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Beyond the dignity-defying costumes (oh, but so entertaining!), there are numerous seasonal dangers that threaten our animal friends. You may already know that chocolate won't jive with Fido's innards, but what about chewing gum or raisins? Bad (for) doggie. Furthermore, with the onset of winter, use of anti-depressants goes up and more than 50 percent of all pet poisonings involve human drugs.
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Pet Poison Hotline (PPH) is a Minneapolis-based 24-hour hotline (1-800-213-6680) for humans panicking over a possibly poisoned animal - dogs, cats, birds, horses, lizards - you name it. PPH is one half of the world’s largest industry poison control center so their phone number is listed on various product labels: “If your child or pet ingests this product, please call ...” (The office is divided - one side for human poison emergencies, the other side for animals.)
I chatted with Dr. Ahna Brutlag, assistant director of veterinary services of the PPH, who described the average PPH caller. "The calls are about 70 percent from pet owners, the rest from vets. Usually, the owner just came home from work and a bottle of medication has been chewed on and may have been ingested by their pet. About half of pet owner calls can be managed at home, other half need to be referred to by vet. We talk to a lot of frantic pet owners, many who didn’t know that certain things were poisonous."
The PPH does have a $35-per-case charge. This means you can call back as many times as need until the issue is resolved. I'm told some cases are resolved quickly while others drag on for weeks.
"Chewing gum - the problem is xylitol is a sweetener in sugar-free gum. It’s a natural sweetener but in gum, it becomes a problem. In dogs, it makes their blood sugar drop, sometimes to life-threatening levels, and can also cause liver problems. The most dangerous gums are ones that contain 100 percent xylitol. If it lists xylitol as first ingredient - those are the ones to be most worried about."
--Dr. Anna Brutlag, Pet Poison Hotline
Of course, every holiday brings certain pet risks (4th of July, anyone?) but there are specific dangers with Halloween. "A lot of pets love Halloween but the #1 problem is candy and candy wrappers," said Dr. Brutlag. "We also tend to get a lot of calls for glow sticks - cats they love to chew on them and that oozy material can cause a lot of irritation in their mouth. It can look very dramatic - lots of drooling." (I'm picturing glow-in-the-dark cat mouths - freaky.) Not surprisingly, lit candles are also a big problem, especially kittens, puppies and dogs with wagging tails.
Dr. Justine Lee, associate director of veterinary services at PPH, and author of two humor pet care books, (It’s a Dog’s Life… but It’s Your Carpet' and 'It’s a Cat’s World… You Just Live In It') offers up her thoughts on Halloween costumes for pets: "I don’t recommend dressing up pets, they generally don’t get it."
Species-specific toxins:
DOGS:
1 Chocolate
2 Insect bait stations
3 Rodenticides (i.e., mouse and rat poison)
4 Fertilizers
5 Xylitol-containing products (i.e., sugar-free gums and candies)
6 Ibuprofen (Advil® or Motrin® in brand name or generic form)
7 Acetaminophen (Tylenol® in brand name or generic form)
8 Silica gel packs
9 Amphetamines, such as ADD/ADHD drugs
10 Household cleaners
11 Grapes and raisins (Dr. Brutlag says: "There is some individual sensitivity there with grapes and raisins but since we don’t know which dog will be affected, you have to treat them all conservatively.")
CATS:
1 Lilies (Easter, Asiatic, Day lilies).
2 Canine permethrin insecticides (topical flea and tick medicine designed for dogs but erroneously placed on cats)
3 Household cleaners
4 Rodenticides
5 Paints and varnishes
6 Veterinary non-steroidal anti-inflammatory medications (Rimadyl®, Deramaxx®)
7 Glow sticks/glow jewelry
8 Amphetamines (such as ADD/ADHD drugs)
9 Acetaminophen (Tylenol® in brand name or generic form)
10 Ibuprofen (Advil or Motrin® in brand name or generic form)
Seasonal Pet Threats:
Mothballs: Those benign little buggers usually contain either paradichlorobenzene or naphthalene - both can be deadly. Symptoms include: vomiting, severe abdominal pain, tremors, weakness, possible kidney or liver failure, and severe abnormality of red blood cells.
Mushrooms: While most 'shrooms are harmless, certain
