With the summer come the beautiful evenings. We meet friends near the fire and around the pool while a good meal sizzles on the barbecue. Unfortunately, those relaxation moments can be spoiled by a trivial incident. Here are some dangers to our pets at these gatherings.

BARBECUE

A barbecue or flames, it burns, but our animals do not necessarily know! Briquettes, hot fat, barbecue metal, utensils and food are all potential sources of burns. As for the bonfire flames, they could burn your animal if it gets too close; and hair, it catches fire quickly!

PANCREATITIS, BONE AND SKEWERS

Barbecue smells are attractive! You might like to share it with your companion, but hold on! Large amounts of fat in one’s diet can cause digestive disorders, such as inflammation of the pancreas. And bones and skewers are disasters: they can cause serious damage, including perforation of the digestive tract. Do not forget to protect your trash so that your dog does not have access to it. Barbecuing without a problem means never leaving the barbecue unattended and always keep an eye on your pet.

TOXIC FOODS AND  PLANTS

Here is a list of plants, foods and other items that your pet should never eat because they could seriously affect his health:

• Alcohol
• Avocadoes
• Bulbs
• Caffeine (anything that can contain it)
• Mushrooms
• Chocolate
• Compost
• Hop cones
• Leaves and stalks of rhubarb, potatoes and tomatoes
• Chewing gum with or without xylitol
• Large amount of salt or liver
• Hydrangea
• Pink laurel
• Chestnuts
• Walnuts and macadamia
• Stones of apple, apricot, cherry and peach
• Fresh and dry grapes
   

SWIMMING POOL AND LAKE

When you are lucky enough to have the right water on your property, you want to share it with the whole family. But what are the precautions to take regarding our pets? In fact, there are many dogs and cats that cannot swim. But, unfortunately every summer, many are victims of drowning. Here are some steps to take during a pool party, because drowning is a result of a lack of attention:

• Keep a pole near the body of water;
• Always appoint a supervisor;
• When the swim is over, remove the toys on the water
  that might attract your dog or cat;
• Opt for flotation jackets if your pet tends to swim away from the shore;
• Make sure the floor is dry around your pool.

HEAT STROKE

It is a brutal and rapid attack characterized by a body hyperthermia caused by a too high ambient temperature, so that your animal can no longer maintain a normal temperature (38.5 °C - 39.5 °C). Most animals cool down while breathing fresh air, but when they are in hyperthermia they must act quickly by putting them in a shady place and cooling them with compresses of cold water. We can then make them drink, but very small quantities at a time. Heatstroke occurs most often in summer between May and September. An animal can suffer from sunburn even without the sun because:

• humidity
• The lack of ventilation
• Overcrowded places
• The lack of water

The terraces of wood, cement or, worse, asphalt, are islands of heat drastically increasing the ambient temperature. Thanks, keep your animals in the shade and away from heat islands!

TOBACCO PRODUCTS AND ILLICIT DRUGS

If ingested in large quantities, these products can be lethal to animals. Serious symptoms of coma may follow those more innocuous of imbalances and vomiting. That’s why we have to keep them out of their reach.

INSECTS AND OTHERS

In our region, various stinging insects and arachnids are having fun! After being bitten, your pet may have simple red lesions on his skin, but also a more serious allergic reaction, with local or generalized blisters, or even breathing difficulties, tremors and fever. Natural and nontoxic repellents for our animals are sold in specialized shops and in veterinary clinics.

In short,normally, it is better to keep our companions away from sources of danger that is to say, offer them a place where they can take refuge and rest whenever they want in a cool and peaceful place.

@ Martine Lavallée, B.A.A. and animal health technician
Photos courtesy of Fidanimo, Guide-Piscine France and Animo-Petfood

Our products
SUGGESTIONS
for your animal