With their humans busy shopping for gifts, visiting relatives, and entertaining guests, the holiday season can leave our dogs and cats feeling left out.

If you’re like us, your pets are family, and celebrations just aren’t the same unless they’re the life of the party. Why not make memories and start new traditions with these pet-friendly holiday activities?
 

7 Holiday Traditions To Enjoy With Your Pet

1.Take your pet to see the lights.

If you love driving around to see your neighborhood in lights, why not bring your pet along? You can bundle up and take your dog for a walk around town. Even cats can enjoy the night lights from the safety of a backpack carrier or on a leash. Or, stay toasty and crank up the heat in your car, and drive around with your pet so they can take in the festive displays from the comfort of the back seat.
 

2.Serve up holiday-themed food and treats.

We look forward to seasonal flavors like eggnog, gingerbread, and peppermint, but pets can’t partake in most of our favorite festive fare. Instead, try holiday themed pet treats and pet food featuring all of the best tastes of the season.
 

3.Make ornaments and decorations with your pet.

You can create sentimental ornaments and check off your gift list by making special decorations featuring your pet. Add a cute photo to the Pearhead Pet Photo Ornament. You can make a clay pawprint ornament with the Pearhead Clay Pawprint Ornament Kit, or use the clean-touch ink pad included in the Pearhead Wooden Pawprint Ornament Kit to capture every detail of your pet’s unique pawprint.

4.Include your dog or cat in your family photo.

No holiday family portrait is complete without four-legged family members! Whether you’re taking a family photo to send as a holiday card or to display in a frame, annual family photos with pets are a great way to memorialize adopting a new puppy or kitten, or to celebrate yet another year with your beloved dog or cat. If you can’t bring your pet to the photo session, consider asking your photographer to edit them in, or include a pet photo in a mini collage.

5.Put up decorations for your pet.

Does your dog really need his own mini Christmas tree and a stocking full of toys? Should your cat really have a Meownorah complete with flameless candles, or a mini catnip dreidel? Why not? Not only are these pet-friendly additions great for adorable photo ops, offering special treats and toys can help your pet feel included, and may even keep them occupied so they’ll keep their paws off your real decorations.

6.Dress up your pet for the holidays.

If your pet doesn’t mind dressing up, make sure their holiday wardrobe includes some festive pajamas, a holiday sweater, or even a semi-formal party-dress. For pets that don’t like to wear clothes, a holiday bandana brings the perfect amount of fashionable holiday flair.

7.Include your pet in gift-giving traditions.

The holidays are the perfect excuse to spoil your pets a little extra this season. Themed toys, an advent calendar full of treats, or a stocking stuffed with their favorite snacks are all fun ways to include your pet in your gift-giving traditions. Holiday pet toys can be a great way to entertain your dog or cat while you’re busy with shopping, baking or wrapping gifts. And while pets give us plenty of joy throughout the year, it’s always fun to sign their name on cards and gift tags - your recipients will love receiving presents from their favorite four-legged family member.