Site Accessibility Features: Skip to page menus

Reset Website Accessibility

;

 Site Menus Section  Skip to page content 
    


 New Clients  Our Surgeries
 Take A Tour – Torquay
 Take A Tour – Paignton
 Make an Appointment
 Registration Form
 Testimonials
 About Us  Our Team
 Our Community
 News
 Sustainability
 Work With Us
 Services  Cat Friendly
 Complete Care Club
 Consultations and Diagnostics
 Dentistry
 Dog behaviour
 Emergency Service
 Home Visits
 Keyhole surgery
 Laser and rehabilitation treatments
 Neutering
 Nurse Clinics
 Nutrition
 Preventative Care
 Puppies and Kittens
 Rabbits, rodents, reptiles and avians
 Regenerative Medicine
 Surgery
 Saying Goodbye
 Senior Pet Care
 Pet Health  News and Pet Health Articles
 Pet Health Library
 Fact Sheets
 How-To Videos
 Pet Health Checker
   Anaesthesia in dogs and cats
 Anaesthesia in exotic pets
 Brucella Canis Information
 Complete Care Club
 Fact Sheets
 News and Pet Health Articles
 Pet Insurance
 Pre-operative Information
 Prescriptions
 Price List
 Terms and Conditions of Business
 Links
 Cookie Policy
 Privacy
 Contact  Emergency Service
 Greenbay Vets – Torquay
 Greenbay Vets – Paignton
 Insurance Claim Notification
 Order Food/Medications
 Registration Form
 Make an Appointment

Pet poisons awareness month

By greenbayvets March 17, 2025 Greenbay Vet News No Comments

March is Pet Poisons Awareness Month. We know you love your pets and we want to help you keep them safe, so we have compiled a list of the common dangers they can face within the home and garden.

If your pet has eaten something they shouldn’t please phone us immediately for advice, because the quicker we treat the greater the chance of success. In some cases, we can attempt to make the patient vomit, but this only works well within the first hour. Please keep hold of any packaging, so we can identify the ingredients in anything that has been eaten.

LILLIES – THE WHOLE PLANT is toxic to cats if eaten/licked off fur. This is extremely serious in cats and can cause untreatable kidney failure. Death is possible. Prevent any licking/ wash the coat if the fur is contaminated.
GRAPES/RAISINS/CURRANTS/SULTANAS – can cause untreatable kidney failure in some dogs, even a small quantity can be dangerous in susceptible individuals.
CHOCOLATE – in dogs and cats it can cause vomiting, diarrhoea, irregular heart rhythms and seizures; dark chocolate is more toxic than milk and white.
ONIONS/LEEKS/GARLIC/SHALLOT – can cause damage to dogs red blood cells and the anaemia can be so severe a blood transfusion can be needed. Please consider onion can be added to many products e.g. gravy/soup that you might give as a treat.
ANTIFREEZE- (Ethylene Glycol) – found in engine coolant and screen-wash. Dangerous to pets and humans, sadly ingestion is not often known about until too late when untreatable kidney failure occurs. Prevent access to where it is stored and wash away spillages.
RAT POISON – dangerous to all pets, causes serious internal bleeding and neurological signs.
XYLITOL – a sweetener and can cause blood sugar levels to drop causing a condition like a diabetic ‘hypo’ with collapse and seizures. It can be found in many products such as some chewing gums and sweets.
MOULDY FOOD – mycotoxins poison the central nervous system and can cause seizures.
HUMAN MEDICATIONS – don’t give these to your pets unless prescribed by a vet. Paracetamol, for example, is extremely toxic to cats.
SLUG PELLETS (Metaldehyde)
INSECTICIDES – e.g. permethrin can be toxic to cats and is contained in some dog flea products that can be bought in pet shops.

Less common dangers:

Nicotine (e.g. vapes)
Household chemicals, weedkillers
Batteries
Fungi (mushrooms/toadstools)
Adder bites
Blue green algae
Bulbs and various plants – for more information check out these useful websites by Cats Protection and Dogs Trust.