Christmas Tips
Christmas is meant to be a happy and relaxing time for family and friends, and that includes your much loved pets. The last thing you need at this time of year to be worrying about your pets health or for an easily preventable event to spoil the festive season for all of you.
In the page we will try and let you know about ways that you can prevent injury or illness and help make your Christmas a happy and stress free one. You may scroll down the page or click on the headings below to take you to your selected topic.
- General anxiety and stress
- Accidental poisonings: Food
- Accidental poisonings: Plants
- Injury: Tinsel, trees, pine needles, glass baubles
General Anxiety and Stress
Most dogs and cats live happily throughout the year following a predictable daily routine and consistent rules for acceptable behaviour. Why are we surprised when some cannot cope with the festive season and are sometimes provoked into aggressive behaviour?
In some households, the build-up to Christmas is a very busy period, the daily routine changes, family excitement and stress levels increase, and everyone has so much to do that they spend less time with their pet. The house rules are forgotten because of Christmas.
Please try to keep to the same daily routine with walks and play sessions, feeding, grooming and just spending enough time with them. It will relax you too.
More visitors may arrive at this time of year and guests may stay, bringing children and pets to the home. Some guests (especially children) may not be comfortable around pets and may behave in an unpredictable manner towards them.
Never leave your dog unsupervised with children.
Family gatherings and parties can be a problem for pets with the dangerous combination of strangers, increased noise levels, excited children, adults drinking and the smell and sight of food everywhere.
These group situations can be unpredictable and even a calm, sociable dog must be supervised at all times, to avoid problems.
This is impractical in reality and it is better to keep the dog safely in another part of the house.
If you have an anxious or fearful pet, or an older pet, it is important that they can go somewhere to get away from a situation they dislike and can be left alone.
The 'safe-haven' concept, together with a DAP (pheromone) product, that many of you used for the firework season, is very useful during the festive period for anxious dogs in a hectic household.
Plan ahead; think about which room you will use and place a comfortable bed, together with a favourite toy, or stuffed toy for play.
Ensure your dog is left in peace from unwanted attention.
Cats must feel they have immediate access to enough safe, secure, private, resting and hiding places in the house to get away from anything that frightens them. Feliway (pheromone) products can be used to help reduce stress.
Anxious cats may prefer to live in a separate room while visitors are in the house.
We can enjoy ourselves at Christmas and New Year and have fun with our pets but do think about what our dogs and cats may learn from the experience.
They are learning all the time and cannot understand why behaviour that was acceptable during the holiday has to stop in January. We have to be consistent during the holiday period.
Accidental Poisonings: Food
1. Chocolate
Although it is becoming increasingly more well known that dogs cannot tolerate even a relatively small amount of chocolate Christmas is a really hazardous time of year and, with the best of intentions there will be chocolate left lying around that the sharp-eyed (and nosed) pets will be quick to find.
The substance in chocolate that is poisonous to dogs is called theobromine.
Humans clear theobromine quickly but dogs, and other animals such as cats, rodents and horses, will take up to 2-3 days to get it out of their bodies.
In that time the effects are shown which can range from excitement to sickness and diarrhoea, thirst and eventually fits and cardiac arrest.
White chocolate contains very little theobromine, milk chocolate has a low amount but the higher the cocoa solids (in good quality dark or drinking chocolate) the more theobromine is present.
The amount of chocolate needed to cause fatal effects varies between dogs, but generally speaking 1 stolen Smartie or square of milk chocolate won't usually cause any effect but a whole bar of dark chocolate or a pot of drinking cocoa can be fatal.
For example:
Given a 50g bar of milk chocolate (20% cocoa solids) a Westie sized dog would suffer adverse effects after 2 bars, a Labrador would need 5 bars.
It would only take 1 x25g piece of dark (plain) chocolate (85% solids) to give adverse effects to a Westie, and 2 for a Labrador.
These doses will vary with the individual animals, some dogs may be able to take a lot more than this before suffering effects, some will tolerate much less.
This is why it is not a good idea to familiarise your pet with the taste of chocolate even from flavoured doggy treats. Keep all wrapped gift boxes out of reach and watch out for tree decorations also.
If you suspect your pet had eaten a large amount of milk chocolate or even a small amount of dark chocolate phone us at once.
If we are able to make your dog sick within 2 hours of ingestion of the chocolate there is a very low chance he will suffer adverse effects.
After this period he will likely need close monitoring and symptomatic treatment to maintain him hydrated and control and nervous signs while the theobromine leaves his body.
2. Grapes & Raisins
It has recently been discovered that grapes and raisins can be extremely poisonous to dogs. This seems to be something to do with the "bloom" to be found on the surface of the fruit but the exact compound has not been discovered yet.
What is known however is that the effects are not dose dependent.
