Valentine's Day Tips for Your Pets and Recipe!
Valentine's Day should be the day where you celebrate love! Typically, this celebration includes gifts such as chocolate, flowers and champagne. It is easy to get swept away in the moment and not realize that your pet could be doing so as well by getting into your sweet treats or alcohol behind your back. We at StayCare have some tips to ensure that your romantic evening does not end up as one at the Vet's office.
Keep in mind that Valentine's Day falls on a Saturday this year and your Vet's office will most likely be closed. Our suggestion is to locate a 24 hour emergency clinic closest to you and keep that information in an easy place to find, like posted on the refrigerator. This may be a good thing to do any time of year in case of an emergency, and you also may want to register your dog at such a clinic so that the process will be a faster one if needed.
1. Keeping the chocolate and sweets out of reach. It is well known that chocolate is very toxic to dogs. It is important to know just how toxic. It depends on the kind of chocolate -dark, milk, semi-sweet, baker's, mixed into baked goods, etc.. Xylitol, an artificial sweetener, is also toxic to dogs. If your dogs ingests any kind of chocolate or sweets with Xylitol, or have a bad reaction to any food, we strongly suggest to immediately call the animal poison control center at 888-426-4435. They will give you details based on how large your dog is, what kind of chocolate they ate and how much. Based on what they suggest, you may will need to go to see your Vet or emergency clinic right away.
2. Flowers, especially lilies. You may choose to alert your sweetheart not to buy you certain flowers that your pet could have a reaction to. For example, lilies are extremely toxic to cats. With roses, the concern is the thorns that can create an infection if stepped on, so we suggest removing them before displaying their beauty in the home. Just like the chocolate, if you see a reaction from a pet who decided to take a bite of your bouquet, call poison control and describe the situation.
3. Bright colored ribbon, string and gift wrap adornments. Although it is a lovely thought when someone takes the time to wrap a beautiful Valentine's Day gift for you, we suggest hiding the wrapping, bows, string and ribbon as soon as possible form your pets so that they do not ingest them and possibly choke.
4. Champagne and other alcohol is usually a part of a romantic Valentine's evening, but for your furry friends, it can cause vomiting, diarrhea or other serious conditions. We suggest keeping the beautiful bubbly and other alcohols out of reach from your pals in order to truly enjoy your night of Love.
5. Candles are a fantastic way to create the mood of Romance! However, they can be a fire hazard when left alone in a room with pets. Animals like the flames as we do so when retiring for the evening, we recommend blowing them out for safety.
We hope this helps you all enjoy your Valentine's Day with your sweetheart as well as your other loves, your pets. Please check out the recipe that allows your pets to participate in the holiday below. Enjoy!
RECIPE FOR DOGS AND CATS COOKIES
This is a very easy recipe that has minimal ingredients. The best thing about them is that you can amend them with different baby foods and bake them in shaped pans for added effect! *We advise making sure your pet is not allergic to any of the ingredients before feeding them these cookies.
Ingredients: (approx. 12 servings)
2 Cups of Wheat Germ 3 (2.5 ounce) Jars strained chicken baby food 1 Tblspn. Water
Preheat oven to 350 degrees
In a medium bowl, mix the wheat germ, baby food, and water together. Add more water if necessary to form a dough, or if still too dry, add an egg or 2. Honey can also be added for sweetness.
Roll dough into 1 inch balls and place on cookie sheet. Flatten slightly with a fork dipped in water. Bake for 20 to 25 minutes in the preheated oven.
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