Family Fur Fun Festival to be held at Mountain’s Edge

Halloween is around the corner, and it’s important to remember to keep four-legged family members safe, calm and healthy during the holiday.

Representatives from Saturday’s Family, Fur and Fun Festival are offering pet safety tips and will have additional pet care information between 10 a.m. to 3 p.m. and during the Halloween Pet Costume Contest. The free event is at Exploration Park in the Mountain’s Edge master-planned community in southwest Las Vegas.

While pets in costumes look cute, considerations include:

■ Make sure costumes fit properly and comfortably, and don’t have pieces that can be easily chewed off.

■ If a pet doesn’t react well to the costume, don’t force the pet to wear it.

■ Don’t interfere with pets’ sight, hearing, breathing and ability to open their mouth or move.

■ Take time to get pets accustomed to their costume before Halloween.

■ Never leave pets unsupervised while wearing costumes.

Additional Halloween-related precautions are:

■ If you are dressing up, make sure to approach pets slowly to avoid bites as they may not recognize you.

■ Keep pets inside in a separate room or behind a safety gate away from the door to make Halloween less stressful. Keep cats, particularly black ones, inside during the month of October as some people think they are bad luck and might harm them.

■ Make sure Halloween candy is out of pets’ reach. Candy containing chocolate or xylitol — commonly found in sugar-free candies and gum — is especially dangerous.

■ Teach children that candy should not be shared with pets, nor should wrappers be left where pets can reach them.

■ Make sure pets are properly identified with a microchip because they might escape through an open door while you’re distracted with trick-or-treaters.

■ Keep lit candles and jack-o’-lanterns away from pets or opt for battery-operated lights in your pumpkin.

With the costume tips in mind, attendees are invited to dress up their pets and enter the 1:30 p.m. contest. Prizes will be awarded for Best in Show, Funniest Costume, Cutest Costume and Best Family, which can include humans and multiple pets. Entry is $3 per category. Register by 1 p.m.

Other Family, Fur and Fun Festival activities include educational and interactive booths, pet adoption and fostering opportunities, disc demonstrations by K9 Krew, arts and crafts, spay and neuter education, raffle, music and food and refreshments. Congresswoman Susie Lee is attending and recognizing event organizers for their efforts to help animals in need.

Proceeds from the festival benefit Hearts Alive Village Las Vegas and other local animal rescues and shelters, including Chi of Hearts, Churchill Foundation, Heaven Can Wait, Paws 4 Love, Street Dogz, Vegas Shepherd Rescue and Vegas Rescue Project.

The Family, Fur and Fun Festival is sponsored by Community Productions, Las Vegas Veterinary Specialty Center, Mountain’s Edge, Naylor and Braster Law Firm and Pictographics.

Exploration Park is at 9700 S. Buffalo Drive, south of Blue Diamond Road near the Mountain’s Edge main entrance. For information and participation opportunities, visit familyfurandfun.com, call 702-595-0644, or email info@familyfurandfun.com.