Dear Porky and Buddy,
No question for you really. I just wanted to write and thank you for all your good advice this summer about dealing with the hot hot hot weather and to express my relief that it is finally cooling down a bit.
I love fall and my dogs love fall too – lots of long walks in the woods, new sweaters for all of us.
What could be better?
Sam
Dear Sam,
Thanks for your kind words.
And we don’t want to be a party pooper, so to speak, but actually there are some issues to think about as cooler weather approaches.
Some people use various poisons to try to kills rats and mice that are coming inside to seek shelter from cold weather.
These rodenticides are highly toxic to pets.
One of the most common, usually sold under the name, Warfarin, is actually a blood thinner and causes hemorrhaging.
The results if your pets come into contact with the poison or even with another animal that has died from the poison can be fatal.
Be really careful where you put these poisons if you must use them.
Fall is mushroom season around here.
While 99% of mushrooms are perfectly harmless, the 1% that are highly toxic can cause life-threatening problems in pets.
Unfortunately, mushrooms have a way of all looking alike to most people, so the best way to keep pets from eating poisonous mushrooms is to keep them away from areas where any mushrooms are growing.
And contact your veterinarian immediately if you see your pet eating a wild mushroom.
In the fall, snakes preparing for hibernation may be unusually irritable, increasing the possibility of severe bites to pets who happen upon them.
Even non-venomous snakes can bite if they are disturbed and the bites can be problematic.
You should know what kinds of venomous snakes may be in your area and where any snakes are most likely to be found so you can keep pets away from them.
And finally, many people choose fall as the time to change their car’s anti-freeze.
It makes sense to do that, freezing weather is coming.
But ethylene glycol-based coolants are highly toxic, so spills should be cleaned up immediately.
They have a sweet taste that attracts some pets with disastrous results.
Consider switching to propylene glycol-based coolants, although they aren’t completely safe, they are much less toxic than other engine coolants.
But enough gloom and doom!
Come celebrate fall and pets at the Barn Cat Boogie on Sept. 15 from 6 p.m. to whenever at the Fallbrook Recreation Center, 103 Thompson Road in Oswego.
A picnic dinner, dancing, silent auction.
You can party until the cows come home!
And then Strut Your Mutt, the Humane Society’s 5k tun or walk and 1-mile family walk at the same location on Sept. 16 from 11 a.m. to 3 p.m.
Registration is free but you can earn great prizes by collecting donations.
For information and to register for both events go to www.oswegohumane.org
The Oswego County Humane Society provides spay/neuter services and assistance, fostering and adoption of animals in urgent need, humane education programs, and information and referrals to animal lovers throughout Oswego County.
Our office is located at 265 W. First St., Oswego, NY.
Phone (315) 207-1070. Email:[email protected]
Because people & pets are good for each other.
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