[nagdu] Not a Good Idea Re: Dry Skin

Sat Feb 25 04:05:44 UTC 2012

Concerning the listing of "bones":
Cooked bones are the primary concern (along with weight-bearing bones, such as femurs, which may break a dog's teeth). Many people feed their dogs raw diets, which include bones--the cooked bones splinter and are indeed horrible to give to a dog--however, raw bones shouldn't present problems. However, as with any approach, research is key--before feeding a dog a raw diet (or giving them raw bones), be sure that you know what you are doing! My circumstances and financial capabilities do not allow me to consider raw feeding, so I do not go that route, although I have done a decent amount of research and asking about methodology, etc., I haven't any experience feeding raw.
Anyway, my point-my guess is that the majority of pets that end up in emergency rooms are those given cooked bones (i.e., as left-overs from a human meal) by their misguided and/or uneducated owners.
Sincerely,
Robert Hooper
Hooper.90 at buckeyemail.osu.edu
The Ohio State University
0653 Buckeye-Cuyahoga CT
653 Cuyahoga Court
Columbus, Ohio 43210
(740) 856-8195

-----Original Message-----
From: nagdu-bounces at nfbnet.org [mailto:nagdu-bounces at nfbnet.org] On Behalf Of Nicole B. Torcolini at Home
Sent: Friday, February 24, 2012 9:45 PM
To: NAGDU Mailing List, the National Association of Guide Dog Users
Subject: [nagdu] Not a Good Idea Re: Dry Skin

Please see item 8.

Ten Things You Should Never Give Your Pet

By Dr. Karen Halligan

Please forward and save.

Having worked in emergency for numerous years, I have seen pets given all kinds of foods and drinks. An easy rule of thumb, if it isn't particularly healthy for you, it most likely is not good for your cat or dog. Some pets will eat almost anything, so pet owners need to be careful or they could end up in the local emergency room. The following are ten bad things to give your pets.

1. Make no bones about it -- bones are bad for animals! Every year countless numbers of animals end up in the emergency room from being given bones by their owners, usually as a treat.

The fact is that dogs are omnivores, not carnivores and most dogs and cats cannot tolerate bones. They can splinter or lodge in the intestinal tract with disastrous results, usually requiring surgery. They can also get stuck in their mouth or throat, which is just as dangerous. All bones are bad, including pork, chicken and beef.

The next time you feel the urge to give your dog a bone, just make sure it's a milk bone or a nylabone. Your pet will love you for it.

2. Chocolate can be lethal to pets because it contains theobromine, which 
causes increased heart rate, central nervous system stimulation and 
constriction of arteries. Clinical symptoms range from vomiting, diarrhea, 
restlessness, and excitability to cardiac failure, seizures and death. This 
can occur as quickly as four to six hours after ingestion. Baking chocolate 
is the worst because it contains the highest amount of theobromine.

A potential lethal dose is only one pound of chocolate in a 16-pound dog. If 
your pet has gotten into chocolate you should contact your veterinarian 
immediately.

3. Alcohol is also very bad for cats and dogs. It doesn't take much alcohol 
to intoxicate a pet. Animals will stagger and bump into things, hurting 
themselves, and it also causes them to urinate uncontrollably.

In high doses, alcohol will suppress the central nervous, respiratory and 
cardiac systems and can lead to death. It is best to just give your pet 
water.

4. Milk is also not good for animals because many of them are lactose 
intolerant and will develop diarrhea. Pets often lack the enzyme that is 
required to break down the sugar in milk and this can cause them to develop 
vomiting, diarrhea and other gastrointestinal symptoms.

Even though they like it, especially cats, refrain from giving your pets 
milk.

5. Ham and other salty meats and foods are very dangerous to pets. In 
addition to being high in fat, they are also very salty which can cause 
serious stomach ache or pancreatitis.

Also, large breeds of dogs that eat salty food may drink too much water and 
develop a life-threatening condition called "bloat." This is where the 
stomach fills up with gas and within several hours may twist, causing the 
pet to die. Please avoid giving ham and salty foods to your pets.

6. Onions are toxic to pets. They contain allyl propyl disulfide, which 
damages their red blood cells and can cause fatal consequences in animals. 
They may become anemic, weak and have trouble breathing.

The best thing to do if your pet ingests onions is to get them to the vet 
right away.

7. Caffeine is also bad for pets. It contains methylated xanthine that, like 
chocolate, stimulates the central nervous and cardiac systems and within 
several hours can cause vomiting, restlessness, heart palpitations and even 
death. So make sure your pets stay away from that early morning brew.

***8. Avocados are also bad for pets. First, they are really high in fat and 
can cause stomach upset, vomiting and even pancreatitis. Second, the pit is 
also toxic and can get lodged in the intestinal tract leading to a severe 
blockage, which may require surgery.

9. It may come as a surprise to many that tuna fish is bad for cats. The 
feline heart muscle requires an amino acid called taurine to maintain normal 
strength and function. Regular tuna fish for humans does not have this amino 
acid and cats that eat too much tuna fish will develop heart problems.

If you want to give your cats that taste of tuna that they love, just make 
sure it is tuna fish for cats which has this amino acid added.

10. The latest study has found that raisins and grapes can lead to kidney 
failure in pets. Small dogs can also choke on grapes so it is best to just 
make sure that your pets eat a well-balanced diet that is formulated for 
their life stage.

----- Original Message ----- 
From: "Juanita Herrera" <juanitaherrera1991 at gmail.com>
To: <nagdu at nfbnet.org>
Sent: Friday, February 24, 2012 5:01 PM
Subject: [nagdu] Dry Skin

> Hello All,
> I took Anise on Tuesday to get groomed. From what the groomer told me,
> she shampooed, conditioned, deeShed, and trimmed Anise's coat.
> However, today I was told by someone that she has dandruff. It is
> quite noticeable because she is a black lab. I am high maintenance,
> and I groom her daily so I don't know if it was the shampoo they used
> on her. I haven't called the groomer because they are closed now, and
> they won't be back until Monday. I did some research and found that
> adding a piece of avocado to her food would help control the problem,
> but what do you all think? Has anyone had this happen to them? If so,
> what did you do in this situation?
> Best Regards,
> Juanita And Anise 

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