At-home pet euthanasia becomes more common
Veterinarian Linda Randall notes that at-home euthanasia of pets has steadily increased in recent years, and about 25% of the euthanasia procedures she performs are carried out at the owner’s home. Dr. Randall creates a quiet, soothing environment and gives the pet a sedative before the euthanasia injection. “It’s very painless and very peaceful,” Dr. Randall said. “We wish more people would do it at home.” However, it’s not for everyone, Dr. Randall says, because the cost is roughly twice that of in-office euthanasia and some people do not want their home associated with the pet’s death. The Medina County Gazette (Ohio) (1/16)
When Hotshot, a 12-year-old Labrador, became seriously ill in 2007, his owners realized they had a dilemma to face: Was it time?
“When he stopped eating, we decided he had had enough,” Robin Walker said.
But instead of putting Hotshot down at a clinic, Walker and her husband, Douglas, chose another way.
When the day came, Hotshot excitedly greeted their guest, Dr. Linda Randall, like it was any other day.
Randall, a veterinarian from Cloverleaf Animal Hospital in Westfield Township, came inside their home and set up a comfortable environment — blankets and soothing music. She gave Hotshot a sedative. Once it set in, she injected him with an anesthesia.
Within 90 seconds, Hotshot had fallen asleep for the last time.
Walker said the decision was tough to make, but she couldn’t see it happening any other way.
“I wouldn’t hesitate to do it again,” Walker said. “It was good for us, and it was good for the dog.”
Randall said Walker isn’t the only one who approves.
Although euthanizing pets is commonplace, Randall said opting to have it done at home is a growing trend.
“In the past couple years, we’ve seen in-home pet euthanasia upswing 50 percent,” Randall said.
Randall said her clinic, at 7777 Greenwich Road, euthanizes 100 to 150 pets per year, and a quarter of them are done at home.
While she always has offered home euthanasia, she believed it was becoming more common because pets are seen more and more as members of the family.
And just like end-of-life discussions about human family members, pets are subject to similar talks and practices, she said.
Home euthanasia can be calming for the animal because it avoids the anxiety of a trip to a foreign environment, Randall said.
“It’s very painless and very peaceful,” she said. “We wish more people would do it at home.”
Randal practices what she preaches: Her own pets were euthanized at home.
She said there are a couple downsides to the procedure.
Some families might not want to have a pet euthanized where they live, she said, much like some people don’t want to live in the home where a loved one died.
The cost also may deter some families.
Euthanizing a pet at the clinic usually costs between $50 and $150, she said, depending on the animal’s size.
“It’s about twice as expensive to euthanize at home,” she said. “We shut down shop while I’m out on call, and it takes longer than an in-house appointment.”
On average, the clinic euthanizes two animals per week.
She said it’s a tough job because she often gets to know the pets and the owners.
“It takes its toll,” Randall said. “It’s hard, but I have to separate myself a little bit. If I thought of every animal like my own, I’d be depressed all the time.”
To contact Randall at Cloverleaf Animal Hospital, call (330) 948-2002.
Contact reporter Nick Glunt at (330) 721-4048 or nglunt@medina-gazette.com.
Brush pets’ teeth for fresher breath, better health
It’s best to brush the teeth of dogs and cats to keep their breath smelling fresh and prevent other health problems. “Brushing is the gold standard for good oral hygiene at home,” said veterinarian Colin Harvey, a professor of surgery and dentistry at the University of Pennsylvania’s School of Veterinary Medicine. If dogs and cats won’t tolerate brushing, products such as prescription food and certain chew toys may help, Dr. Harvey adds. The Washington Post/The Associated Press (1/15)
LOS ANGELES — Dogs and cats can’t brush, spit, gargle or floss on their own. So owners who want to avoid bad pet breath will need to lend a hand.
“Brushing is the gold standard for good oral hygiene at home. It is very effective, but some dogs and more cats don’t appreciate having something in their mouth,” said Dr. Colin Harvey, a professor of surgery and dentistry in the Department of Clinical Studies for the University of Pennsylvania’s School of Veterinary Medicine.
