Halloween Safety For Your Pets

Halloween is a scary time for pets. They can get nervous when people in costumes come to the door to trick-or-treat, and they can become terrified when fireworks go off.  Here are a few tips for a happier Halloween with your pets.

Keep animals (dogs and cats) indoors for a few weeks before and after Halloween to shield them from fireworks, especially at night.  Their hearing is more sensitive than ours, so what might sound loud to you, sounds deafening to them.

Some dogs and cats will try to scratch or chew their way out of the house to escape loud noises.  Keep sensitive pets in the centre of the house. Play music with a good beat at a moderate volume.  Feed a large carbohydrate meal (pasta, bread, or rice) about an hour before sundown because carbohydrates will make your pet sleepy.  You can also give your dog a toy to keep it occupied.

There are many items available to help calm nervous pets around Halloween time.  These products can also be used for other stressful situations, such as moving, travelling, boarding, or a new addition to the household.  Most of these products are available through your veterinary surgeon.  There are now special calming food and herbal preparation savailable for both dogs and cats to cause relaxation.  There are pheromone impregnated collars, sprays and diffusers are available to help calm nervous pets.  CDs are available to help animals overcome sound phobias, but these must be used for a few months to condition the dog.  A new product on the market for anxiety and sound phobias is the Thundershirt.  These shirts exert constant, gentle pressure on the dog, causing relaxation.  I have tried many of these products on my own dogs, and they do work.

On Halloween night, keep your dog away from the front door.  Dogs get agitated by strangers coming and going, and may be inclined to bite. And don’t give your dog any Halloween candy because chocolate is toxic to dogs and cats and can make them very sick.

Make sure that your dog or cat has a collar with a legible ID tag in case it does run away.  You can also have your pet microchipped, which is particularly useful if the collar comes off.  If your pet is already microchipped, please make sure that your contact details are correct.  Animal shelters and veterinary surgeons are inundated with phone calls about pets missing around Halloween. Unfortunately, due to lack of identification, people aren’t always reunited with their beloved pets. So be prepared!

Cats should be kept indoors from now until a week after Halloween.  There are many cruetly cases involving cats around Halloween time.

Halloween decorations are fun for kids to look at, but can be lethal to our pets.  Cats and dogs can ingest fake cobwebs and other Halloween decorations, causing life-threatening intestinal blockages.  Keep carved pumpkins with lit candles out of reach because our four-footed companions can be knock them over and start fires.

Have a happy and safe Halloween with your pets.  If you are dressing up your dog for Halloween, please ensure that the costume is loose fitting and that their vision is not obstructed.  If your dog is too distressed by the costume, then remove it.

Parasites living on your pets

Now that August is here, there are many unwanted visitors just itching to live on yourpet.  Fleas, harvest mites, and ticks are annoying parasites that will not only infest your pet, but may take the odd bite from you! 

 

 

 

Flean Magnified 20x

Fleas are well-known visitors.  Black-brown incolour, they are 2 to 3 mm in length and visible with the naked eye.  They feed on your pet’s blood (sometimes they bite humans, but don’t like our blood).  Fleas can cause major skin irritations and allergic reactions.  They also transmit tapeworms to dogs and cats, so year round flea control is the best way to ensure that your pets are free from fleas.  Regular worming will take care of the tape worms.  Don’t forget that fleas like warm environments, so they will happily live in your home for the winter if you don’t treat your pets!

 

 

 

 

Harvest Mite Magnified 200x

In late summer and early autumn, harvest mites become a problem.  They live in long grass.  As animals pass through long grass, the larval stages jump on them to feed.  Once the mites have had their fill, they fall off and complete their lifecycle.  They tend to congregate on the ears, legs, and belly.  They are easily visible because they appear as bright orange spots on the skin.  They cause severe itching because the saliva they produce is a skin irritant.  Cats seem to suffer more with harvest mite infestations than dogs do.  They will self mutilate because they are so itchy.  They can also have severe allergic reactions to harvest mites.  As with other parasites, harvest mites can bite people too.  Few treatments are 100 percent effective against harvest mites, so repeated applications of treatments recommended by your veterinary surgeon might be necessary.

 

 



Tick magnified 10x



 

Ticks are other uninvited guests.  These parasites live in grassy and wooded areas.  They will get a lift on your dog or cat, have a meal and fall off again.  They can range in size depending on whether or not they have had a blood meal.  As with fleas and harvest mites, ticks are easily visible and will feed on humans.  Treatment for ticks is available through your veterinary surgeon. 



