i had my second pet first aid class last night – and have a lot of info to share today!
first off, i had quite a few people asking me about the book… this is the one she gave us: first aid companion – it has a lot of really good information in it so definitely a good thing to have on hand if you have pets.
she also gave us a website to check out that has a list of all the poisonous plants for animals (aaaand i left it at home, so i will post on here later)… the most common poisonous plant ESPECIALLY for cats is the lily – so be careful with easter around the corner and keeps those lillies away from cats!
just a few of the things i learned last night:
*fox tails: BIG problem with dogs, they go in the nose, ears, eyes, feet, etc and can be very painful… they are big during may through october so be careful if you let your dog off leash around them… they cost lots of $money$ to be removed. some signs are violent backwards sneezing, coughing, and headshaking, so just be aware. and make sure to check the paws in between the toes after you are out in an area where they might be.
*cooked bones: she said that you should never give your dog ANY kind of cooked bone (this was surprising to me)… she said cooked bones splinter and can cause a lot of damage in dogs. she said raw bones are the best to give them.
*hot cars: if it is 70 degrees outside, it is too hot to leave your dog in the car
*playing in the snow too long: frostbite! and if your dog has frostbite never rub their paws – frostbite causes little ice crystals and when you rub them the crystals are rubbing into their skin and it hurts! instead use running water and run warm water over the area.
*in the kitchen: watch out for coffee grounds (in the trash), chocolate, bread dough/yeast – will expand in their stomach after consumed, grapes and raisins – both are poisonous.
*iron: anything with high amounts of iron in it, especially vitamins, can be toxic to your pet.
*heatstroke: if your animal gets heatstroke, use running water and run cold water over the body and paws.
*benadryl: if you need to use benadryl for your pet (which we had to use on emma when her face swelled up) use the capsule kind, break it open and rub the inside of the capsule onto their gums, this is the fastest way for it to be absorbed into their system.
*poison oak: your dog wont get it, but you will! so make sure to wash them off with soap after but be careful when touching them and make sure you wash off too.
this post could go on forever 
so i will stop with that… they were the ones that seemed most relevant to me… so hope they help you out some!
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happy friday!! tomorrow we have our first run in walnut creek! should be a great day for running… what does everyone else have planned for the weekend? hope you have a great one!
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