ASPCA Animal Poison Control Center
Each year, the ASPCA Animal Poison Control Center receives tens of thousands of calls involving animal exposures to potentially poisonous substances, many times with devastating consequences. With this in mind, we've decided to include a section on Poison Control with articles in our library CHECK OUT SECTION which can be downloaded for your personal use.
Experts at Animal Poison Control Center tell us that some common examples of human medications and indoor/outdoor commercial products which can be potentially lethal to pets, even in small doses, include:
COMMON INDOOR – OUTDOOR PET HAZARDS
Q. What are the most common household items I should watch out for?
A. Indoor – Outdoor Products containing harsh chemicals are no surprise in terms of pet hazards but, a few other common household hazards, like mothballs and fabric softener sheets, might surprise you.
Fabric Softener Sheets
Mothballs
Post-1982 Pennies (due to high concentration of zinc)
Rat & Mouse Bait
COLD WEATHER HAZARDS
Antifreeze
Liquid Potpourri
Ice Melting Products
WARN WEATHER HAZARDS
Animal toxins—toads, insects, spiders, snakes and scorpions
Blue-green algae in ponds
Citronella candles
Cocoa mulch
Compost piles
Swimming-pool treatment supplies
Fly baits containing methomyl
LEAD, ZINC AND MERCURY - Lead is especially pernicious, and pets are exposed to it through many sources, including consumer products, paint chips, linoleum, and lead dust produced when surfaces in older homes are scraped or sanded.
FOOD/DRUG
Q. What are the most common food hazards I should be aware of?
Alcoholic beverages
Avocado
Coffee (all forms)
Fatty foods
Macadamia nuts
Moldy or spoiled foods
Onions, onion powder
Raisins and grapes
Salt
Yeast dough
Garlic
Products sweetened with xylitol
Chocolate (all forms)
NOTE:
Typically, the darker the chocolate, the higher the potential for clinical problems from methylxanthine poisoning. White chocolate has the lowest methylxanthine content, while baking chocolate contains the highest.
As little as 20 ounces of milk chocolate—or only two ounces of baking chocolate—can cause serious problems in a 10-pound dog. While white chocolate may not have the same potential as darker forms to cause a methylxanthine poisoning, the high fat content of lighter chocolates could still lead to vomiting and diarrhea, as well as the possible development of life-threatening pancreatitis, an inflammatory condition of the pancreas.
"PEOPLE" Medication
Pain killers
Cold medicines
Anti-cancer drugs
Antidepressants
Vitamins
Diet Pills
Pet Safe Landscaping & Gardening
While gardens and yards are lovely for relaxing, they can also prove dangerous for our animal companions. "Keeping animals safe from accidental poisonings should not end once you've stepped outside," says Dana Farbman, APCC pet
poison prevention expert. "Protecting your pet from potential hazards in your yard is just as critical."
When designing and planting your green space you have to
remember that many popular outdoor flowers & plants, including sago palm, rhododendron and azalea —are highly toxic to cats and dogs.
Sago palm and other members of the Cycad family as well as mushrooms can cause liver failure, while rhododendron, azalea, lily of the valley, oleander, rosebay, foxglove and kalanchoe all affect the heart.
The following is a list of only 16 of the most common poisonous plants.
For a more comprehensive list,
please click the blue button below:
Lilies
Sago Palm
Tulip/Narcissus bulbs
Azalea/Rhododendron
Oleander
Castor Bean
Cyclamen
Kalanchoe
Yew
Amaryllis
Autumn Crocus
Chrysanthemum
English Ivy
Peace Lily (AKA Mauna Loa Peace Lily)
Pothos
Schefflera
Pet Safe Landscaping & Gardening
In addition to those items mentioned above, please read the following for other related outdoor pet health hazards
Insecticides
Like fertilizer, herbicides, insecticide baits, sprays and granules are often necessary to keep our gardens healthy, but their ingredients aren't meant for four-legged consumption. The most dangerous forms of pesticides include snail bait with metaldehyde, fly bait with methomyl, systemic insecticides with the ingredients disyston or disulfoton, mole or gopher bait with zinc phosphide and most forms of rat poisons. Always store pesticides in inaccessible areas
If you do use chemical pesticides, restrict your pet’s access to the yard immediately after applying them. They are most dangerous when still wet. It takes a few hours for pesticides to dry in the sun and be absorbed by
plants and soil, Tegzes says. To be on the safe side, wait 24 hours before letting your pet back into the yard.
Slug & Snail Bait
This substances is highly attractive to dogs, but it causes tremors and seizures that can be severe & becomes life-threatening within minutes to hours after pets have eaten it.
Compost
Food and garden waste make excellent additions to garden soil, but depending on what you're tossing in the compost bin, they can also pose problems for our pets. Coffee, moldy food and certain types of fruit and vegetables
are toxic to dogs and cats
Fleas and Ticks
Since fleas and ticks lurk in tall brush and grasses, it's important to keep those lawns mowed and trim. Fleas can cause excessive scratching, hair loss, scabs, hot spots and tapeworms as well as anemia from blood loss in both cats
and dogs. Ticks can cause similar effects and lead to a variety of complications from tick-borne diseases such as Lyme disease, Rocky Mountain spotted fever and Babesia.
Garden Tools
Unattended garden tools may seem like no big deal, but rakes, tillers, hoes and trowels can be hazardous to pets and cause trauma to paws, noses or other parts of a curious pet's body. Rusty, sharp tools caked in dirt may also pose
a risk for tetanus if they puncture skin. While cats don't appear to be as susceptible as dogs to tetanus, care should be taken by storing all unused tools in a safe area, not haphazardly strewn on the ground.
