Beware the holiday hazards that lurk in your home.
Betsy McFarland’s two counter-sniffing dogs, Maggie and Moxi, feasted on a box of rich chocolates found atop a bedroom dresser one errant night at Christmas time. They ended up at an emergency clinic until 1 a.m. — and McFarland found herself $500 poorer.
“That was truly a wake-up call for us,” says McFarland, of Frederick, Md. She resolved to keep attractive foods and medicines out of reach after a veterinarian induced vomiting and provided activated charcoal to lessen absorption of the toxins. The dogs — Maggie, a Labrador Retriever mix, and Moxi, a Dalmatian mix — returned home healthy in a couple of hours. Quips McFarland, “That ended up being one expensive box of chocolates.”
It’s holiday time, and ho-ho-hold it: Do you know the rundown of holiday hazards that lurk in your home, including seemingly innocuous things like fruitcakes? Some veterinarians extract the oddest objects from canine stomachs this time of year.
Pick up the November 2006 issue of DOG FANCY for the full story.