Howl-O-Ween Can Be Scary for Pets

Halloween can be tons of fun. What kid doesn’t like dressing up in a costume and getting a sack-full of candy? While fun for us, it can be dangerous for our four-legged friends. Our pets can face many dangers during Halloween; here’s how to make sure your furry little pal doesn’t have a Halloween disaster.

To be sure everyone has a safe and fun-filled Halloween, your pet may be best kept in a quiet area, away from the trick-or-treaters. The little goblins and monsters flocking to your door may frighten your pet, causing him to react in an unpredictable manner. In addition, this will prevent an easily unnoticed escape through a frequently opened door. It’s a good idea to have your pet microchipped or at least have a sturdy collar with an identification tag, just in case of an escape.

If your house is anything like mine around Halloween, there’s candy everywhere. Be very cautious about where the candy is left. Any candy can be a problem for a pet, especially dogs; as cats tend to be a little more choosie about what they eat. Chocolate is a big no-no! Chocolate can contain high amounts of fat and caffeine-like stimulants known as methylxanthines, or more specifically theobromine. If your pet ingests enough chocolate, he could experience vomiting, diarrhea, tremors, seizures, hyperactivity, and even death in severe cases. The darker the chocolate, the greater the risk of problems. Typically, 20 ounces of milk chocolate will cause serious problems with a 10-pound dog. That same dog can only eat two ounces of dark chocolate or baking chocolate. The white chocolates don’t contain a lot of methylxanthine, but do contain lots of fat, which can still land him in the veterinary clinic with vomiting and diarrhea, as well as pancreatitis, a life-threatening inflammatory condition of the pancreas. Pets will often ingest the candy wrapper as well as the candy, which can also cause problems. Chocolate is definitely off-limits and all candy can cause vomiting and diarrhea, so keep the dish available to two-legged critters only.

You’ve probably seen them; the Halloween pet costumes for sale out there. Honestly, I’m not a huge fan of the pet costumes. I know, I know, it's a lot of fun to dress 'em up; they look really cute and make great pictures. And most of the costumes are safe, but please use common sense if you feel your pet needs a costume. Generally, most pets don’t feel too comfortable wearing such silly attire, or any attire at all for that matter. Pets typically don’t like the restriction of a costume. He may object or simply freeze-up when you attempt to put that Dracula cloak on him. If so, you’re probably better off taking a quick picture of him with it on, if you manage to get the costume on him at all, then promptly remove the costume before he decides to rip it to shreds. If he doesn’t seem to mind a costume and you feel he just has to have one, be sure to follow these simple guidelines:

· No ribbons or rubber bands around the neck
· No buttons or small fasteners that he can easily ingest
· Make sure he can safely move around and its not too restrictive
· Make sure the fabric is breathable and doesn’t cause him to overheat; especially if worn during the day for long periods
· Check for any other pieces that could otherwise injure your pet

Okay, so maybe you’ve successfully managed to outfit your pet with his cute, shiny new costume. Now you’re thinking, wouldn’t it be cute to let “Fido” tag along with the kids. Well, it may be cute, but probably not wise. Children often have enough trouble keeping up with their candy and costume during a trick-or-treat outing, so it’s probably not a good idea to let the family dog accompany them. Besides, your pet could easily become frightened and escape.

Lighted Jack-o-lanterns and candles should be kept out of reach of your pet’s paw. One swift wag of the tail or swat of the paw and our curious four-legged friends can easily burn themselves or tip the flame over, causing a disaster. Likewise, other decorations that pets could chew on (fake spider webs, electrical cords, etc.) should also be kept out of reach. Some artificial spider web decorations, especially spray-on and spun fiberglass types can be toxic.


Brandon Veterinary Clinic still has pets up for adoption, see previous post or give us call for details.

Freddy McCrory Memorial Fund

A good friend of mine, Freddy McCrory, recently lost his life in a tragic boating accident. Freddy was a great person, husband, father, friend, and dog trainer. He was 41 years old, had a wife and two beautiful daughters (ages 9 and 3). To read the story of the accident, click here, and here.

For those fortunate enough to know him, Freddy always seemed to know how to make you smile. He never had a bad word to say about anything or anybody, he was just the kind of person that you wanted to have as a friend, but most of all, Freddy loved his family. As a father myself, it breaks my heart to see his wife and children lose their husband and father in this tragedy.

