Drop it!
What pets shouldn't eat WASHINGTON, D.C. — From chocolates to paintballs to lilies, there are all sorts of things curious canines and foraging felines have no business eating. Add to the mix the recent scare associated with a nationwide pet food recall, and pet owners have their hands full making sure their pets don't get sick from something they shouldn't have consumed.
National expert Stan Casteel, DVM, will address a variety of toxins that can make a pet sick during a daylong presentation at the American Veterinary Medical Association's 144th Annual Convention in Washington, D.C., July 14 - July 18. Dr. Casteel will speak during six presentations on Saturday, July 14. His topics range from "Plants That Poison" to "Some Dogs & Cats Never Learn." Each presentation will provide important information for both veterinarians and pet owners.
With the pet food recall still fresh in the public's mind, and with many questions still unanswered as to exactly how many animals were affected and why, Dr. Casteel says the pet food recall and how it affected veterinarians and pet owners remains a timely topic worthy of addressing.
"This was a nationwide trend, and veterinarians from all over the country were getting calls regarding hundreds of brands of pet foods," said Dr. Casteel, a professor of veterinary pathobiology at the University of Missouri College of Veterinary Medicine. "It is an international issue of primary importance, and it is important to talk about what we have learned."
Well before the pet food recall, generations of veterinarians and pet owners dealt with curious pets getting into trouble right in their own backyard.
"From household items ... to pets getting into the medicine cabinet, we've seen it all," Dr. Casteel says. "Some of the same intoxications we have been seeing for decades we still see fairly frequently today. It is quite significant. No matter what the cause, to veterinarians, they have a poisoned animal, so it's very significant to them and to the pet owner."
Dr. Casteel will cover everything from common household food items like chocolate to the more bizarre – like paintballs, which can cause illness in a dog within an hour of ingestion.
"We live in a toxic world, and toxic materials are sometimes ingested under the most unusual of circumstances," says Dr. Casteel. "The seemingly harmless is sometimes harmful."
Well-meaning pet owners, Dr. Casteel says, need continuous education about toxic items and poisonings.
He goes on to say, "In spite of all the warnings and reports of pet poisoning, the same ... substances find a way to enter the gastrointestinal tract of the curious."
###
The AVMA, founded in 1863, is one of the oldest and largest veterinary medical organizations in the world. More than 75,000 member veterinarians are engaged in a wide variety of professional activities. AVMA members are dedicated to advancing the science and art of veterinary medicine including its relationship to public health and agriculture. Visit the AVMA Web site at www.avma.org to learn more about veterinary medicine and animal care and to access up-to-date information on the association's issues, policies and activities.
|
