CHRISTMAS HAZARDS
Well it’s an old and tired cliché but how the year has flown by. Perhaps less clichéd is how old and tired I feel! All of the peeps at Mullumbimby Vet Clinic would like to wish our clients and pets a happy and safe Christmas and holiday season. In case you’d like to worry about something other than what to get your third cousins who are coming to visit, we’ve compiled a short list of Holiday Season Dangers!
Overindulgence! If your pampered pooch is prone to overdoing it when it comes to the Xmas feast well best be careful. Getting too many pork & ham scraps, too much fatty food or leftovers might cause pancreatitis. Pancreatitis manifests as vomiting and lethargy or in appetence. Pancreatitis can be lethal & is difficult to effectively treat, not to mention expensive!
Potentially toxic tidbits: Delicious Christmas treats that can be toxic to pets are chocolate, sultanas (Christmas cake) , macadamias, cashews, turkey stuffing (the onions), left over bones.
Careful of the Christmas wrapping and plastic toys- young dogs especially love chewing on these things and they can get lodged in their intestines. These things can be removed but will put a black hole in the Christmas credit card budget. Some dogs will even eat tinsel while they’re playing with it! Apart from wrecking your fabulous interior decorations they can block up the intestines.
Don’t forget to give your pets tick protection whilst pursuing the Christmas frenzy. Lots of pets succumb to tick paralysis when the normal stop and check for tick protocols go out the door.
Be very careful of pets in cars. Best not to take them anywhere if they will have to stay in the car for a while or even s short period. Remember it’s now illegal! They can easily get heatstroke. This can be lethal and is also frustrating and difficult to treat. Be especially careful with all of the brachycephalic breeds over summer. Breeds such as pugs, French Bulldogs, English Bulldogs all have great difficulty cooling down on hot days. They are especially at risk of heat stroke. Avoid walking these breeds in the middle of hot days. Aim for the cool parts of the day such as early morning or late evening. Even the beach on a hot day can make them collapse.
Don’t forget that snakes are also about seeing as it’s hot and dry. Another D&E problem!
Of course we should remind ourselves that pets don’t make good Christmas presents. There are a lot of abandoned puppies and kittens that end up on the Christmas scrapheap at animal shelters. Avoid this tragedy by not giving them to people as presents.
Written Richard Gregory BVSs
Mullumbimby Veterinary Clinic
