Top 10 Cat and Dog Toxins of 2011

In 2011, the ASPCA Animal Poison Control Center, located in Urbana, IL, received more than 165,900 phone calls regarding pets being exposed to toxic substances.  The 10 most common toxic substances pets were exposed to are as follows.

1. Prescription Human Medications: The Animal Poison Control Center reports it received nearly 25,000 calls regarding pets ingesting prescription human medications last year.  ADHD and heart medications were among the most commonly swallowed prescription drugs.

To prevent your pet from swallowing any prescription medication, take your pills in the bathroom or another room containing tile or non-carpeted floor.  This way you can hear it more easily if a pill happens to fall on the floor.  Being aware that a pill has fallen will give you a chance to search for and pick up the medication before your pet has a chance to ingest it.

2. Insecticides: Eleven percent of calls last year concerned pets being exposed to insecticides.  These products included those utilized in the home, on pets, and on the lawn.  The ASPCA reminds pet owners it is essential to read a product's directions before using it around a pet.  Only use products that are safe to use around pets in your home and on your lawn.  Finally, do not use a product specifically made for a dog on a cat or vice versa.

3. Over-the-Counter Human Medications: Over-the-counter human medications are also toxic to pets.  Common over-the-counter medications, such as acetaminophen (found in Tylenol) or ibuprofen, often found in the home, can actually kill your cat or dog if he or she ingests them.  Always check with your veterinarian before you give any type of over-the-counter medication to your furry friend.

4. People/Human Food: As much as you might want to share your food with your furry friend, you must be careful what you feed your pet.  Several human foods can cause severe damage to your cat or dog if he or she eats them.  Chocolate, for instance, may cause diarrhea, vomiting, seizures, and increased heart rate in pets who have ingested it, according to the ASPCA.

You may find a list of common toxic foods to cats in my earlier posts - Toxic Food to Cats Part 1 and Part 2.  Please note that these are NOT complete lists of all the foods toxic to cats.

5. Household Products: The household products ingested were not specified by the Animal Poison Control Center.  Be sure to keep all small items, such as rubber bands, staples, needles, thumb tacks, and so forth put up in containers where pets cannot access them.  These products may cause dangerous intestinal blockages or tares if ingested.  Likewise, keep all string, streamers, tinsel, yarn, thread, etc. out of your furry friend's reach.  These items can also have fatal consequences if ingested.  Finally, keep all chemical cleaners out of your pet's reach.

6. Veterinary Medications: Some chewable pet medications may taste good to your furry friend.  If he or she ingests more than he or she is supposed to at one time, it may result in poisoning.  Be sure to keep your pet's medication out of reach, such as in a secure medicine cabinet in the bathroom, so that he or she cannot gobble all of his or her pills at once.  If your furry friend eats more medication than your vet recommends per dose, call your veterinarian immediately.

7. Rodenticides: Use rodenticides with extreme caution around pets.  Bait to trap mice may be especially attractive to dogs as it is grain based.  According to the ASPCA, ingesting rodenticides may cause kidney failure, internal bleeding, and/or death.

8. Plants: Cats seem to find chewing on plants irresistible.  There are hundreds of plants toxic to cats and dogs.  For instance, lilies can lead to kidney failure and death for cats who ingest them, according to the ASPCA.  You may reference their list of toxic and non-toxic plants here.  You may also view my list of some safe plants to keep around cats if you enjoy having plants in your home.

9. Lawn and Garden Products: According to the ASPCA, lawn and garden fertilizers may be made of bone meal, dried blood, and/or poultry manure, which attract pets.  If you utilize lawn and/or garden products, it is a good idea to only let your pets roam outdoors when you can supervise them.

10. Automotive Products: Antifreeze, brake fluid, and so forth can be fatal if ingested by your furry friend.  Thankfully, the number of automotive product poisonings has decreased as more people choose to keep their cats indoors, according to the ASPCA.

Taking some simple precautions and pet-proofing your home, lawn, and garden can go a long way in preventing your pet from accidentally ingesting a poisonous substance.

If you believe your pet has been exposed to a toxic substance, please call your veterinarian immediately or contact the Animal Poison Control Center 24 hours a day at: 888-426-4435.

Source:

ASPCA: Top 10 Pet Toxins of 2011

Purrs and Prayers

We read on the Cat Blogsphere that many of our furry friends and/or their humans are having a tough time.  We just wanted you all to know that we are purring and praying for you!  Our mommy is praying, too. :)

Healing hugs and purrs on the way to everyone who needs them!

An Award!

Thank you every kitty and everyone who wished Carmine a Happy Birthday!  We appreciate it :) We are so so happy to be a part of such a wonderful and caring cat blogging community!

