Keep your pets safe during the holidays

You would like your furry friend to share all the special times with you in your life, including the holidays. But to your pet every day spent with you is a holiday, and he may not be able to appreciate or understand the strange people and noises associated with holiday celebrations.

The holidays should be a happy time for you and your furry friend, not a time for an emergency visit to your veterinarian.

With some advance planning and a little training, you can make things more festive for Fido and Kitty and less stressful for you!

Pets can be very sensitive to changes in their environment and routines. Around the holidays when family members take off from school, houseguests come to stay, or other visitors roll through the house in droves. You need to stick as closely as possible to your pet's routines - regular meal schedules, walks and play sessions.

Feasting on wonderful treats is all part of the fun, but sharing those goodies with your favorite furry family member can be dangerous. Rich, fatty foods, like gravy or grease, can cause problems ranging from stomach upsets to pancreatitis, which is an inflammation of the pancreas resulting in pain, vomiting, and dehydration. Pets with this serious condition often require hospitalization for treatment.

Remember, dogs have an exceptional sense of smell, so keep an eye on the holiday table and secure leftovers and garbage to prevent your pet from foraging among the holiday foods. Turkey bones left over from your holiday dinner can pose a choking hazard for pets.

Be careful when you're baking homemade breads or cookies for the holiday. Uncooked yeast dough can expand and produce gas in the digestive system, causing pain and possible rupture of the stomach or intestines.

Chocolate is especially a problem, because dogs love its flavor. Problems from ingesting chocolate range from diarrhea to seizures and death. Also beware of raisins, grapes, onions, and macadamia nuts, which are all toxic to pets.

If you don't want to leave Fido or kitty out, indulge your pets with a special dog or cat treat stuffed in a food-carrier toy, such as Kong.

There's nothing like a real Christmas tree during the holidays. The pine fragrance is so appealing. Your furry friends think so, too. Christmas trees are considered to be mildly toxic. Fir tree oils can be irritating to the mouth and stomach. Both live and artificial tree needles are sharp and indigestible.

Puppies and kittens may want to jump up on your fresh-smelling tree; after all you've brought the outdoors inside for them. Before decorating your holiday tree try to secure it to the wall or ceiling so it doesn't tip and fall, causing injury to your pet.

Don't use edible ornaments, or cranberry or popcorn strings. Your pet may try to knock the tree down in an attempt to reach them. Your furry friend may enjoy playing with your ornaments that they can reach, so keep ornaments off the lower branches.

All that glitters is not gold. Tinsel is a real temptation to Kitty because it's sparkly and fun to bat around. But ingestion can obstruct your pet's GI tract, and you may end up with a blockage, and a trip to the veterinarian.

Be careful where you place your presents. Ribbons are also attractive to pets, and they may end up ingesting them.

Holly, mistletoe and poinsettia plants are poisonous to pets. Make sure they are kept in places your pet cannot reach.

Candles can be attractive to pets because of their smell. Make sure they are perched on high shelves or tables out of Fido's reach. Never leave a lit candle unsupervised as they are easily knocked over and quickly become a fire hazard.

Nowhere does the average family dog get into so much trouble as at the front door! Guests do have to knock to be known, and Fido loves to door-dash with over-the-top excitement.

If you haven't had time to train for all the comings and goings at the door, it's always good practice to either have your furry friend crated or provided with a quiet place to retreat during the festivities. Cats get overwhelmed and over-stimulated just like dogs and kids. So make sure your furry friend, whether a dog or cat, has his own safe areas with fresh water, a few treats and toys.