Ten Things In Your Home Right Now That Can Kill Your Dog
Dogs by nature are very curious about everything that they can sniff or get their face into. They are also by nature scavengers, which mean they can and do get into and eat just about anything you, leave lying around. They can even get into the many toxic substances found in most homes that can and do kill dogs. Here is a summary of the ten most common household substances that are known to be lethal to your dog.
Antifreeze - Antifreeze kills many pets each year because it smells and tastes sweet to your dog. Ethylene glycol the ingredient in antifreeze is toxic and each winter, many animals are killed when they lick it.
Chocolate - This is something that most dog owners think nothing of having in the home and some even offer it to the dog as a treat when they themselves are eating it not knowing that it can kill the dog. It does take a large amount of chocolate to actually kill most dogs, when you get a dog used to the smell and taste of it and you leave it around; the dog can and will get into a whole bag of chocolates and then you may have a problem on your hands. A dog getting into a large store of chocolates especially around the holidays when chocolates are more likely to be left out like at Christmas, Valentine’s Day and Easter and you have a recipe for danger.
Bleach - Most kitchens and laundry rooms have bleach products sitting around in cupboards or on low shelves like under sinks. Household bleach is toxic to dogs. Always keep all products that contain bleach out of the reach of your dog.
Tylenol - It only takes as little as two regular strength Tylenol tablets to kill a small dog. Dogs do not have the liver enzymes to break down acetaminophen (Tylenol).
Watch Batteries - These are plentiful around a house and can be left out without a thought to the fact that if your dog explores the battery and eats it there can be a potentially fatal ulceration in the stomach within 12 hours of the dog ingesting the battery. ALL alkaline batteries are toxic to dogs!
Moth Balls - Mothballs contain an insecticide that can cause central nervous system excitement and also seizures in a dog. After the mothballs are metabolized, they can lead to liver failure.
Fabric Softeners and other laundry detergents - All kinds of household detergents and fabric softeners are toxic to dogs. Fabric softeners are highly toxic and can cause lethargy, vomiting, muscle weakness and even coma.
Mouthwash - Most mouthwashes contain boric acid, which is another substance that is highly toxic to dogs.
Peach Pits and other fruit seeds are toxic to dogs, so be sure to throw away any seeds or pits after eating the fruit in a container that is dog-proof.
Household Plants - There are many common and popular houseplants that are highly toxic to dogs including poinsettias, ferns, aloe, ivy, lilies, and devil's ivy. Many of these plants are fatal if a dog ingests them.
Knowing what can harm our dogs is half the battle to keeping them safe. The other half of the battle is to keep these substances out of the reach of dogs at all times; not just when we are storing them, but when we are using them too. It is too easy to get distracted and forget to put a household substance away. We must be diligent in recognizing the dangers to our dogs and to put a list of the toxic substances up in plain sight where we can be reminded on a daily basis to always be careful with these items for the safety of our beloved dogs.
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