Are you planning to host a barbeque this January? If so, we recommend checking out these pet-related safety reminders. Feed your pet the wrong food; their well-being could be at ‘steak’. (Yes, when it comes to making BBQ puns, we are silly sausages!)
Here’s how to ensure that your inquisitive dog or cat stays safe at your next event:
Lean meats only
While offering your dog a juicy sausage or rissole is tempting, you must resist the urge. Avoid feeding your pets fatty meals as they can trigger pancreatitis (pancreas inflammation) in some pets.
Pancreatitis causes symptoms such as belly pain, vomiting, diarrhoea, and dehydration and usually requires veterinary treatment. For moderate to severe cases, this can necessitate several days of hospitalisation for intravenous fluids, anti-nausea medications and pain relief.
For this reason, you should also dispose of fatty drippings in an area your pet can’t access.
No kebab skewers
Whilst we all like to think that our pet is shrewd enough to neatly nibble the meat of a kebab skewer and leave the stick, this is unfortunately not always the case (we’re looking at you, Labradors!)
More than a few pets have required emergency surgery to retrieve swallowed kebab skewers and repair the associated damage to their insides. Things can become even more severe (and expensive) if the sharp stick penetrates the oesophagus or gut and migrates through other parts of the body!
No cooked bones
Cooked bones become brittle and are much more likely to fragment into sharp shards when chewed. If swallowed, these sharp pieces can cause painful injuries to your pet’s mouth or throat.
Large volumes of bone can also bank up in the large bowel, causing significant constipation that requires treatment under anaesthesia to relieve.
No cooked onions
Consuming as little as 5-15g of onion can cause severe symptoms of toxicity in pets.
It’s best to ensure cooked onions (and any meals containing onions) are kept well out of canine or feline reach.
Contact our veterinary team with any other questions or concerns about pet safety throughout the summer. We’re always happy to have a barbe-“Q-&-A” with you!