While focusing on your home, don’t leave your furry friends out in the cold!

Here are a few tips from your pet friends at the Oregon Humane Society:

• Bring pets indoors when temperatures dip toward the freezing point.
• If you must leave pets outside:
  • Feed them more, so they can produce adequate body heat.
  • Check bowls regularly to be sure water and food are not frozen.
  • Use plastic bowls. Tongues—pet or human—can stick and freeze to cold metal.
  • Feed pets less when they spend the winter indoors and get less exercise.
• After pets spend time outdoors, wipe their paws to remove dangerous antifreeze, salt or other chemicals. Also check for encrusted ice or injury.
• Keep dogs on a leash; especially in winter, they can lose their scent and become lost.
• Never leave a pet alone in a cold car; it can freeze to death.
• Keep your local family vet and emergency vet phone numbers close at hand.