How the Grinch can steal your pet's Christmas:
1.) Tinsel and Ornaments
Those beautiful shiny ornaments and especially the sparkly strands of tinsel are just ideal play toys for your cat! Unfortunately, they are also an emergency surgery waiting to happen. Tinsel can twist and tangle inside your pet's intestines causing pain, vomiting, diarrhea and even fatal complications. So skip the tinsel this year if possible! Ornaments are also dangerous as the hooks, glass, and metal can cut and damage you pet's mouth and GI tract. Try to place ornaments up high on the tree where they are out of reach.
2.) Holiday lights and candles
Well, the candle issue should be self explanatory. Please, please never leave your pets unattended around a lit candle. While the occasional singed kitty whisker is more interesting than life-threatening, much more serious burns can and do occur. Holiday lights present an electrocution risk. Puppies especially (although we have seen this in a kitten as well) just have to put their mouths on the cord. This can cause electrical burns and lesions on the tongue and in the throat. Keep those cords up off the ground if possible and never leave your pet alone with the lights plugged in.
3.) Ribbon
Just like the tinsel, this can seem like a toy to your cat. And just like the tinsel it can tie up their intestines - ending in surgery or worse. When you unwrap your gifts on Christmas day, please place all ribbons in the trash immediately! Taking a little time to have the trash bag handy will save a lot of anguish later on.
4.) Delicious Holiday Food
I still have childhood memories of feeding my Yorkie puppy, Snuggles, Hershey's kisses from my stocking. That shows how much I loved her - I don't share chocolate well! However, it also shows how uninformed I was! You probably all know that chocolate is toxic for our pets. Fat trimmings, bones, and even some nuts can be just as dangerous. Sharing is NOT caring in this instance! Keep all that yummy human food for the humans this holiday season and your pets will thank you for it.
5.) Holiday plants
Raise your hand if you think Poinsettias are a deadly toxin for pets. Well, not only do you look silly reading this with your hand raised, you also have a few things to learn about holiday plants and pets. Poinsettias are not deadly. They can cause mild irritation to the mouth and throat and vomiting and diarrhea if a large amount is ingested. Plants that you DO need to be careful with include holly (especially the berries) and mistletoe. These can cause much more significant vomiting and diarrhea and even depression and breathing difficulties.
I know there are many more horror stories of holidays go awry when it comes to our pets! Falling Christmas trees causing injury, imitation snow causing constipation, even preservatives on the Christmas tree creating a poisoned water source as you try to keep that tree fresh through the season. So enjoy this holiday season but remember that your pets see the world as their playground - and it's your job to keep them safe!
