Common Household Toxins for Pets
Written by Kealy Fitzsimmons, a veterinary student at the University of Illinois at Urbana-Champaign College of Veterinary Medicine.
Our intention at Vetted is to always take the best care of your pet and safety is a top priority. Accidents do happen but always try to keep human items, especially these items, away from pets to help keep them safe and avoid accidents. While this is not a complete list of toxic household items, it does encompass the most common ones that are dangerous to pets.
*If you think your pet has potentially ingested something toxic, please contact your veterinarian or a Poison Control Hotline ASAP .*
ASPCA Animal Poison Control Center at (888) 426-4435
Pet Poison Control Center at (855) 764-7661
Top 10 Pet Poisons
The ASPCA Poison Control center gets almost 200,000 calls annually about pets and poisonous items. In 2020, these were the top 10 contenders for those calls:
- Over-the-counter medications
- Human prescription medications
- Human foods
- Chocolate
- Plants
- Household items (e.g., cleaning products, fire logs, paints)
- Rodenticides (rat/mice poison)
- Veterinary medications (e.g., wrong medication, wrong amount, wrong animal)
- Insecticides
- Lawn and garden products
Medications
You should never give any medication to your pet that hasn’t been prescribed by your veterinarian. Over-the-counter medicine can be extremely toxic to pets; and as much as they work in humans, it can work in very different and dangerous ways in pets.
Keep your medications safely inside a cabinet where your pets can’t access. Childproof bottles don’t mean pet proof!
Fact: In 2018, the ASPCA received 213,773 calls, almost 20% of which were related to ingestion of over-the-counter medications, such as ibuprofen, naproxen, cold medications, and herbal supplements.
Household Items
Plants:
Some common household plants can be toxic to your pet. Make sure to research the plants you bring into or plant outside of your house. This website is a great resource for seeing what plants are toxic or non-toxic: https://www.aspca.org/pet-care/animal-poison-control/toxic-and-non-toxic-plants
Rodenticides:
Rodenticides are rat and mouse poisons. These baits aren’t only tasty to mice/rats, they are also tasty to pets! Ingestion of these can be deadly for pets. Pets who ingest or might have ingested rodenticides need to seek emergency veterinary care ASAP as it is extremely toxic to pets.
Garden Products:
Many products used on gardens and lawns can be toxic to pets. Make sure to do thorough research before applying any product where your animal may go.
Insecticides:
Insecticides can be intriguing to pets so try and find pet-safe alternatives!
Vetted is a membership plan that focuses on your pet’s preventative health. Vetted focuses on empowering pet parents to take control of their pet’s preventive health and guide them through pet parenthood. We want our members to feel confident in caring for their pet’s health and focus on having fun and enjoying life with their pets. A Vetted membership includes; reimbursement on preventative health vet services, preventative health products right to your door, and a 24/7 virtual vet chat.
In your Vetted membership, members will be able to chat on the app with a veterinary professional 24/7. Vetted is here to give you advice no matter the time of day as we strive to be the veterinary best friend you’ve always wanted. While Vetted is not pet insurance and doesn’t cover emergencies, accidents, or illnesses; we recommend finding a pet insurance plan that fits you so you will be covered for emergencies/accidents/illnesses and your pet’s health is never compromised.
You can always download the Vetted app or email our team directly at love@getvetted.io
Resources:
https://www.aaha.org/your-pet/pet-owner-education/ask-aaha/Household-Toxins/
https://www.aspca.org/pet-care/animal-poison-control/toxic-and-non-toxic-plants
https://www.aspca.org/news/just-announcing-top-10-toxins-2018
