As the holiday season approaches, vets and vet clinic staff play a crucial role in educating pet owners about the risks associated with festive treats and decorations. During this time, there has been a notable rise in cases related to toxic ingestion in pets, particularly from foods and items commonly found in households celebrating the festive season.
To help you promote pet safety during the holidays, we suggest adding the following information to your clinic's website and regular communications with clients:
Toxic foods for pets
- Chocolate: What renders chocolate harmful to dogs is the cocoa content, which contains a chemical known as theobromine. Unlike humans, dogs lack the ability to metabolize this chemical efficiently. This slower metabolic process can lead to severe and potentially harmful effects on their bodies. 🍫
- Gravy and Fatty Foods: High in fats and often containing toxic ingredients like onions. 🧈
- Stuffing: Contains onions and garlic, harmful to dogs. 🥘
- Mince Pies and Puddings: Contain ingredients like raisins and alcohol that are toxic to dogs. 🥧
Safety precautions for clients to consider
- Alcohol and Food: Advise clients to keep festive foods and alcoholic beverages out of pets’ reach. 🍷
- Decorations: Warn about the dangers of Christmas lights and tree needles, especially to curious pets. 🎄
- Fireworks: Suggest ways to keep pets secure and calm during fireworks displays. 🧨
- Holiday Plants: Educate about potentially toxic plants like poinsettias and lilies. 🎍
- Prescriptions: Remind clients to refill their pet's prescriptions ahead of time to avoid holiday closure. 🩺
Feel free to copy and paste the list above to enhance awareness and help keep all pets safe and healthy during this festive time.
Season’s greetings and a commitment to service from AIV Vet
As we draw closer to the end of another year, all of us at AIV Vet extend our warmest season greetings to the veterinary community. During this festive season, we remain dedicated to supporting you, the veterinarians and veterinary clinic managers, who tirelessly work to ensure the health and well-being of our beloved pets.
As we reflect on the year and look forward to 2024, we want to reiterate our commitment to providing exceptional support and services to the veterinary community. AIV Vet, a division of AIV, Inc., has been a trusted partner in veterinary equipment support since 1983. Our journey, which began with servicing hospital dialysis machines, has evolved to encompass the acute care and veterinary sectors.
Located just outside Baltimore, MD, and proudly ISO 13485:2016 certified, our mission is to ensure that veterinary clinics are equipped to offer the best possible care. We support over 1,000 veterinary clinics across the nation with specialized repair services and top-quality infusion pumps, both new and patient-ready used, that meet the highest performance standards.
Our expertise in the repair and maintenance of infusion pumps is complemented by a wide range of essential accessories like power cords, AC adapters, and our in-house manufactured IVetMATE IV fluid warmer and PowerMATE® relocation power solutions. We are committed to enhancing the longevity and performance of your medical equipment, and supporting your internal risk management programs with reliable, cost-effective solutions.
As the holiday season unfolds, we encourage you to share important pet safety information with your clients to ensure a joyous and safe time for all. Here’s to a festive season filled with warmth, joy, and the continued health and happiness of the pets under your care.
Happy Holidays and a Prosperous New Year from your friends at AIV Vet! 🎅🎇🍭
Source:
Kettle, E. (2022, December 22). Vets warn to not feed your dog toxic festive treats. The Bolton News.
Ian Robinson, The News-Star. (2021, December 15). Protect your pets: How to prevent a trip to the vet during the holidays. Monroe News-Star.