5 Tips for Preventing Pet Poisonings
We’d much rather see your pet for their annual wellness exam than an emergency appointment for a potential poisoning. Focusing on poison prevention can help keep your pet safe by reducing exposure to potentially deadly medications, human foods, plants, and household substances.
Fortunately, we can check our homes and yards for dangers and make changes to try our best to prevent unfortunate incidents. Here are 5 tips to help keep your pet from ingesting toxic substances.
- Store securely: Store items like lawn and garden supplies, antifreeze, household chemicals, and human medications out of reach of pets. Curious animals can nose open cabinets, so consider locks or other pet-safe containers inside your home and garage.
- Make pest control pet safe: Rodenticides and snail/slug baits can be harmful to pets. Always use these products in a pet-safe area. When possible, use bait stations to minimize the opportunity for pets to ingest these items.
- Check your yard: Common flowers and plants can be dangerous to pets. Inspect your yard for plants such as autumn crocus, azalea plants, and daffodils to help keep pets safe. Check out this article from UC Davis for more information.
- Know human foods that are off limits: Many foods that are safe for people can be toxic to pets, such as: chocolate, xylitol in some sugar-free gum, macadamia nuts, grapes, raisins, onions, and garlic. This article from the American Animal Hospital Association (AAHA) provides a more detailed list.
- Keep human and pet medications separate: Store human and pet medications separately to prevent mix-ups.
When in doubt, call us! Our office can help identify substances that are potentially toxic and provide information on next steps.