What is in the purse?
Did you know that your purse could poison your pet?
Well, it’s not exactly your purse but rather the items that you carry in it! Read on to learn about the poisons in your purse and how to recognize the signs and symptoms of poisoning. After reading this, you might really want to reconsider where you leave your purse.
Sugarless Gum and Breath Mints
Your quest for fresh breath may be detrimental to your dog. Most sugarless gums contain a sweetener, xylitol, which is poisonous to dogs. Xylitol is also in some mints, vitamins, toothpastes, and mouthwash. If your dog ingests even a small amount of xylitol, it may result in death. Xylitol can cause blood sugar to increase. Also, when large amounts of xylitol are ingested, liver failure may result.
Medication
Do you carry a pill box in your purse? A pill box may look and sound like a toy to a curious dog but human medication can cause your pet serious harm. Many pets are poisoned by aspirin, anti-inflammatories, and anti-depressants. In fact, of all pet poisonings by human medication, antidepressants are the biggest culprit!! Antidepressants can cause your dog to have neurological issues such as sedation, coordination issues, tremors and seizures!!
Asthma Inhalers
If you have asthma, your inhaler could save your life but if you’re not careful, it could be the cause of acute poisoning in your pet. Did you know that an inhaler contains 200 doses of albuterol? If your dog gets ahold of your inhaler and chews it open, he will be on the receiving end of those 200 doses. That exposure could cause vomiting, collapse, agitation, heart arrhythmia or even death!
Nicotine
It may take many years for the negative effects of nicotine to impact your life but, Fido is not so lucky. If your dog is small, all it takes is three cigarettes and his life could be over. Nicotine is toxic and may cause elevated heart and respiratory rates, uncontrolled urination and/or defecation, paralysis, seizures, tremors or death.
Hand Sanitizer
Those nifty bottles of hand sanitizer are quite convenient and can keep you germ free when you’re not in proximity to soap and hot water but beware of the effects on your pet. Hand sanitizer is almost 100 percent alcohol! If your dog chews on a bottle of sanitizer, he may as well have taken a shot of hard liquor. It’s that potent! Alcohol poisoning causes blood sugar to drop, coordination issues, drop in body temperature, coma and death.
Be careful where you place your purse. It should always be out of your pet’s reach. If your pet gets his paws on any of the above mentioned items, call your vet or Pet Poison Control at 1-800-213-6680 without delay. It could mean the difference between life or death for your beloved fur pal.
Share this article with your friends and family so they can keep their pets safe too. If you would more information on how to keep your pet safe from household poisons, call Guardian Pet Sitters in The Colony Texas.