The bulk of bad breath odor — the trademark rotten egg smell — comes from hydrogen sulfide, which is waste from anaerobic bacteria that thrive without oxygen in places like gaps between teeth and gums. Plaque buildup also invites the bacteria and as the accumulation grows, so does the smell.
“We usually do dental cleanings and extractions when animals are spayed or neutered so the animal doesn’t have to be put under anesthesia again after adoption and the adopter has one less thing to worry about,” said Janet Winikoff, the shelter’s director of education.
If a pet is already spayed or neutered, it will still get dental care before adoption, she said. Harvey added that bad breath could also be a symptom of an underlying medical problem.
Stacy Silva, Santa Barbara County Animal Services’ community outreach coordinator, noted that wear on teeth could give the wrong impression of an animal’s age. “(The animals) may look a lot older than their teeth, and it may just be a matter of cleaning the tartar off that gets them back looking their age and that helps them to be adopted,” said Silva.
The animals that need a cleaning get chew toys or ropes, hard treats or cookies and a prescription diet if the vet orders it, she said.
Harvey, who has been director of the Veterinary Oral Health Council since it was founded in 1970, said such products are good substitutes for a teeth-brushing. Pet owners can try a combination or use other products such as water additives, chew toys, plaque and tartar cleaners, and dental diets, Harvey said.
Puppies and kittens are born toothless. They get their baby teeth before they’re a month old, lose them three to five months later and get their permanent teeth by age 1. Dogs have 42 teeth and cats have 30.
Toy dogs tend to have more dental problems because breeding for their smaller size hasn’t caught up with evolution, Harvey said. “Primitive dogs had a standard size and shape because they were evolved from wolves” but for toy breeds, their jaw size was reduced and tooth size was not, “so their teeth are too large for their mouths,” he added.
Christie Keith, a communications consultant to animal welfare and veterinarian groups, said she spends about two minutes each night brushing the teeth of her three dogs after dinner. The Davisburg, Mich., resident believes most dog owners needlessly fear brushing their dogs’ teeth.
Groups work to ensure owners’ estate plans include pets
Legal Zoom and the American Society for the Prevention of Cruelty to Animals have joined forces to make it easier for pet owners to provide instructions for the care and support of their pets if the owner should become incapacitated or die. Four out of five people have not established a plan for pet care, and half a million animal owners die or are rendered unable to physically care for their pet each year without having made plans for their animal friends, according to the ASPCA. WVLA-TV (Baton Rouge, La.)/NBC News (1/15)
NBC NATIONAL NEWS — Some of you will be fine-tuning your estate plans and your will this month.
It’s important to make sure you’re not forgetting or leaving out someone special.
About one in five pet owners already have in writing what happens if their animals outlive them, because the consequences for not doing so can be so severe.
“If you haven’t made any arrangements there’s a good possibility that your pet could end up in a shelter, and there’s an even greater possibility that your pet could be euthanized for lack of finding a loving home,” warns Kim Bressant-Kibwe, a trust and estate counsel with the American Society for the Prevention of Cruelty to Animals.
The ASPCA Recently teamed up with Legal Zoom to provide the pet protection agreement.
“It costs about $39 and what it allows you to do is to set out some very basic information about the care of your pet. You can name a guardian, a successive guardian,” Bressant-Kibwe explains.
She says you can’t leave your pet part of your estate, but you can establish a trust fund to pay for future care.
The ASPCA estimates a half million owners die or become incapacitated each year without leaving instructions on how to care for their pets
Cold-weather tips to keep pets safe this season
Veterinarian Susan Nelson, a clinical associate professor at Kansas State University’s College of Veterinary Medicine, offers tips for keeping pets safe in cold weather, such as letting them gradually get used to the cold. Dr. Nelson says smaller, less furry dogs such as Chihuahuas have a lower tolerance for cold than larger, well-insulated breeds such as huskies. Coats, boots and other winter gear designed for pets may help keep them warm but can also pose some hazards if not properly used and monitored, she adds. U.S. News & World Report/HealthDay News (1/5)
With the arrival of winter, dog owners need to be aware of how to keep their canine friends comfortable and safe, an expert says.
