The Holiday season is upon us and so is the hustle and bustle of this busy time of year. As visitors come and go, keep an eye on your pet to ensure they don’t escape through an unintentionally open door. In fact, now would be a good time to get a microchip if your pet doesn’t have one. If your cat or dog does have a microchip, now is a good time to confirm your info is up-to-date. Firehouse is happy to help, so give us a call or make an appointment here.
Tinsel can be beautiful part of your decorations, but it can also be dangerous to your pets. Both cats and dogs (especially the younger ones) can be curious about the shiny stuff and try to play with it. If they inadvertently swallow tinsel, it can get stuck in their intestinal track. Best case scenario, shiny poop! But in the worst case, it can get stuck on the way and make your pet really sick or may even require surgery to remove. Also, keep ornaments out of reach. Broken ornaments can pose a real danger to little paws. Some might even look like a yummy treat, which will cause stomach upset or worse if ingested.
New Year’s Eve fireworks can be a noisy and scary time for your pets. Consider placing them in an interior room so the disturbance is minimal. Make sure your dogs get plenty of exercise on the 31st or you might even consider a Thundershirt if you know loud noises can be really upsetting to your pet.
Keep a close eye on both cats and dogs for signs of stress and anxiety. Cats might urinate outside of the litter box, isolate themselves, or show aggression toward other pets or people when upset. Dogs show stress through vocalizing (barking, howling, whining), being destructive, or behavior changes (lethargy, increased tendency to sleep).
These are just some signs of examples of stress or anxiety so please contact us if you are concerned, have questions, or need medication for your pet during the holidays.
Please enjoy this very special time with family, friends and your furry loved ones!
Wishing you all of our best for a happy and healthy 2020 from all of us at Firehouse Animal Health Center.
Sonni scanning a local lost dog for a microchip. He did not have one. 🙁