This means that while some dogs are know to have consumed large amounts of grapes to no ill effect for others it has only taken a handful of grapes or raisins to cause fatal acute kidney failure.
At Christmas time there are loads of goodies that contain large amounts of raisins and other dried fruit, cooking does not inactivate the toxin, so we would urge you to be extra cautious and vigilant when it comes to Christmas cakes, mince pies and even the double whammy of chocolate coated raisins!
If you suspect your dog may have consumed even a small quantity of raisins phone us at once.
Raisins and other dried fruit are passed through the digestion quite slowly so even if we are able to make your dog sick a few hours after the incident we may be able to reduce the signs shown.
Often the signs will not show for a day or so after the incident so even if your pet appears well in himself it is essential we take preventive measures to maintain hydration and reduce the absorption of the toxin.
3. Macadamia nuts
These are a more unusual treat but at Christmas often come with a chocolate coating.
The signs associated with Macadamia nut poisoning are similar to chocolate poisoning and like grapes and raisins the toxic dose range is very wide (2.4-62.4g/kg).
However chocolate ingested at the same time makes the effects much worse.
The treatment would be as for chocolate poisoning but less is known about this toxin so the outcome can be more variable.
ACCIDENTAL POISONINGS: PLANTS
**IF IN DOUBT CONSIDER ANY PLANT AS POISONOUS AND CONSULT YOUR VET**
1. Poinsettia
This pot plant with bright red (or cream) flowerlike leaves is to be found in every garden centre at Christmas time so inevitably will find its way into your home.
Originally a tropical plant its defence mechanism against predators is an irritant sap.
Cats and dogs will suffer much salivation or slavering after chewing on leaves but effects are largely restricted to this irritation.
If you think your pet has been chewing on the leaves of the plant wash out his mouth and lips as much as possible and also wash the sap of the coat.
If there is vomiting or difficultly swallowing contact a vet as we may be able to provide a gastric protectant.
2. Holly
The bright red holly berries are quite poisonous to dogs and other small animals with reports of only 20 berries being fatal to a large dog.
With its prickly leaves dogs are unlikely to scavenge this plant but be vigilant that children do not feed the berries to your pet or of any berries that may fall off if branches are brought into the house as decorations.
Signs of poisoning include sickness and diarrhoea but can progress to weakness collapse, coma and death.
Although there is no specific antidote if you suspect your pet may have eaten a number of these berries phone us at once and there are supportive measures we can use to help your pet through this incident.
3. Mistletoe
Posioning with mistletoe is uncommon but can occur in dogs over the festive period.
A small amount of berries may only cause a little sickness and diarrhoea but larger amounts can be fatal.
Signs also include fits, excessive thirst, sensitivity to sound and touch and eventually coma.
Treatment is aimed at controlling signs.
If you think your pet may have consumed some mistletoe berries contact us immediately. Horses and cattle are also susceptible to this toxin.
4. Lilies
Although lilies are to be found in flower arrangements all year round they are particularly present at Christmas time. All parts of the flower but in particular the pollen are toxic to cats.
Even a small amount of pollen if ingested can cause kidney failure so it is extremely important that arrangements are kept in a separate room if possible and extreme vigilance as concerns fallen flowers is undertaken.
Pollen is very sticky and it can be difficult to remove but if your cat is showing signs of having been in contact with a lily (any variety, even peace lilies) with the tell-tale yellow on his face or paws try and wash off as much as possible immediately.
A 'lampshade' type collar will prevent any further grooming until you can get him to a vet but supportive treatment must be started straight away so contact us immediately even if you think only a small amount has been eaten.
INJURY: Tinsel, trees, pineneedles, glass baubles.
It is impossible to predict or pre-empt all hazards to your pet and accidents will happen with the bestof intentions but, in our experience, a lo of Christmas related incidents could have been easily preventable with a bit of common sense.
Cats and kittens in particular love climbing and exploring and may not see what the difference is between your Christmas tree and the real ones outside, until it overbalances and topples over.
The indoor tree additionally has exciting sparkly ornaments to play with and cut paws happen very easily on broken glass baubles.
Tinsel is great to be chased but can end up wrapped around tongues and paws. When the tree is past its best and starts to shed, pine needles find their way into unsuspecting paws. House rabbits, but also dogs and some cats may get interested in cables from fairy lights and take a nibble.
To be as safe as possible position the tree out of reach and if possible in a separate room to any unsupervised animals.
If this is impossible make sure all tinsel is firmly attached and avoid the loose strand variety.
Use plastic, wooden or otherwise unbreakable ornaments and keep these well out of reach of paws and mouths.
Use a cable guard for the fairy lights and ensure the tree is firmly anchored down so it won't topple over, also lift pine needles as they drop.
