Pets: Top 10 Toxic Things to Avoid
19 March 2009
by Anai Rhoads
AnaiRhoads.org -- After a review of 400 claims by the Veterinary Pet Insurance Company (VPI), a food and plant list was compiled to warn pet owners of their dangers.
Grapes and raisins topped the list, followed by mushrooms, marijuana, lilies, walnuts, onions, sago palm, macademia nuts, azalea and hydrangea plants.
Even ingesting trace amounts of grapes/raisins can lead to acute renal failure and can be lethal to pets. Symptoms to look for are anorexia, depression, lethargy, vomiting, diarrhea and abdominal pain. The treatment involves inducing vomiting and/or administration of intravenous fluids.
Although experts are unsure of why grapes/raisins have such an effect on animals, they are concluding that the skins may have toxic elements. Research is slow in deciphering the actual cause.
In 2008, the average amount claimed for plant poisoning was $427.00.
"Almost all plant poisonings in pets can be prevented, but prevention depends on knowledge, thus it is important for pet owners to become familiar with which items can be toxic if ingested," said Dr. Carol McConnell, vice president and chief veterinary medical officer for VPI.
"Prevention is a simple matter of keeping these hazards out of a pet's environment. To avoid plant poisonings, try not to give a dog table scraps that contain raisins, onions or nuts, and make sure that a new pet is introduced to a backyard free of sago palms, wild mushrooms or other toxic plants."
The common variety of backyard mushrooms, Amanita phalloides, are dangerous to our pets as well. Scanning grassy areas where your pets often walk/play can minimise their exposure to these plants.
Mushrooms are toxic and can disrupt digestive and liver function. Carefully pull out the mushrooms and dig out the roots when you spot one. The symptoms to look out for are excessive salivation, signs of dehydration, vomiting, diarrhea, and liver failure.
Other things to avoid around your pet include delphinium, crocus bulbs, hemlock, rhododendrons, gladiolus, tea tree oil, poison ivy, nightshade, tobacco, poinsettia, oleander, brunfelsia, hibiscus, almonds, scarlet pimpernel, potpourri and kalanchoe. Fertilisers are also a known problem for animals, causing organophosphate poisoning.
In addition, "raw food disease" is a serious problem.
The raw food diet is a potential hazard for animals because it can lead to a deadly infection from the rickettsial organism, Neorickettsia helminthoeca. Although the rickettsial organism does not directly infect the dog – it is carried by a parasite called a trematode (flatworm) called Nanophyteus salmincola.
Foods that didn't make VPI's list, that should have, are all products containing xylitol, coffee and avocado.
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