Pet Owners & Pet Professionals Animal First Aid Courses

12/12/2025

🎄Salt dough ornaments🎄

At this time of year, we start to see an increase in the volume of calls regarding salt dough ornaments. Whilst they make a great gift and can look lovely out on display, did you know that they can be very dangerous to your pet?

These ornaments often contain large amounts of salt, which when ingested can lead to toxicity.
High levels of salt may result in vomiting and diarrhoea, depression, tremors, excessive thirst and dehydration. There may also be weakness, in-coordination and wobbliness as well as high blood pressure. In severe cases muscular rigidity, seizures, coma and kidney failure can occur.

In order to keep your pet safe this Christmas, please ensure that all salt dough decorations are kept well out of reach and reach out for advice if you are concerned.

11/12/2025

11/12/2025

It is coming up to the weekend.... You notice your pet is not right. A lot of money is going out this month, its Christmas!!!, Maybe the animal will be okay tomorrow so is there any need to pay out for a consultation fee at your vets unnecessarily?

If you are in this situation, please be aware of the following scenarios.

* For animals to show pain it is a sign of vulnerability, the survival instinct is to hide any potential weaknesses. This means your pet may be in more discomfort than you think. Cats and prey animals such as rabbits and guinea pigs are incredibly good at hiding pain.

* Rabbits and small furries (guinea pigs, rats, hamsters, gerbils etc) get sick very quickly, they cannot wait. They need to eat several times a day and if not eating can die very quickly.

* Phoning your vet for advice may be a good idea but without a physical examination it is very difficult to know what is actually going on.

* Every veterinary clinic has to provide out of hours cover, this may be using a separate company in a different building. If a separate out of hour provider is used the veterinary team will not have access to your pets’ clinical history.

* Out of hours veterinary consultations and treatments will almost certainly cost you more than your normal vets during the day.

* If certain complaints are diagnosed earlier and treatment is started sooner it may result in a much faster and better recovery. This will mean less suffering for your pet and a potentially lower veterinary bill.

You know your pets and if you notice something is not quite right it means that there is something wrong. Prompt action will help prevent further pain and suffering for your animal, put your mind at rest and potentially save you money.

10/12/2025

Our Last Visit to Hoo for 2025.

We’re out tonight — Wednesday 10th December, 6.30pm–7.30pm — parked up in our usual spot at Hoo Village Institute!

This is our final visit to Hoo of the year, so if your pups need to top up their treat stash before Christmas and New Year tonight’s your chance. 🐾

We’ve still got a few festive goodies left, along with all your usual favourites on board.

Dogs are always welcome to come say hello — they get an extra treat for visiting! 🐶💛

We will be back in January, keep an eye out on our WhatApp page and our social pages for dates.

👉 Please give this post a quick share or tag a friend who might want to pop down tonight.

We can not wait to see you later.
Andi, Mike & the Sit n Paws Doggy Deli 🚐🎄

10/12/2025

From the Veterinary Poisons Information Service December 2025 newsletter.

"Grapes and dried fruits - Christmas cake, Christmas pudding and mince pies

Another potential Christmas food hazard are grapes and their dried fruits (sultanas, raisins and currants). This includes Christmas pudding, Christmas cake and mince pies. Ingestion of grapes or their dried fruits can cause renal failure in dogs but this only happens in a minority of cases. Not all dogs are affected and the reason for this remains unknown. There is also no apparent dose-response relationship. We have follow up information on over 1000 cases of grape and dried fruit ingestion in dogs but only a small number died or were euthanised.

The current understanding is that grape and sultana/raisin/currant toxicity is idiosyncratic and it is still not possible to determine a toxic dose since the risk factors remain unknown. Although it is likely that a single grape or piece of dried fruit is unlikely to be a risk, dogs ingesting more than this should receive treatment.

Owners should be fully informed of the risks and it may be decided to send the dog home after gut decontamination with instructions to return if any signs start, particularly vomiting, at which time IV fluids and bloods for renal parameters are indicated. Certainly, any dog with vomiting and late presentation after ingestion of grapes or dried fruits should be admitted and assessed for kidney injury."

NEVER TRY TO MAKE YOUR ANIMAL SICK AT HOME.

