Everywhere you look on the weekends you see people digging, planting and puttering in their gardens and lawns. While they may make for a pretty panorama, not every product or plant that goes in the garden is good for your pets.
According to the American Society for the Prevention of Cruelty to Animals Animal Control Center, experts field thousands of calls about pets that have had potentially hazardous contact with insecticides, weed killer and pet-toxic plants.
The best way to insure you aren’t potentially putting your pet in danger is to do a little research before you begin your lawn and garden projects, says Dr. Reid P. Groman, critical care specialist at Veterinary Specialty Center of Delaware.
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“Do your due diligence,” Groman said. Here are some things to consider:
Cocoa mulch
Cocoa mulch has become increasing popular for landscaping the past few years. It’s made from cocoa bean shells, which gives it that enticing chocolate aroma people seem to love. And that’s just what attracts your dog to it.
Cocoa mulch contains caffeine and theobromine, the same ingredient that causes chocolate toxicity in dogs. It is not as toxic as baking chocolate but, depending on the size of the dog, how much it ingests and how much theobromine is in the mulch, it can cause vomiting, diarrhea, hyperactivity, muscle termers and elevated heart rate. In severe cases a dog can have seizures. It can be fatal.
If you know your dog has eaten cocoa mulch, call your vet right away.
Groman advises watering the mulch as soon as you put it down to help prevent ingestion. “Watering it well forms a crust on the mulch and makes it harder to eat and less palatable,” he said.
The ASPCA recommends considering less-toxic alternatives, such as shredded pine, cedar or hemlock bark, but always supervise curious canines in yards where mulch is spread.
Plants
The plant that pops up most often when looking for toxic effects on pets is the sago palm, which is popular for gardens and patios. The entire plant is toxic – the leaves, nuts and seeds. Ingestion can cause vomiting, bloody diarrhea and gastric ulcers.
“The most severe problem we see is liver failure that can be irreversible,” Groman said. “It carries a more guarded prognosis, especially if they go into liver failure.”
Other plants that can sicken pets include alocasia, aloe, amaryllis and African daises. Check out aspca.org for a more comprehensive list.
Compost
Going green with a compost heap is great for Mother Earth, but not so much for your pets.
“If you are trying to do the right thing by the environment you need to be careful that the pets do not get into,” Groman said. “The overwhelming number of dogs won’t get sick, but when different plant matter decomposes there are mycotoxins that grow from moldy food.”
If your pet becomes ill from eating compost or garbage, you’ll know it within 30 minutes, Groman said. Symptoms include hyperactivity, panting and drooling. Your pet likely will end up staying at the vet for several days receiving supportive care until it improves. There is no cure.
Also, do not dump grease from your barbecue or kitchen in your yard.
“Dogs love it, but it makes them sick, and they can get pancreatitis,” Groman said.
Insecticides/fertilizers
While most insecticides are seldom toxic in small doses, snail bait, which contains metaldehyde, is extremely dangerous. Other dangerous products include fly bait with methomyl, systemic insecticides with disyston or disulfoton, mole or gopher bait with zinc phosphide and most forms of rat poisons.
If you’re planting roses or other plants that require bone meal or any other meal-based fertilizer, make sure your pets can’t get to it. When they ingest it, it will become solid in their gastric system, which requires a trip to the vet immediately.
Read all the labels on fertilizers and pesticides before you purchase them. If you have any concerns, call your vet or visit aspca.org.
Groman suggests applying chemicals to your lawn before a soaking rain or watering your lawn thoroughly before you allow your pets to walk on it. Consider keeping them off the lawn for a couple of days.
If you spot any symptoms of illness, call your veterinarian immediately, Groman said. Also, keep all packages and other information for any product or plant you place in your yard indefinitely.
If you cannot reach your vet, call the ASPCA hotline, (888) 426-4435. There is a $65 consulting fee, but that call could save your pet’s life.
Manny got his surgery
Recently, I wrote about what great pets greyhounds make and a fundraiser for Manny, whose leg was broken racing. Gail Rys, vice president and foster coordinator for Greyhound Pets of America – Delaware Chapter, emailed me to say Manny had his surgery and is doing well. His baby-blue cast should come off next week.
The rescue is still raising funds. Donations can be sent to 701 Cambridge Drive, Newark, DE 19711.
Going wild about baby animals
Rys also let me know that the recent column on leaving alone wildlife babies was a hit with her granddaughter, who took it to her preschool class and engaged her classmates in a discussion about it.
I also got a sweet email from a reader whose 5-year-old grandson found a nest of baby bunnies and literally stood over the nest, reading the advice in Delaware Pets from experts with the statewide Delaware Council of Wildlife Rehabilitators Educators about how to observe, but not interfere, with the bunnies. Can I tell you how much I love that?
Pleased to help
When I toured the new Gibney’s Doggie Kingdom at Faithful Friends Animal Society last week, I noticed Soggy Doggy mats everywhere. I wrote about them and other products I had tested shortly before Christmas. Turns out board member Jill Cantera, who directed the Faithful Friends renovation project, read that column and contacted Joanna Rein, who invented the water-absorbing mats, about buying some for the shelter. Rein responded by giving the shelter a wholesale price.
This column and section is sponsored by Concord Pet Foods Supplies. www.concordPetFoods.com.
Delaware Pets is written by animal-lover Deb Lucas. Email her you news, events, column ideas and the results of column topics to dlucas@delaweareonline.com or call her at (302) 324-2852.
Pet-related events
- Delaware Humane Association will hold a Cat and Kitten Adopt-a-Thon 10 a.m. to 2 p.m. Saturday at Concord Pet Foods and Supplies at the Shoppes of Graylyn, 1722 Marsh Road in Wilmington. Same-day adoptions of cats are available for qualified applicants. dehumane.org/adoptions
- Until Saturday, qualified adopters at the Delaware Humane Association will be eligible to pay reduced adoption fees for all black or mostly black animals they adopt. Dogs 7 months and older can be adopted for $50 and cats of any age can be adopted for $20. dehumane.org/adoptus
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