Holiday Pet Hazards!
As we enter the holiday season, it is important to keep our pets protected from holiday hazards as much as possible. Some of the more common problems we see this time of year at Middletown Animal Hospital include chocolate toxicity, foreign body ingestion, holiday plant ingestion, and pancreatitis from ingestion of rich and fatty foods. Chocolate is a common treat this time of year and keeping it safely locked away from our pets in a cupboard is extremely important. Chocolate can often be wrapped and placed under the tree. This however, does not prevent our pets from smelling the chocolate and trying to "unwrap" it for a tasty yet dangerous treat. Chocolate toxicity can result in vomiting, diarrhea, heart arrhythmias, seizures, and potentially death.
Common holiday foreign body hazards include ornaments, toys, and tinsel. Make sure toys and chews are appropriately sized for your pet and monitor your pet while they are enjoying these.
While festive and beautiful, Holly and Mistletoe can cause vomiting, diarrhea and possibly heart problems. Also, always remember that lilies are extremely toxic to cats.
It is tempting to share our holiday feasts with our pets. However, rich and fatty foods can cause vomiting, diarrhea and often a painful condition called pancreatitis. It is best to keep our pets eating only their food and not table scraps or left over human food.
We hope you have a wonderful and safe holiday season with your family, friends and pets!