Holiday Dangers for Pets

December probably means you've got a lot of things in your house that normally aren't there. Such things as:

* a pine tree in the middle of your living room

* bizarre cooking ingredients like yeast and acorns

* the same relatives that made you move to Arizona in the first place

With these new and unusual items come dangers that you might not have realized. Here's a few holiday specific things that can pose a danger to your cats and the symptoms that may indicate they ingested something more than kibble.

Yeast Dough
- drunken appearance, abdominal pain, respiratory depression, cardiac arrest

Macadamia Nuts
-weakness, vomiting, lack of coordination, tremors

Coffee
-vomiting, diarrhea, hyperactivity, tremors, seizures

Liquid Potpourris
-oral and esophageal burns

Decorations
-injury to the mouth or gastrointestinal tract

Batteries
-corrosive injury to the mouth or gastrointestinal tract

Poinsettia Plant
-mild gastrointestinal upset

Christmas Cactus
-gastrointestinal upset

Mistletoe
-gastrointestinal upset, lowered blood pressure, cardiovascular collapse

American Holly
-gastrointestinal upset, depression

Acorns
-gastrointestinal upset, foreign body obstruction, kidney failure

Human Cough, Cold, or Flu Medicines
-may affect one or more body systems, life-threatening conditions possible

Ice Melt Products
-vomiting, diarrhea, disorientation

Antifreeze
-vomiting, drunken appearance, excessive drinking and urinating, seizures, kidney failure

Your Relatives
-kvetching, threats to run away, mocking laughter, repeated use of the phrase "so glad I'm not human"

Happy Holidays, everyone. Keep those cats safe.