Only a couple of days to go  – the tree’s up, the cake’s baked and the mince pies are coming out at every opportunity. Without wanting to sound like the voice of doom, us pet owners need to be extra vigilant as lots things that we bring into the house over the festive season can be extremely poisonous for dogs and cats, resulting in a range of symptoms ranging from upset tummies to renal failure.

Here are a few of the most common offenders:

Christmas cake, Stollen and Mince Pies

Grapes, raisins, currants and sultanas can all be toxic for dogs – some exhibit no symptoms at all but others can develop kidney failure after just a few items.

Chocolate

Chocolate is poisonous in relations to the amount of theobromine (this is the toxic element of chocolate that can increase blood pressure and cause nausea and vomiting). There is much more in dark chocolate compared with milk or white and 20mgs or more of dark chocolate can be toxic for a dog of 20Kgs or less. Signs to look for include vomiting, diarrhoea and hyperactivity.

Plants

As with humans, ingestion of holly and ivy can cause retching and vomiting –  poinsettias are very toxic for cats, as are the pollen, plants and leaves of lilies and may result in kidney failure a few days after eating.

If your pet does suffer from an upset tummy Protexin-Prokolin is an excellent product  – its key benefits are:
Soothes the gut lining during gastric sensitivity
Contains kaolin – a natural binding agent
Includes beneficial micro-organisms to rapidly populate the gastrointestinal tract
Prebiotics to enhance the growth of beneficial micro-organisms
Improves consistency of stools

Happy Christmas to you all!