We were very happy when we learned we received this award from Team Tabby!  Thank you so so much for giving it to us!!  If you haven't seen Team Tabby's blog, please do check it out, it is a wonderful blog :)

Now that we have received the award, we are to:

1. Link back to the blogger who gave it.
2. Paste the award on the blog.
3. Choose 5 bloggers to pass this award to (they must have fewer than 200 followers).
4. Let the recipients know about their nomination by leaving a comment on their blogs.

It was really hard to choose who to give this award to because there are soooo many amazing blogs out there in the cat blogsphere!!  But, we'd like to give this award to the following blogs:

1. Herman's Hideaway 

2. Bengal Business

3. Glogirly

4. Little Cat Feet

5. Homeless Cat Care

If you haven't had a chance to visit these blogs yet, I hope you will now.  They are all very worthy of this award :)

Carmine Throught the Years; Happy Birthday!

Yesterday (Saturday) was Carmine's birthday!!!  He is now 7 years old.  It seems like just yesterday that I was bringing him home as a four-month old kitten!  I thought I'd post some pictures of him in celebration of the occasion :)

As a kitten Carmine used to LOVE sleeping in his litter box!!  I think it must be a kitten thing because I've seen the kittens in the PetSmart adoption center doing it, too.  He grew out of this habit, thankfully :)

This blanket used to be on the back of my couch at all times after I found out how much Carmine adored it.  It was his favorite place to nap for the longest time.

Carmine has always loved keeping his mommy company while she sleeps.  Every morning, he enjoys waking me up, too! He's such a precious boy to wake up to everyday; I'm a lucky mommy, indeed!

Carmine loves to play games with his mommy and her friends!

Mommy, can I have a treat yet?

I like my new toy, Mommy!!

HAPPY BIRTHDAY to my baby Carmine!!!! Mommy and so many other people love you! :)

Carmine's Birthday!

Today (Saturday) was Carmine's 7th birthday!  I think he had a nice day.  He got lots of love and some presents from his mommy. :) I have pictures to post tomorrow/later when I wake up, but I just wanted to post a short note here to let everyone know it was his birthday and that he had a good day!

Happy Birthday to my baby Carmine!!!  Mommy loves you very much <3

Our First Award!!! :)

We received an award! Thank you so so much Andrea and the Celestial Kitties for giving it to us!! We are so honored that you think our blog is great :)

Here are the rules of this award:

1. You must be a follower of my blog.

2. You must link the award back to my blog.

3. You must pass the award on to three other blogs.

We would like to give this award to:

1. Bengal Business

2. Four White Paws

3. Hannah and Lucy

These are some great blogs! If you haven't read them before, we hope you will take a moment to visit all three. :)

Tabby Cat Club

Mommy helped us get into the Tabby Cat Club and we are really excited about it! You can check out our cool new badges on the right. We are looking forward to making some new furriends :)

Thank You!!!

Our mommy is very sleepy, but she didn't want to sleep until we posted a great big THANK YOU to Lars, Odin, and their mom over at Bengal Business for our perfect new blog badge!!! Thank you so so soooo much!! You are wonderful!

You all are welcome to copy/paste the code underadge our blog badge (on the right) to your blog and we'd be happy to do the same if you has a blog badge, too! :)

Loves and purrs,

Milita and Carmine

The Flyer Program: Good Samaritan Pet Center

It's very sad to think about, but sometimes we have to surrender a pet. This could be due to an owner passing away or severe allergies, for instance. If you find yourself in the difficult position of having to surrender a pet and live in the Denver-metro area, you don't have to take your pet to a shelter for him or her to find a new forever home. The Good Samaritan Pet Center offers the flyer program as an alternative to taking your pet to a shelter if you need to find him or her a new home.

The flyer program would be especially good for those who do not need to find a new home for their pets immediately as the main requirement of the program is that you must be able to keep the pet in your home until a new home is found.

You must fill out an application and either submit via the Good Samaritan website or mail in order to be considered for the flyer program. After reviewing your application, someone at the organization will contact you in order to get more information about your pet as well as a photo, both of which will be utilized to create a flyer. Not only will Good Samaritan distribute the flyer to pet-friendly businesses in the Denver-metro area, such as veterinarians, pet stores, and pet hospitals, the organization will also post your pet's photo and information on their website as well as on Adopt-A-Pet.com and Petfinder.com. You will also receive a copy of the flyer of which you may make copies and distribute as well.

The organization requires a $20 donation when you enter into the program. They also suggest asking for a fee for rehoming your pet to ensure the potential owner is serious about and can afford to take care of a pet.

If you need to surrender a pet and are able to keep him or her in your home until you can find a new forever home for your furry friend, I would encourage you to check out the flyer program through Good Samaritan Pet Center. You can find more information by visiting the organization's website. To submit an application to the program, click here.

Please check out our Facebook page :)