Thursday, November 20, 2014

Thanksgiving Pet Safety Tips




‘Tis the season for friends, family and holiday feasts—but also for possible distress for our animal companions. Pets won’t be so thankful if they munch on undercooked turkey or a pet-unfriendly floral arrangement, or if they stumble upon an unattended alcoholic drink. Check out the following tips from ASPCA experts for a fulfilling Thanksgiving that your pets can enjoy, too. 

Talkin’ Turkey 
If you decide to feed your pet a little nibble of turkey, make sure it’s boneless and well-cooked. Don't offer her raw or undercooked turkey, which may contain salmonella bacteria. 

 Sage Advice 
Sage can make your Thanksgiving stuffing taste delish, but it and many other herbs contain essential oils and resins that can cause gastrointestinal upset and central nervous system depression to pets if eaten in large quantities. Cats are especially sensitive to the effects of certain essential oils. 

 No Bread Dough 
Don't spoil your pet’s holiday by giving him raw bread dough. According to ASPCA experts, when raw bread dough is ingested, an animal's body heat causes the dough to rise in his stomach. As it expands, the pet may experience vomiting, severe abdominal pain and bloating, which could become a life-threatening emergency, requiring surgery. 

Don't Let Them Eat Cake 
If you’re baking up Thanksgiving cakes, be sure your pets keep their noses out of the batter, especially if it includes raw eggs—they could contain salmonella bacteria that may lead to food poisoning. 

Too Much of a Good Thing 
A few small boneless pieces of cooked turkey, a taste of mashed potato or even a lick of pumpkin pie shouldn’t pose a problem. However, don't allow your pets to overindulge, as they could wind up with a case of stomach upset, diarrhea or even worse—an inflammatory condition of the pancreas known as pancreatitis. In fact, it’s best keep pets on their regular diets during the holidays. 

A Feast Fit for a Kong 
While the humans are chowing down, give your cat and dog their own little feast. Offer them Nylabones or made-for-pet chew bones. Or stuff their usual dinner—perhaps with a few added tidbits of turkey, vegetables (try sweet potato or green beans) and dribbles of gravy—inside a Kong toy. They’ll be happily occupied for awhile, working hard to extract their dinner from the toy. 

 SOURCE: https://www.aspca.org/pet-care/thanksgiving-safety-tips

12 comments:

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  3. My dog loves Thanksgiving! When I make the turkey, I cook in innards for a yummy treat for my pup. He absolutely loves it, and looks forward to it all year. I am glad to know that it is okay to do, as long as it is cooked threw all the way.

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  4. Thank you for the tips! I sure don't want my little puppy to get sick this year! I'm glad that it's okay for me to give him little nibbles from the table because I do that a lot. I just hope he doesn't start expecting them! http://oakhillsanimal.com/

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  5. wow, these tips must be helpful for the pet owners. dog food recipes

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  6. I love my two dogs so much. I live far from home, so they really are my family. I try my best to keep them healthy and active. I would hate to see them sick, and I would hate it even more if I knew I was the one that caused it.

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  7. Not too long a go my dog got into the Thanksgiving dinner food and ate a bunch of it. We took our eyes of of him for only a couple minutes and he was right in the kitchen getting into the food. After he did this, it ended up making my dog very sick and we had to take him to an animal hospital. I am just really glad that they could help him out and got him back to him old self again.
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  8. Thanks for sharing this! I agree that it is important to keep an eye on your pet with so much food around. With turkey bones and other things like that laying around, it becomes easy for your dog to ingest something that isn't healthy! I'll definitely try giving my dog her food through a Kong. It's a really good idea! http://www.omahaanimalmedicalgroup.com/about-us/services.html

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  9. My mom uses sage all the time. I might add that she also makes a mess when cooking and she makes the dog lick it up if it falls. After reading this article I want to make sure to tell her to not let the dog do that anymore. http://myuniversitypethospital.com

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  10. I never realized that uncooked turkey could be harmful to dogs. Is this simply because they aren't raised eating raw meat? It seems like they should be able to handle that type of thing from an evolutionary perspective. Thanks for sharing your tips with us! http://montgomeryanimalhospital.com

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  11. Great tips to help keep your pets healthy! I have noticed that whenever thanksgiving comes around people like to sneak food to the dogs. The problem is they end up eating a lot of extra food through the night and sometimes get sick. In general it is best to not give them any table scraps and keep them on their own diet. Of course, it little piece of lean turkey meat is usually OK every now and then.
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  12. My dogs constantly beg for food, especially at Thanksgiving, and these tips will be very help in a few months to make sure I don't accidentally make them sick. I had no idea essential oils could upset an animal's stomach. I will be sure to avoid giving them seasoned stuffing so they don't end up in the hospital with pancreatitis. Thank you again for the advice about what is alright for my dog to eat. http://www.centersinaianimalhospital.com

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