“A general rule of thumb is if it is too cold for you outside, it is too cold for your dog,” Susan Nelson, a clinical associate professor and veterinarian at the Kansas State University College of Veterinary Medicine’s Pet Health Center, said in a university news release.
Several factors, such as size, help some dogs tolerate the cold better than others.
“Small stature and short coats, such as with a Chihuahua, make dogs less tolerant of cold weather. Some of these dogs may not even tolerate cooler temperatures that are still above freezing for very long,” Nelson said.
“Larger body mass and longer, plusher coats allow dogs to tolerate lower temperatures for a longer duration — think Siberian husky,” she added.
Giving your dog enough time to get used to colder temperatures is a good idea. Being exposed to a gradual reduction in temperature allows your dog to develop a protective winter coat and adjust to the colder conditions.
While coats, sweaters and boots can give dogs added protection, they also have some disadvantages, Nelson said.
“Watch for choking hazards, such as buttons, on coats and sweaters,” she advised. “Ensure they are made of breathable fabrics and that the fabric doesn’t irritate the dog. They should only be worn when supervised as the dog could get caught up in them. Also, if the apparel gets wet, it can promote hypothermia that results from chilling caused from the body being in contact with the cold, wet fabric.”
Boots can keep snow and ice away from paws, but owners need to make sure they fit correctly, can be put on easily and stay on, and have good traction, Nelson said.
Mold Found in Merrick Cat Food Cans
Posted by Susan Thixton on January 6, 2013 at 5:40 pm on www.truthaboutpetfood.com
Some concerning pictures and information has been shared with TruthaboutPetFood.com by a pet owner in California. Numerous cans of Merrick Cat food (from two cases) appear to have a canning problem, the pet owner found mold covering the food.
Kitty Mom Michelle G. contacted TruthaboutPetFood.com with a concern over mold found in numerous cans of Merrick Cat Food purchased from Petflow (an online pet food provider). In speaking with Michelle, she shared that not all the cans seemed to have a problem. “Some of the cans opened fine and the pet food looked pink and normal. But some of them didn’t seem to be sealed properly, there was no vacuum seal noise when it opened – there was a dead sound.”
With the cans in question, the pet food varied in amount of mold that covered the food – some “had worse mold than in the picture” (below). And some of the cans in question, the pet food had no mold but appeared brownish (instead of pinkish meat appearance).
The pet food cans from Michelle’s cases are…
Merrick BG Chicken Grain Free Cat Food 5.5 ounce cans Best By dates are: 14 Mar 14 Lot number: 12074 CL2 20473 1203
Michelle has reported this to Merrick, Petflow, FDA, and tomorrow (when offices open) her State Department of Agriculture will be notified. Several of the moldy cans of pet food are now in her freezer (double bagged) in hopes the FDA or State will want to do testing. The rest of the case of pet food is also being held for testing. She stated she will keep us advised on the investigations of each party.
Thanks to Michelle for sharing her story with us – and for reporting this to authorities and to Merrick and the retailer. When/if more is learned, it will be posted.
Note: Always closely examine and smell your pets food before feeding. If anything appears not to be normal – if it doesn’t look the same or smell the same – do not feed it to your pet. Always keep the packaging (can or bag) until you are certain your pet has not/will not suffer an adverse event from the food. The FDA or State Department of Agriculture will not investigate without the packaging (this includes cans).
Antifreeze manufacturers agree to add bittering agent to make products unpalatable to animals and humans
Bittering agent will be applied to products manufactured in all 50 states.
Antifreeze and engine coolant manufactured in the United States will now contain a bitter flavoring agent to prevent animals and children from being poisoned by the sweet-tasting liquid. Although legislation has been passed in several states, the Consumer Specialty Products Association (CSPA) and the Humane Society Legislative Fund jointly announced Dec. 13 that the industry would now voluntarily add the flavoring agent to products for sale on the consumer market in all 50 states.
