet Day, on the 30th. 

September 

September is also a busy month for pet holidays. This is an awareness month for several important topics, including Animal Pain Awareness, Responsible Dog Ownership, Pet Insurance, Service Dogs, and Disaster Preparations. It’s also Pet Memorial Month, Pet Sitter Education Month, and Happy Cat Month. The month’s weeklong observances will tug at your heartstrings: we have Adopt-A-Less-Adoptable Pet Week and Deaf Dog Awareness Week. 

There’s no shortage of great one-day celebrations. Ginger Cats, Boykin Spaniels, White Cats, Tuxies, Schnauzers, Sighthounds, and Doodle Dogs all step, run, or pounce into the spotlight, while still leaving time to honor Dog Walkers, Dog Groomers, Old Yeller, and Scooby Doo. Fido also gets Happy Dog Day, Hug Your Hound Day, and Canine Enrichment Day, while Fluffy gets to ignore Meow Like A Pirate Day, Cat DNA Day, Beckoning Cat Day, and Pet Tricks Day.

October

Halloween takes center stage in October, which makes this the purrfect time for Black Cat Awareness Month. It’s also Adopt A Dog/Adopt A Shelter Dog Month, which we’re always happy to promote. We also have National Pit Bull Awareness Month and Small Dog Awareness Month. Some of the health and safety subjects on the roster include Obesity Awareness, Pet Wellness, Pet CBD, Animal Safety And Protection, and World Animal Month. 

Week-long holidays include Animal Welfare Week and Walk Your Dog Week. For single-day events, we’ll be honoring fire pups, black dogs, Poodles, Spoodles, Pugs, Muddy Dogs, Livestock Guardian Dogs, plushie animals, St Francis of Assisi, and Pets for Veterans. Kitties also have Catober, Global Cat Day, and National Cat Day. 

November

Older pets get some much-deserved attention on November’s roster. It’s Adopt a Senior Pet Month and National Senior Pet Month. (We’re not sure why two are necessary, but the more exposure, the better!) Two common and serious health issues also get the spotlight: it’s Pet Diabetes Month and Cancer Awareness Month, while Canine Lymphoma and Feline Infectious Peritonitis both get awareness days. Ask your Fort Myers, FL vet for more information on these dangerous conditions.

Going into the individual weeks, we have National Animal Shelter Appreciation Week and Human-Animal Relationship Awareness Week. November also offers a bunch of one-day observances, starting out with Cook For Your Pets Day and International Pet Groomer Appreciation Day,  which are followed by World Animal Enrichment Day. 

Things take a bit of a sillier turn after that, with National Slobber Day, which is followed by Black Cat Day, Take A Hike Day, Get A Pal For Your Pet Day, and what may be our new favorite, the afore-mentioned Wolfenoot. The Border Collie and Coton de Tulear also have their own days. Then, winding it all down, we have World Pet Day on the 30th. 

Here at Small Animal Hospital, your Fort Myers, FL pet hospital, we feel that it’s important to raise awareness about animal health, care, and welfare issues. But, we’re also not above chuckling at our furry friends, and celebrating some of their more adorable and humorous traits. 

Please contact us for all your pet’s care needs. As your Fort Myers, FL veterinary clinic, we’re here to help!