Tick head magnified 200x



All photos were taken by Animals First Veterinary Hospital

The Facts About Spaying and Neutering

Sad but true – Ireland has a large population of unwanted dogs and cats. Most of these homeless animals end up being destroyed. The procedure is performed humanely, but it is tragic nevertheless. You can help combat this terrible problem by spaying or neutering your pet.  The procedure not only helps control the dog and cat population, but it can also improve your pet’s health and increase its lifespan.   

Did you know that one cat can have an average of five kittens three times a year?  Once the kittens reach maturity, they have kittens of their own, and the cycle repeats itself endlessly. The results of such unrestricted breeding are staggering -- a single cat can have 500,000 descendants in only 7 years!  Likewise, one dog, her puppies, and their puppies can produce more than 60,000 puppies in 6 years.

Both spaying and neutering are surgical procedures that require a general anaesthetic.  The animal is in the hospital just for the day.  Spaying is the removal of the reproductive organs in females, while neutering is the term for males.  Pets should be spayed or neutered at 6 months of age -- before females have their first heat, and before males start wandering after females in heat. 

Spaying female pets eliminates the risk of ovarian and uterine cancers, uterine infections, and greatly decreases the risk of breast cancer.  It also stops females from going into heat, which occurs twice a year in dogs and three or more times a year in cats.  When a female is in heat, unwanted male visitors can become pests. 

Neutering male pets eliminates the risk of testicular cancer, and greatly reduces the risk of prostate enlargement and prostate cancer. Neutered cats will not spray to mark their territory, and they become more affectionate and less likely to roam..

Unfortunately, there are many old wives’ tales concerning spaying and neutering. One such belief is that the procedure will cause your pet to grow fat and lazy.  The truth is, any pet can become a couch potato if over-fed and under-exercised.  Another false belief is that females should have at least one litter before spaying.  In fact, spaying females before their first heat avoids the life-threatening complications that can occur during pregnancy or delivery. It also protects your pet’s health later in life.  And contrary to popular belief, spaying and neutering will not affect a dog’s instinct to protect its home and family. 

Many people think spaying or neutering is too expensive.  However, the cost is small when compared with the benefits.  Having a litter of puppies, for example, can be very costly, especially if the pups or mother suffer health problems.  Treatment of later cancers or uterine infections in the mother can be even more costly. All in all, the cost of surgery is a small price to pay to improve the health of your pet and prevent bringing more unwanted kittens and puppies into the world.

First Aid Kit for Dogs

            Whether you are at home or travelling with your dogs, you should have a basic first aid kit in the event of an emergency.  It is important that you should consult your veterinary surgeon for the correct dosages of medications when you put your kit together and have this written down so if an emergency arises it is there in front of you.

            Use a tool box or large sealed plastic container for your kit.  On the inside of the kit have your details, name and number of someone to contact in case your are incapacitated, your vet’s phone number, drug dosages, and your dogs’ names, weights, ages, and medications they are on, if any.  It is important that you become familiar with the side effects and adverse reactions of all medications in your first aid kit.  Although they are considered to be reasonably safe, a very small percentage of dogs can have a reaction to drugs.

           Always have the number of your veterinary surgeon in your phone, on your refrigerator, and in the glove box of your car.  You never know when you may need it.  In the event of an emergency, it is important to remain calm.  Contact your vet immediately and tend to your pet in a calm and reassuring manor.  A stressed animal can bite, so be careful.

 

Your kit should contain the items below.  You can tailor your kit to suit your needs:

• A lead
• Gauze pads – 10cm x 10cm
• Sterile, non-stick pads
• Conforming gauze bandage
• Vet wrap – 5cm or 7.5 cm
• First aid tape
• Tongue depressors - to make a splint
• Tweezers
• Scissors
• Haemostats – useful for pulling ticks, thorns, splinters, etc.
• Muzzle or thin rope to tie mouth if needed
• Blanket
• Cotton buds and cotton wool
• Eye wash
• Syringes – useful for administering oral medications or flushing out wounds
• Hibiscrub
• Hydrogen peroxide – useful for inducing vomiting
• Rectal thermometer
• Surgical spirits
• Vaseline
• *Antibiotic ointment – used for cuts or skin infections
• *Buffered Aspirin – DO NOT USE IBUPROFEN -  Buffered aspirin is used for pain relief or anti-inflammatory
• *Antihistamine – used for insect bites and allergic reactions
• *Anti-diarrhoeal – used to stop diarrhoea
• Liquid paraffin – used as a laxative
• *Anti-emetic – used to stop vomiting
• *Ear ointment and eye ointment for ear or eye infections.

*Please note that anything in bold print you must contact your veterinary surgeon for the drug to use and the dosage.  If symptoms persist, consult your veterinary surgeon because the problem may be more serious than you realise.

For further enquiries, please phone 045 480478 or email: info@animalsfirst.ie