Holiday Hazards?!?!

With the end of the year holidays and Valentine’s Day behind us, you may think the toxin dangers are also behind us. Not so fast! Easter brings gorgeous flower arrangements and bountiful baskets full of candy, chocolate, artificial grass, small toys and gadgets. All of these items pose a danger to your pets. I hope that bringing some awareness to these common toxins will keep your pets safe but still allow loads of fun!

What can be worrisome for our Cats at Easter?

So personally I think Easter is a dangerous holiday for our cats! Cats do not generally eat candy and dyed eggs. They are considered the “easy” ones , they use a litter box, they can be left at home alone without too much worry for a day, they don’t tear open garbage bags…so why worry about them?

Easter Grass - Cats love to play with and eat easter grass. Those tempting baskets that are put out from the Easter Bunny will lure cats in. Ingesting this grass can lead to an intestinal blockage which can be very serious. There are many alternatives to using easter grass, the plastic material is inexpensive but using real paper alternatives are more friendly. Going for non-shredded materials is even better - this will not eliminate the desire for little “Stanley” to bite or play with what is in the basket but the likelihood of a foreign body is much less.

Flowers - There are a great many plants and flowers that are toxic to our pets, the Easter Lily being one of the worst. If a dog eats an Easter Lily they are likely to get some GI upset and need gastric support. Cats however can lick pollen off of their coat and can cause a severe enough reaction to send them into kidney failure very rapidly. So as beautiful as these flowers are, we do not recommend them being kept in the house with cats, treatment is hard on them and you.

Chocolate - I would not be doing my duty if I did not mention chocolate. I know this seems like it is less of a concern with cats but if you do have a cat who enjoys nibbling things, (Mine are butter stealers) then watch your chocolate. Dark chocolate, while more delicious, is always more concerning than milk chocolate BUT cats are small so it does not take a lot of either type. We also have to be concerned about the foil that much of the chocolate is wrapped in too…this is a hazard as well and can cause issues if eaten.

What can be worrisome for our Dogs at Easter?

Chocolate - Who has a dog who eats things that they really shouldn’t? Chocolate is toxic to dogs just as it is to cats, dogs just seem to eat it more often. Dark chocolate is more toxic per ounce so the reaction to the dark variety is very concerning with any amount to ingestion. Milk chocolate has been processed down with milk so the potency per ounce is much lower so depending on the size of the dog a piece or two might not have any effect. With the severity of potential reactions we recommend to keep the chocolate out of reach for all of our furry friends.

Sugar - This holiday is filled with sugar, just step into a WalMart or Target and you almost pass out from the smell of sugar. All with Easter or Spring designs on the packaging. Now a dog eating a single Peep or Jellybean may not send up a red flag, but getting into whole bags will make their bellies hurt and may require symptomatic treatment or even hospitalization depending on how sensitive your pup might be. Another more hidden danger is that many of the sweets currently on the market contain Xylitol which is very toxic to dogs. It does not take much at all of this imitation sugar to send a dog down a very bad path. (My in-laws have an Aussie that gets into everything! Ate 5 vitamins with Xylitol and had to be hospitalized for 2-3 days.) Avoid products with this as much as possible, and if you have it in the house…make sure it is out of reach and secure.

Human Food - What can it hurt? “I only gave “Sparky” some ham and potatoes, and Aunt Trish only gave ham and beans…Oh and Grandpa only gave ham with some gravy”. A piece of ham might be fine or even a spoonful of potatoes, but fatty foods fed to our dogs in higher quantities than they are used to can really cause a serious issue. The pancreas is not very forgiving and can not excrete the proper enzymes quick enough when new and fatty foods are introduced especially in large quantities. If there is a desire to feed your dog a meal with the family, let them enjoy the vegetables. Carrots, broccoli or green beans are actually very healthy and they will feel like they are getting a treat as well.

Wrappers - These are appealing for some odd reason…is it the smell of what was in the wrapper? Or the smell of you on the wrapper? Or just because it is something to play with and chew and swallow, we will never know. Eating the foil wrappers, plastic wrappers or even the slick coated cardboard (like in my favorite Reese’s Eggs) are not digestible, and we can not guarantee our puppies or cats will “pass” them as we would want. If these materials get caught in their intestines, surgery is often the best solution but one we would like to avoid if possible!.

If you have any questions about anything mentioned here please call us for help - 407-275-3430. The emergency clinics are there to help as well if an issue occurs after hours.

If for any reason you would like to know if you have an emergency pertaining to a toxicity or ingestion and would like expert, “from the book”, help go online to: https:// www.petpoisonhelpline.com This service is $75 per case, however if your cat or dog has a microchip registered with AKC ReUnite the cost is $15 for a lifetime of calls.