“Poisoning occurs because animals are attracted to the sweetness of antifreeze and engine coolant, which inadvertently spills in our driveways or is left in open containers in garages,” the joint release says. HSLF says estimates range from 10,000 to 90,000 animals poisoned each year from ingesting ethylene glycol, the toxic substance used in antifreeze. The release claims that one teaspoon of antifreeze or engine coolant can kill an average-sized cat.
The Centers for Disease Control and Prevention’s Agency for Toxic Substances and Disease Registry says ethylene glycol is rapidly absorbed following ingestion, leading to systemic toxicity beginning with effects on the central nervous system, followed by cardiopulmonary effects and, finally, renal failure. Clinical signs may be more subtle in animals than humans.
Veterinary school offers chemotherapy for pets
Dr. Shawna Klahn (left) and Dr. Nick Dervisis (right) have begun a new oncology program. “Bootsie” (left) of Blacksburg, Va., and “Josie” (right), a West Virginia native, are in treatment for cancer
Veterinarians at Virginia-Maryland Regional College of Veterinary Medicine have administered chemotherapy to about 70 animals since launching an oncology program six weeks ago. Four-year-old Burmese mountain dog Dylan’s lymph nodes are back to normal after chemotherapy to treat his lymphoma, says veterinary oncologist Shawna Klahn. “What we have done is bring in a closed or a needless system and updated the safe way of giving chemotherapy,” she said. WSLS-TV (Roanoke, Va.)
BLACKSBURG, VA —
Dylan is a Bernese Mountain Dog getting chemotherapy at the Virginia-Maryland Regional College of Veterinary Medicine in Blacksburg.
The school is offering a new service with the help of Doctor Shawna Klahn and Dr. Nick Dervisis. A biopsy showed cancer in Dylan’s lymph nodes.
“It came back as lymphoma,” Dr. Klahn explained. “He came into oncology and we started chemotherapy, and his lymph nodes are all down to normal as of today.”
Dylan is only four years old and the treatment he is getting, is expected to give him a better quality of life.
“There are no hopeless cases for us,” Dr. Dervisis says.
Doc is getting chemotherapy for a rare spleen cancer in cats. He is one of more than 70 patients that have gotten chemotherapy in the six weeks it has been offered.
Safety in administering the chemo drugs is extremely important.
“What we have done is bring in a closed or a needless system and updated the safe way of giving chemotherapy,” Dr. Klahn says. “It is safe for our staff, pets and our clients.”
From custom fitted face masks to gloves that are more durable than the typical latex everyone in the oncology department is working toward the same goal.
“Providing hope by improving their quality of life slowing down most of the cancer,” Dr. Dervisis says.
Pet hospice increases options for pets and owners
Veterinary at-home hospice services provide end-of-life care for ill pets, improving quality of life for animals and potentially extending life, albeit only for a few days in some cases. Hospice care must be administered by a veterinarian who works in conjunction with the pet’s regular veterinarian to provide palliative treatment such as pain management and catheter placement. San Francisco Chronicle
Shea Cox has spent her 11-year career as a veterinarian fighting to save animals’ lives.
Now, as a provider of pet hospice, she shepherds her patients through death, tending to their needs and those of their guardians, relieving animals’ pain so they can live out their final days surrounded by loved ones, not in the sterile confines of a veterinary clinic.
Modeled on human hospice, the growing field of pet hospice offers palliative care to animals in their homes. It ushers in a profound shift in how people care for dying and elderly pets, providing an option that falls between aggressive medical intervention and immediate euthanasia.
For pet owners, in-home care gives solace as they make painful end-of-life decisions.
Jeff Aoki of Oakland was in Colorado for his father’s funeral when he got a call that would only deepen his grief. His yellow Labrador, Sunny, had cancer that had spread throughout her body.
“I was devastated,” Aoki said. “Sunny was my rock, my best friend and constant companion.”
