HOLIDAY FIRST AID
Your Grey and Glass Ornaments
THE PROCEDURE
BEFORE BEFORE BEFORE
the holiday go to a pharmacy and buy a box of cotton balls. Be sure that
you get COTTON balls ... not the "cosmetic puffs" that are made from
man-made fibers. Also, buy a quart of half-and-half coffee cream and put it
in the freezer.
Should your dog eat glass ornaments, defrost the half-and-half and pour some
in a bowl. Dip cotton balls into the cream and feed them to your dog.
Dogs under 10 lbs should eat 2 balls which you have first
torn into smaller pieces. Dogs 10-50 lbs should eat 3-5 balls and larger
dogs should eat 5-7. You may feed larger dogs an entire cotton ball at once.
Dogs seem to really like these strange "treats" and eat them readily. As the
cotton works its way through the digestive tract it will find all the glass
pieces and wrap itself around them. Even the teeniest shards of glass will
be caught and wrapped in the cotton fibers and the cotton will protect the
intestines from damage by the glass. Your dog's stools will be really weird
for a few days and you will have to be careful to check for fresh blood or a
tarry appearance to the stool. If either of the latter symptoms appear you
should rush your dog to the vet for a checkup but, in most cases, the dogs
will be just fine.
For many
people, winter and the Christmas holiday season are happy times of
years. Most of us enjoy quiet evenings indoors watching the snow fall
and cuddle up with our pets. But there are also a lot of holiday hazards
and winter hazards that can adversely affect our pets that we should all
be aware of. A lot of common products that we have in and around our
house at the holiday time of year can be very dangerous to our pets.
Some of these items include:
Alcoholic beverages,
Chocolate, Coffee, Onions, onion powder, Fatty foods, Salt, Yeast.
Dough
In addition to those food products, there are also some holiday hazards
in the way of household plants that we typically find in the winter and
Christmas holiday seasons that include lilies and poinsettias.
There are certain kinds of
lilies
that can be fatal to your cat if ingested that include Tiger lilies,
Asian lilies, Japanese show lilies, Easter lilies, Stargazer lilies and
Casa Blanca lilies that can potentially cause acute kidney failure in
cats.
Poinsettias can be
generally low in toxicity, but if they are ingested, they can irritate
the mouth and stomach in cats. Mistletoe can have a negative
cardiovascular effect on animals and can often cause gastrointestinal
upset in pets. Holly is another holiday hazard that is around during the
Christmas holiday can it can cause vomiting, diarrhea, and lethargy in
animals. If you fear that your pet has gotten into and ingested any of
these holiday hazards, please seek the advice of your vet for proper
care.
There are also holiday hazards that can be around your Christmas tree.
Water in your Christmas tree can often contain fertilizers that can
cause stomach upset in animals if it is ingested. Also, stagnant tree
water can have a lot of bacteria which can make your pets ill if
ingested. You should also keep electrical cords safely out of reach of
your pets and ribbons; tinsel and other holiday trimmings can cause
obstruction in the intestinal tract of your pet if ingested, so use
special care when using those items.
Other holiday hazards for your pets can include batteries and glass
ornaments.
There are also other winter hazards that include antifreeze and
ice-melting products that can be very dangerous to your pets, so make
sure that you use those products with care
http://www.aspca.org/pet-care/poison-control/a-poison-safe-home.html
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