Is Baxter Hoping You Lost His Stegosaurus Costume?

It’s that time of year when humans foist Halloween upon their pets by making them wear costumes – dogs dressed as pumpkins or hotdogs or even as cats, the final indignity.

“It's really important that pet owners think about how dressing up pets can make them feel, as whilst some animals may not mind being dressed up, other pets may find this worrying and even scary,” as the Royal Society for the Prevention of Cruelty to Animals put it to BBC News.

The British Veterinary Association weighed in with more downer talk, saying that some dogs feel discomfort or even have difficulty breathing in costume. “It can cause them to get stressed, get too hot and struggle to breathe properly,” says BVA vice president Justine Shotton.

“This can be a serious problem for dogs like pugs and French bulldogs, who can already have breathing problems because of their flat faces and squishy noses.”

Okay. But Hattie, the resident beagle, looks kind of happy wearing her special Halloween collar. And that stegosaurus costume at Chewy is mighty fetching. 

Photo credit: Getty Images & Manuela Hoelterhoff