Aoki and his fiance, Sandy Wong, arranged for Sunny to receive pet hospice care from Cox. The care, which included a urinary catheter (a tumor had made it impossible for her to urinate), gave her a few extra days at home.
Aoki flew home, and for several days the couple showered Sunny with love, trips to the beach and park – and filet mignon.
When it was time to say goodbye, Cox put her to sleep in their backyard. “It was a sad, sad time but this made it so much easier,” Aoki said.
Missing plans
Cox – who was a human hospice nurse before becoming a vet – got the inspiration for her newly launched Bridge Veterinary Services while working as an ER/critical care vet at Pet Emergency Treatment and Specialty Referral Center, a Berkeley animal hospital.
“Working in that setting, I kept seeing nothing about making a plan if a patient had an incurable disease,” she said. “The choice was between either being in the hospital to get better or having to euthanize. It seemed like a disconnect; there had to be a way to offer something in between.”
With almost two-thirds of American households owning pets, it’s not surprising that attitudes toward animals’ final days have evolved from the rural past, when they were unceremoniously put down. The overwhelming majority of pet owners consider their companion animals to be family members, according to a 2011 Harris poll. At the same time, more and more people have witnessed their loved ones using human hospice.
Extending care
“We’ve decided as a culture to support human passing as compassionately as we’re able to, with hospice and palliative care,” said Oakland resident Erika Macs. As a hospital chaplain, she is intimately familiar with end-of-life issues. “It’s a natural progression that we would extend that to the animals in our lives that we’re caretakers for.”
When her 17-year-old cat, Mittens, became critically ill last year, Macs turned to Dr. Anthony Smith, a Hercules vet whose Rainbow Bridge Vet Services has offered hospice and home euthanasia for a dozen years.
“Dr. Smith was able to bring both a medical model and a sense of respectful, compassionate presence,” Macs said.
“The beauty of human hospice is it gives time to have (final) conversations,” Macs said. “With pets, it also gives time to say goodbye. The better the closure, the more quickly a person is able to heal and move on.”
Medical supervision
Pet hospice must be provided by a veterinarian because it involves medical assessments and pain medicines. Pet hospice vets coordinate with the animal’s regular vet. As in human hospice, if pets get better, they can transition back to regular medical treatment.
The costs pencil out to be more than regular check-ups but much less than invasive medical intervention. Bridge Veterinary Services, for instance, charges $250 for an initial appointment that includes a two- or three-hour at-home assessment and such initial care as inserting IV tubes or catheters.
Read more: https://www.sfgate.com/pets/article/Hospice-for-pets-comforts-owners-too-3958378.php#ixzz2FxpiHcoa
Microchip reunites owner with cat who helped her cope with cancer
Loni Fitzgerald was reunited with her cat, Clair, after the cat went missing a year ago, thanks to a microchip implanted in the pet. “I wish she could tell me what she’s been through,” Fitzgerald said. “I’m definitely not going to be letting her outside for a very long time.” Fitzgerald was being treated for cancer when she adopted Clair. Experts say it’s essential that microchip contact information be kept up to date. HeraldNet (Everett, Wash.)
Loni Fitzgerald didn’t expect to see her cat ever again.
The female tabby mix named Clair was only a year old when she disappeared last December. Loni, 30, and her husband, Trevor, searched their Everett neighborhood but couldn’t find their beloved pet. Weeks and months went by without any sign of her.
Then came the phone call on Sunday that caught Fitzgerald completely off-guard.
An Everett Animal Shelter staff member had found Clair standing in the rain near Pacific Avenue and Grand Avenue. The cat’s microchip, implanted under its skin, helped the shelter locate Fitzgerald, who at the time was packing to return home from a family trip to Hawaii.
“I was in shock, I seriously started bawling my eyes out,” Fitzgerald said. “I just couldn’t believe it.”
Fitzgerald, her husband and their 1-year-old daughter, Faith Olivia, were reunited with their cat Monday afternoon at the Everett Animal Shelter.