If you think your pet has come into contact with something toxic contact your veterinary surgery or the Animal PoisonLine on 01202 509000

08/12/2025

From the Veterinary Poisons Informations Service December 2025 newsletter:

"We have already started receiving enquiries involving various festive plants this year. Here is a summary of the species we most commonly receive calls about:

Holly - (Ilex aquifolium) Holly can cause hypersalivation, vomiting, inappetence, diarrhoea, lethargy and depression in dogs. Animals may also shake their head and smack their lips. Choking on the stiff leaves is also a potential hazard.

Poinsettia (Euphorbia pulcherrima) Poinsettia has the reputation of being a toxic plant, but this has been greatly exaggerated. It can cause irritation to the mouth and stomach with hypersalivation and sometimes vomiting.

Mistletoe (Viscum album) The plant is considered to be of low toxicity. It is likely that reports of alarming effects refer to American mistletoe (Phoradendron flavescens) and not European mistletoe (Viscum album). Ingestion of the berries of European mistletoe may cause gastrointestinal upset.

Christmas Trees These trees are considered to be of low toxicity. Ingestion may cause a mild gastrointestinal upset and they could cause mechanical obstruction or physical injury (some needles are sharp).

Ivy (Hedera species) The ivy used in wreaths and decorations is Hedera helix (not Toxicodendron radicans, the American poison ivy). Ivy may cause gastrointestinal upset when ingested. Where there is significant or prolonged skin contact, Hedera species can cause both irritant and allergic contact dermatitis.

Lilies (Lilium species) Many households will have lilies at Christmas, and all parts of this plant, even the pollen, are extremely toxic to cats and cause severe kidney damage. Lilies are not hazardous to dogs and may cause only mild gastrointestinal upset if ingested.

The Cats Protection survey represents views and attitudes from people across the UK, including those that look after or share their homes with cats and also those that don’t. Over the past five years, their findings have answered some of the most important and pressing cat welfare questions.

This year's report reveals that 53% of cat owners are still not aware of the dangers that lilies (lilium) pose to cats. To help increase awareness about the risks of these popular flowers, Cats Protection met with over 40 retailers of cut flowers through the British Retail Consortium to ask them to improve their labelling of lilies.

As discussed above, lilies are a common addition to the house during Christmastime, so it is particularly important to raise awareness of lily toxicity around this time."

If you are worried your pet has come into contact with something toxic contact your veterinary surgery or the Animal PoisonLine 24/7 on 01202 509000.

Gastrointestinal upset: Vomiting and/or diarrhoea.
Hypersalivation: Increased saliva production/drooling.
Dermatitis: Skin irritation.

05/12/2025

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05/12/2025

From the Veterinary Poisons Information Service December 2025 Newsletter:

"Christmas is associated with an excess of food and top of the list is chocolate. This of course means an increase in cases of accidental ingestion in pets, particularly dogs. We see a huge increase in call numbers relating to chocolate at this time of year – around 20% of all chocolate cases reported to the VPIS occur in December.

The toxic component of chocolate is theobromine, a methylxanthine. It is a metabolite of caffeine, which is also present in chocolate. The amount of theobromine in products will vary due to natural differences in cocoa beans and the formulation of the products.

Signs of chocolate toxicosis include vomiting, diarrhoea, polydipsia, polyuria, restlessness, hyperactivity, tachycardia, hypertension and hyperthermia. Less common effects include haematemesis, haematuria, bloat, tachypnoea, cyanosis and arrhythmias (classically premature ventricular contractions (PVC)). Renal dysfunction may occur but is uncommon.

Treatment is supportive with emesis, repeated doses of activated charcoal, IV fluids and sedation, if required. Although chocolate can make dogs unwell, serious cases are not common, and deaths are rare. Prognosis is guarded in dogs with seizures or arrhythmias after ingestion of chocolate."

NEVER TRY TO MAKE YOUR ANIMAL VOMIT AT HOME!

If you are worried your pet has come into contact with something toxic contact your veterinary surgery or the Animal PoisonLine 24/7 on 01202 509000.

Polydipsia: Increased drinking.
Polyuria: Increased urination.
Tachycardia: Increased heart rate.
Hypertension: High blood pressure.
Hyperthermia: Increased body temperature.
Haematemesis: Blood in vomit.
Haematuria: Blood in urine.
Tachypnoea: Increased respiration.
Cyanosis: Blue tinge to mucous membranes (gums)
Arrhythmias: Irregular heartbeat.