With the entire family cooped up indoors in close quarters, you’d think that keeping an eye on everyone, and preventing mischief and mayhem, would be much easier. Unfortunately, you’re likely stressed to the max, and your nerves are frazzled, which can allow simple mistakes in the blink of an eye. Plus, you may be lured by false promises of the kids “helping” watch your pet while you are baking, creating, gardening, or working on your many home fixing projects. The Liberty Veterinary Hospital team is coming to your rescue, though, with helpful tips on avoiding common pet emergencies that can occur while you’re quarantined. Here are the three catastrophes that families are most frequently encountering, while isolated at home during the COVID-19 pandemic.
#1: Drooling dogs underfoot in the kitchen while you’re baking and cooking
Restaurants are closed, or offering only carryout options, so you are now your family’s main chef. For every snack time, half-eaten lunch, baking fiasco, or dropped dinner, you can usually find your pet lurking nearby, hoping for a stolen bite. So, whether you are concocting a trail mix for the kids from snack bag remnants, throwing together pretzels, M&Ms, cereal, and nuts, or setting up a personal pizza-making station with homemade dough, keep a close eye on your furry pal, because many foods are toxic to pets.
Cats tend to have more discerning palates than dogs, and usually avoid foods that can be toxic. But, if you are dishing out the following ingredients for snacks, baking, or cooking, keep all items well away from your pet:
- Chocolate
- Grapes and raisins
- Avocados
- Macadamia nuts
- Onions
- Garlic
- Unbaked yeast dough
- Xylitol-sweetened foods
Your mind may be occupied with creating an edible meal from your dwindling quarantine supplies, but you must ensure your furry pal can’t snatch an unhealthy, potentially harmful, snack. If you’d like to share your newfound baking skills acquired while in quarantine, search for pet-friendly recipes.
#2: Allowing your pet to lend a paw with home improvement and gardening projects
When nailing together boards, for example, having someone else hold the nail in place—especially if your hand-eye coordination is not great—is a huge help. But, keep your four-legged friend well out of harm’s way when tackling those home improvement projects that have been on your to-do list for months, because her helping paw can be more harmful than helpful. Whether you’re simply patching a hole in the wall, or undertaking a complete room renovation, ensure your pet is not around the following items:
- Power tools
- Extension cords
- Nails and screws
- Paint
- Adhesives
- Small parts, such as nuts, washers, O-rings
If you’re taking on a large project, there’s a good chance all the necessities will create a messy work area, which means more opportunities for your pet to find trouble. While you’re grappling with home improvement projects, occupy your pet with a frozen, stuffed Kong in another, safer, area.
#3: Your pet becoming the center of your kids’ arts and crafts masterpiece
Your stuck-at-home kids are probably going stir crazy, and may be driving you a bit crazy, as well. To keep them occupied, you may suggest that they create beautiful masterpieces out of their huge hoard of arts and crafts supplies. They comply, but leave behind a disaster of dripping glue, dirty paintbrushes, broken popsicle sticks, string, and fuzzy pipe cleaners—and, you’re actually not sure what they have created. While cleaning up the mess, your pet emerges from under the table, fur caked with glue. Various craft supplies dot the drying glue, and you hope your pet was smart enough to avoid grooming the sticky mess off her fur. While many glue brands are non-toxic, some can cause a serious issue for pets who ingest them. Gorilla Glue, for example, is a powerful adhesive that can form an immovable ball in your pet’s stomach, and will likely require emergency surgical removal. Other craft supplies also often need surgical removal if swallowed, to prevent an intestinal obstruction or perforation. If you’re unsure about the supplies your children will use to create their masterpiece, keep your pet safe from harm by blocking access to the kids’ “studio.”
Although many businesses are closed to flatten the curve during the COVID-19, Liberty Veterinary Hospital remains open, ready to provide essential services to your pet. However, as the situation rapidly changes, our hours and available services may change, to reflect the current circumstances, so stay in touch by following our Facebook page, or give us a call before heading to our hospital.
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