Normally I put together my own holiday warnings, they can be found on my old blogs, but the AKC put this out this year encouraging people to sign up for their health plans and talking about cases they have covered. Truth is it is a good thing to enroll in Pet insurance, and their plans are not bad. Anyway, here is a link to some of their Holiday warnings.

 

Some Of Your Favorite Things Can Harm Your Pet!

The problems with holiday ornaments may be obvious to many people; however there are many other items around our homes that may not be so clearly a threat to our pets.  It might be a good idea to remind yourself and your children about the dangers of items in the list below. For example, many don’t realize that chocolate is toxic to dogs and can seriously harm them, perhaps fatally. Take time to review your home, garage and yard to see if your pets are at risk, so you can take steps to keep dangerous items out of their way.

Take Steps to Protect Your Pets From These Holiday Hazards 

 

  • Candles and hot wax
  • Candies, chocolate and foil wrappers
  • Alcoholic beverages
  • Electrical cords (uncovered or untaped)
  • Ribbons and strings
  • Metal ornament hooks
  • Fireplace flames and color salts
  • Tree tinsel and confetti
  • Carving and kitchen knives/blades
  • Outdoor fireworks and other loud noises
  • Rich, fatty foods and table scraps

 

  • Stagnant tree stand water and chemicals
  • Intricate or fragile ornaments
  • Rock salt and antifreeze
  • Poultry bones and meat drippings
  • Small holiday lights
  • Angel hair (spun glass)
  • Poinsettias, holly, mistletoe and greens
  • Rich food stocks and seasonings
  • Artificial snow and snow flock
  • Toys, especially those with small parts
  • Slippery outdoor ice and snow

What To Do If Your Pet Has Contact with a Hazardous Item

In the event of your pet coming into contact with or swallowing any of these items listed, make certain you get in touch with a veterinarian or animal hospital immediately.  It is a good idea to keep the phone numbers of both your usual veterinarian and an emergency clinic on hand. Where appropriate, if you can safely take a sample (or description) of the item to the clinic, this may help the diagnosis.

A veterinarian or hospital will decide what to do to diagnose the problem and the best course of treatment.  With technologies such as CT Scans and MRIs, veterinarians today have many tools to use to assess how to treat your sick pet. However diagnostic testing can be expensive, with CT Scans often running at $1,000 or more, and then there could be the need to run blood work and other tests, and possibly surgery, for a case of ‘foreign body ingestion.’  In addition, a wide range of prescription medications is now available to treat sick pets successfully. The wonderful advances in veterinarian care mean that decisions about what health care is affordable can weigh heavily on many pet owners, when faced with the stress of their beloved pet’s medical emergency.

 

Steve Parsons

480-993-9797

http://www.familydobes.com

http://www.dobetalk.com