Decorating your home for the holidays is a great way get into the festive spirit and spread cheer in the neighbourhood. You must be careful when choosing what decorations to put up and where you put certain decorations as pets may perceive them as toys or food. Many of your favourite traditional decorations are extremely hazardous to your pet’s health.
Tinsel: Hang tinsel out of reach of your pet or, better yet, don’t use it at all. Tinsel can block your pet’s intestine.
Twinkle Lights: Hang lights out of reach of your pet. Your pet could become tangled in them, get burned by them, or get an electric shock from chewing them.
Ornaments: Keep decorations out of reach of your pet. Broken ornaments can cut your pet’s paw and they are a choking hazard. Edible ornaments like popcorn and cranberry strings can make your pet sick.
Christmas Tree: Keep your Christmas tree in an area where your pet is least likely to jump onto it. Clean up any tree needles that fall from the branches of live trees as they can puncture your pet’s intestines.
Wrapping presents: Wrap gifts away from your pets and be sure to clean up afterwards. Wrapping paper, ribbons, tape, and plastic are choking hazards and could cause intestinal blockages. Make sure you don’t leave your scissors on the floor or on a low table.