“Look at how big she is,” she said. “She has the same black stripe and that face.”
Clair, nestled safely in Fitzgerald’s arms, leaned into her owner’s touch and briefly closed her eyes. Fitzgerald gave her a couple quick kisses.
She was undergoing treatment for cervical cancer in 2010 when she adopted the young cat, Fitzgerald said. The two quickly became friends.
“She was like my baby,” Fitzgerald said. “I just loved her.”
Her cancer has been in remission for a year, Fitzgerald added. In October, she and her husband decided to get another cat for their daughter to grow up with. They planned to slowly introduce Clair to their new kitten, Boots. He’ll get a microchip in January, Fitzgerald said.
When a stray cat or dog is brought into the Everett Animal Shelter a staff member will scan the animal for a microchip, said Kate Reardon, city spokeswoman. The information on the microchip often helps to locate pet owners. Four of six lost cats with microchips turned in to the Everett Animal Shelter in the past week were reunited with their owners, Reardon added.
“The good news is when the phone call matches the real pet owner,” she said. “It’s always really important that people update their information.”
Fitzgerald said she’s grateful that Clair is healthy after being discovered about seven miles away from her home.
“I wish she could tell me what she’s been through,” she said. “I’m definitely not going to be letting her outside for a very long time.”
Amy Daybert:425-339-3491; adaybert@heraldnet.com.
Holidays aren’t always merry for pets
The holidays present numerous opportunities for pets to ingest toxic substances and foreign objects or otherwise get hurt. According to pet health insurance companies, claims increase around Christmas, Halloween and Easter, with claims linked to ingestion of chocolate, candy or raisins by dogs far more likely Dec. 21-31 than the rest of the year, according to Petplan Pet Insurance. Dogs are of particular concern. “Dogs will eat almost anything,” said veterinarian Jules Benson, Petplan’s vice president of veterinary service. “Cats tend to be much more discriminating.” The Hartford Courant (Conn.)/Insurance Capital blog
JoAnne Lipsy came home one day in April 2011 to find that her 5-year-old golden retriever-pitbull mix, “Sascha,” had scarfed down a dark-chocolate bar that Lipsy’s mother set on the couch.
“I came home, found a wrapper on the floor, and realized it was dark chocolate, which is more lethal than other chocolate,” said Lipsy, who lives in Bloomfield. “I knew, once I saw the wrapper, it was an emergency situation. I knew that she would die if I didn’t do something.”
Lipsy rushed Sascha to an emergency veterinary hospital in Avon.
“I didn’t wait for her to vomit, and she vomited in my car — chocolate everywhere, in between the seats. It was horrible,” Lipsy said.
Insurance companies that sell pet insurance see a rise in claims during Christmas, as well as Halloween and Easter. Philadelphia-based Petplan Pet Insurance, for example, analyzed claims and found that those related to dogs eating chocolate, raisins or candy are 284 percent more likely between Dec. 21 and Dec. 31 than the average of other days in the year.
For Lipsy, her visit to the veterinarian resulted in a $769 claim with her pet insurer, Petplan. The average claim cost to pay for a veterinary visit was $487 during the holiday season, said Jules Benson, a veterinarian and vice president of Veterinary Service at Petplan.
“Dogs will eat almost anything,” Benson said. “Cats tend to be much more discriminating.”
The average claim for Seattle-based Trupanion Pet Insurance is about $430 and can be more than $1,500 according to Trupanion’s Chief Veterinary Officer, Kerri Marshall.
“In our experience, Christmastime has been the biggest time for chocolate ingestion, with Halloween coming in as number two in chocolate-related claims, followed closely by Easter,” Marshall said.
“Chocolate contains caffeine and theobromine which are poisonous to dogs and cats,” Marshall said. “Darker chocolates are more dangerous because they contain more of these stimulants and smaller dogs and cats often show more severe signs than bigger dogs. When a pet consumes chocolate, it may show signs of vomiting, diarrhea and increased heart rate.”
‘It’s Not Just Chocolate’
The holidays come with all sorts of food people eat that can be toxic to dogs and cats.
