Keeping Your Pets Safe at Home

Making your home safe for your pet is very similar to baby-proofing a house for a young child. Many veterinarians try to educate their clients about keeping their pets safe at home. Like babies, pets should be kept away from cords, outlets, and small things they can eat. To keep dogs safe, doctors recommend they have a crate, a safe place to call their own in the house.

Dogs are often left alone in the house and they can get into things like Venetian blind cords, or try to eat small things. If they are crated there is much less risk of this happening, said one veterinarian.

And when you go out, make sure the toys you leave for them to play with are safe. "Just like babies, dog owners should examine their pet's toys to check for sturdiness and parts that could come off and choke the animal," said the vet.

One thing you may not realize that could help keep your dog safe is attending obedience school with him or her. "Part of the training is learning how to remove something from your dog's mouth and helping the dog learn how to have something taken from out of its mouth," the veterinarian explained. Pups of any size and shape should go to obedience school. It's really great for helping dogs get used to having their face and teeth handled. It's also good for the owners, since it teaches you how to handle them. Of course, there are times when professional may need to be called so the animal can be sedated.

It doesn't hurt to have some basic first aid training or at least a book on first aid in the house, in case you can't reach the vet and need to give your animal first aid immediately.

Here are some tips from a veterinarian on keeping your pets safe inside your house:

All household cleaners should be in a latched cupboard.

String should not be made available to cats. It can be ingested. Most enticing are strings that come around meat or bakery boxes. Similar hazards are dental floss and knee-high panty hose.

Houseplants, if eaten, can be irritating to their stomachs or poisonous. Dumb Cane, Elephant Ears, and Easter lily are particularly hazardous.

To prevent suffocation, cats should not be allowed to play with grocery bags.

Sewing needles should be put away.

Window screens should be secure so animals cannot push on them and fall out.

Before you run the washer or dryer, check for animals in the machine. If there are warm clothes in the dryer, cats like to curl up among them for a nap.

And what about outside? Keep them away from lawns that have pesticides. Dogs should be fenced in. If dogs or cats are tied outside, they should be watched so they don't get caught on something and strangle themselves. Swimming pools, hot tubs, and small man-made ponds should be covered if possible, to prevent drowning, she added.

Above all, the decision to adopt a pet should be taken into careful consideration by all members of the household, say veterinarians. A big issue is the appropriateness of the space in the house for the size of the animal. When you choose a pet, you should do a lot of research and make sure you choose the one that is right for your household. Accidents happen. Keep the phone number of your veterinarian handy, as well as the number for poison control and the animal emergency clinic for after hours help.