Freddy and his wife, Lydia, were partners in their retriever training business and without Freddy, their source of income is now gone. I want to do what I can to help his family, because I know Lydia and the girls are gonna need some help right now, and I know Freddy would have been there for his friends.

There is a memorial fund already set up at Regions Bank. You can make a donation directly to the Freddy McCrory Memorial Fund at any Regions Bank location, or by mail at:
P.O. Box 222
Eupora, MS. 39744

If you feel that you aren't able to donate much, but still want to contribute, then consider buying a raffle ticket or two for $10 each, all of the proceeds will go directly to the Freddy McCrory Memorial Fund. Times are tough for everyone right now, but imagine losing your spouse and your only source of income. Two young girls are going to be without a father.

We will be raffling a 12 months supply of Advantage Multi to benefit the memorial fund. 100% of the proceeds will go directly to the Freddy McCrory Memorial Fund to help support his family during their time of need. Raffle tickets will be $10 each. You may purchase as many tickets as you would like. Each ticket purchased will get you once chance at 12 doses (1 year supply) of Canine Advantage Multi - Heartworm, Flea, and intestinal parasite prevention (valued at over $200).

Raffle Tickets can be purchased only by mailing your check to:

Freddy McCrory Benefit Raffle
c/o: Brandon Veterinary Clinic
1037 Star Rd.
Brandon, MS. 39042

All Checks should be made payable to: Freddy McCrory Memorial Fund

Drawing to be held on November 3rd

Tickets $10 each

Winner receives 12 doses of Advantage Multi


Details:
By making your check out to the memorial fund, you can be sure that 100% of your raffle ticket purchase will go directly to the fund, the checks must be mailed to the vet clinic address, though, to be entered in the drawing. After recording your name and assigning your raffle tickets, the check will then be sent directly to the memorial fund P.O. Box. The winner will be determined by drawing on November 3rd and will be announced here on the blog and on our clinic Facebook page. You do not have to be present to win. If you have other items you'd like to donate to be included in the raffle, please send me an email about it.

Because Advantage Multi is a prescription product, the winner, once notified, must submit a valid prescription (unless the winner is a client of Brandon Veterinary Clinic) in order to claim the product. Once a valid prescription is received, the product will be mailed to you at the address on your check, or you may come by the clinic and pick up your prize in person.

October is Breast Cancer Awareness Month

Alright so it's way off topic for this blog, but no matter.....October is Breast Cancer Awareness Month so I gotta do my part and tell ya'll to remind the women you love to do their self-exams and get their mammograms. It can save their lives. How do I know this.....

.....well, someone I love dearly was diagnosed recently with breast cancer. She won her battle and she's one of the fortunate ones who fought and never took anything for face value. She did what she had to do...yes, it was difficult; yes, it sometimes still is, but she lives today because she did her part and performed her self-exams. And after finding a small lump, she didn't let it go; she didn't rest until she had it properly evaluated. When she found out it was cancer, she took the bull by the horns and did what was necessary. It was more difficult for her than I'll probably ever know but at least she's here to celebrate being a survivor.

In 2010, an estimated 207,090 new cases of invasive breast cancer are expected to be diagnosed in women in the U.S., along with 54,010 new cases of non-invasive (in situ) breast cancer. About 39,840 women in the U.S. are expected to die in 2010 from breast cancer, though death rates have been decreasing since 1991.

It's easy to think "I'm not at risk" or say "I'll get it checked out later if it doesn't go away" but if she thinks something ain't right, it probably needs to be checked out. Women know their own bodies better than any doctor. If there's a woman in your life that you love, make sure that she's doing her part to take care of herself.

About 1 in 8 women in the United States (between 12 and 13%) will develop invasive breast cancer over the course of her lifetime. For women in the U.S., breast cancer death rates are higher than those for any other cancer, besides lung cancer. A woman’s risk of breast cancer approximately doubles if she has a first-degree relative (mother, sister, daughter) who has been diagnosed with breast cancer. About 20-30% of women diagnosed with breast cancer have a family history of breast cancer. About 70-80% of breast cancers occur in women who have no family history of breast cancer. These occur due to genetic abnormalities that happen as a result of the aging process and life in general, rather than inherited mutations.

For more information, click the banner above to visit the Susan G. Komen website or visit http://www.breastcancer.org/