Pet Post Issue 53 - Salina Animal Shelter

KEEP YOUR PETS SAFE
FROM WEATHER HAZARDS
Make sure your pet sleeps away from drafts, preferably in a pet
bed. A dry, elevated doghouse should be provided for dogs
when they are outdoors. The house should be small enough to
keep your dog warm by trapping the dog’s body heat, but large
enough for the dog to stand up and turn around. Insulation,
including a door flap, carpeting, towels, and facing the house
away from the wind will protect against the cold.
When the temperature dips below 20°F, it’s best to keep all
dogs indoors, even if a doghouse is provided. Shorthaired
dogs, cats, and puppies should be kept indoors at 40°F or
below.
Make sure your dog or cat always wears an appropriately
fitting collar and an ID tag with your current address and phone
number.
In fact, to protect your pets from the dangers of inclement
weather and to prevent them from straying far from home, the
Humane Society of the United State recommends that you keep
your pets, including cats, indoors. Unless your pet has
adequate shelter and your supervision, living outdoors can be
hazardous for your pet.
Compare the amount of exercise your dog receives during the
colder months to that received during the warmer months. If
your dog is indoors more during the cold months, he’s probably
getting less exercise and may need less food. However, if your
pet is outside often in the winter months, he may need more
food to provide the calories necessary to produce more body
heat.
Regularly check your pet’s water to make sure it is not frozen.
When your pet is outside, make sure there is plenty of fresh
drinking water available. Ice and snow do not provide enough
liquid for an animal. Your pets can’t burn calories without a
fresh supply of water, and if they can’t burn calories, they will
get cold.
In their search to keep warm outdoors, cats may refuge next to
a warm car engine or tire. To alert an animal who may be in
your vehicle, slap the hood before starting your car.
Keep your pet’s coat well groomed during the winter. Matted
fur won’t properly protect your pet from the cold.
Antifreeze tastes sweet to pets but is poisonous if consumed. If
your pet ingests any amount of antifreeze, contact your
veterinarian immediately. Check your car for seepage, too.
When adding antifreeze, clean up any spills and be sure to keep
this substance out of your pet’s reach. Antifreeze and coolants
that are essentially nontoxic are available at many auto supply
stores.
Ice-melting chemicals can irritate and burn the pads of your
pet’s feet. Do not allow your pet to lick his feet after he has
walked outdoors. The chemicals may burn his mouth and
cause serious problems if ingested. When your pet comes in
from the cold, use a damp towel to wipe off his feet and
underside.
Remove snow piled high next to your fence. It can provide a
boost for your dog to jump over.
SHE IS THE MOST
TREASURED POSSESSION
IN MY LIFE
AND I GOT HER AT THE
SALINA ANIMAL SHELTER
Dogs feel very strongly that they should always go with you in
the car, in case the need should arise for them to bark violently
at nothing right in your ear.
Amrose Bierce
Dog Facts:
1. Cancer-causing agents can be found in a dog’s hair and
urine for months after being around secondhand smoke.
2. Dogs whose owners smoke are twice as likely to develop
cancer. Long-nosed dogs tend to get nasal and sinus
cancer, while short-nosed dogs tend to get lung cancer.
Fish Facts:
1. Smoke from burning tobacco can settle into home
aquariums. Many of the poisons in second-hand smoke,
including nicotine and ammonia, are highly toxic to
goldfish.
2. Tobacco under the fingernails or nicotine-stained fingers
can also pollute aquarium water and poison your goldfish.
Cat Facts:
1. Secondhand smoke gets on a cat’s fur. When a cat cleans
itself, it gets a large dose of chemicals in the smoke.
2. Cats that are exposed to secondhand smoke are three times
as likely to develop lymphoma, a deadly cancer.
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