“It’s not just chocolate,” Elisa Mazzaferro, a doctor of veterinary medicine, and Ph.D, who specializes in emergency and critical care at Cornell University Veterinary Specialists on Canal Street in Stamford.
Pets also shouldn’t have table scraps, including turkey drippings or bones, veterinarians say. Even seemingly innocuous things like sugar-free candy can be dangerous.
“Sugarless gum products contain something called Xylitol,” Mazzaferro said. “That can cause a massive release of insulin from the pancreas in dogs and cause their blood sugar to drop to the point of having seizures. Some dogs can get liver failure from it.”
Xylitol also can be found in other sugarless products, like candy for diabetics, said Benson, the veterinarian at Petplan Pet Insurance.
Grapes and raisins can cause kidney failure in dogs while macadamia nuts can cause temporary paralysis, Mazzaferro said.
In March, Ann Dowd of West Haven stepped out of her kitchen for a few minutes, and her 5-month-old New Foundland, Bruno, leaped up and started gobbling two batches of bread dough that were on the kitchen counter. One batch had yeast and another batch, of Irish soda bread, had raisins.
Ordinarily, Bruno would be kept in a crate if Ann was out of the room, but she stepped away only briefly.
“He destroyed everything,” Dowd said.
“We were so scared,” Dowd said of herself and her husband, Tim. “I read somewhere about raisins. I couldn’t recall.”
She called the New Haven Central Hospital for Veterinary Medicine on State Street, and the staff told her to bring Bruno in because of the raisins and yeast. Bruno stayed several days overnight in a veterinary bill that resulted in a $1,188 insurance claim, not including hundreds of dollars in out-of-pocket expenses.
Often when dogs eat something toxic, they are admitted for surveillance and veterinarians use a carbon-based substance to filter out toxins in the animal’s body, said Mazzaferro, the Stamford veterinarian affiliated with Cornell.
Christmas can be an unusual spectacle to pets, festooned with glittery things to chew or bat around.
Cats may not be likely to eat chocolate, but they often are attracted to tinsel or ribbons. For example, the pet insurer Trupanion paid a claim for a 5-month-old cat that ingested some ribbon and needed $2,800 of veterinary care to have it surgically removed.
“A large tree suddenly showing up in the living room will seem odd to pets,” said Marshall, Trupanion’s chief veterinary officer. “Expect them to want to climb it, chew on it, knock it over, potentially on top of them or breaking ornaments leaving glass shards to step on, or urinate on it — trees are commonly used for scent marking.”
Trupanion recommends pet owners think of ways to ensure the safety of their animals, such as putting a Christmas tree behind pet gates or up on a tabletop, if the tree is small enough.
Probably the best known caveat to pet owners is about poinsettias toxicity to cats and dogs. The bright red flowers often used to decorate around Christmas can be irritating to a pet’s stomach and mouth, sometimes causing vomiting, but the toxicity is “generally over-rated,” according to the American Society for the Prevention of Cruelty to Animals.
Lilies are more dangerous than poinsettias.
“Lilies can cause kidney failure if animals eat the leaves, stems or any part of the flower,” said Mazzaferro, the emergency and critical care veterinarian at Cornell University Veterinary Specialists in Stamford. “Mistletoe can cause vomiting, diarrhea, low blood pressure, and collapse … English holly can cause vomiting, diarrhea and tremors.”
Cyclamen is sometimes used as a decorative Christmas flower, and it can cause vomiting, diarrhea, salivation and potentially death if an animal ingests a large amount, Mazzaferro said. Another popular holiday flower, Amaryllis, can cause vomiting, diarrhea, salivation and tremors.
Pet owners and veterinarians have different strategies and suggestions about keeping animals from toxic treats. For Lipsy, whose dog ate chocolate, she doesn’t leave anything tempting anywhere near “nose level.”
“We have a strict rule now that there is no chocolate out in the house, on a counter, or anywhere, if she can get within reach of it,” Lipsy said.