The dangers of Valentine’s Day for your Pets

Valentine’s Day is practically around the corner. It is a very nice and important celebration, as you can have an amazing time with your partner, your friends or even your pets. Unfortunately, on this date, there are often risks for our pets that may go unnoticed at first but can save you a lot of trouble if you know them. That’s why in this article we will tell you about the 5 dangers of Valentine’s Day for your pets, and how to avoid them. Want to know more? Read on!

5 Valentine’s Day dangers for your pets.

1. Chocolates and sweets.

Chocolates and candy are often one of the most popular gifts on Valentine’s Day. This is a very nice detail, but the truth is that these delicious sweets for us can be a very big risk for your pet. This danger is even greater if your pet is a dog, since eating just a piece of chocolate can expose it to deadly situations.

This is because chocolate is made from cocoa, and cocoa contains an ingredient called theobromine that is harmful to dogs. Theobromine is only found in cocoa, so a bar of milk chocolate contains much less theobromine than a bar of pure chocolate.

Theobromine is a central nervous system excitant, practically harmless to humans but actually toxic to dogs in moderate amounts, and even deadly in some cases. In addition, at general levels, the chocolate bars also contain large amounts of sugar, which is harmful to dogs, cats, and let’s be honest here, humans too.

To avoid exposing your dog or cat to poisoning, make sure that if you give or receive chocolates on Valentine’s Day, they are out of your pet’s reach. The same applies to candy, gum, or other sweets that can be exchanged on this date.

2. Flowers.

Flowers are also one of the most beautiful details to give and receive on Valentine’s Day, especially if you are giving or receiving gifts from your partner. However, it is extremely important that flowers are kept away from our pets, even if at first glance they seem armless and beautiful.

Some flowers that are traditionally given on Valentine’s Day, while not poisonous, can be harmful, such as roses, since they have thorns and these can hurt our pet. Cats are especially curious about this type of flower, so you must be very careful if you have one at home. You must bear in mind that there are certain types of flowers that are very dangerous due to the components they possess, such as the daffodil or tulips.

In these cases, the main danger is that your pet may eat the flowers, exposing itself to very serious problems, from an upset stomach to convulsions and, in large quantities, death.

In addition to keeping these flowers away from your pet, if you suspect that your pet may have ingested a flower or identify symptoms of poisoning, do not hesitate to call the emergency services.

3. Gifts or, mainly, the wrappings of them.

It is known by many that when you are given a gift what you want to know most is what it is.

Perhaps, with the excitement, you open your gifts at such a speed that the gift wrapping and bow are strewn across the floor, or in places where your pet can easily reach them. On the next Valentine’s Day, make sure this doesn’t happen, and that your pets are not near the gift wrappers to avoid drowning. It’s a simple idea of prevention, but it can save you a lot of trouble and it’s not hard to prevent this from happening.

4. Candles

Warm candlelight always gives that romantic touch to Valentine’s Day dinner, and they are a must for this type of celebration.

However, if you have pets in your home, using candles carries certain obvious dangers. In addition to keeping these items away from your pet, just as you should with the chocolate, flowers and gift wrapping mentioned above, you should also make sure you never leave your cat or dog alone in a place where there is a candle burning. In addition to the risks this entails on its own(even without a pet at home), you should be aware that pets, whether dogs or cats are often very curious by nature, so it’s not unlikely that they will be attracted to the movement or light of a flame. On the other hand, dogs can wag their tails sideways and throw it away by accident without even noticing it. Needless to say, this can lead to terrible accidents.

Blew out candles should also be kept away from your pet because if you’re not careful, they can try to eat them, and the consequences can range from drowning to severe stomach problems.

5. Wine, and alcohol in general.

What better way to end Valentine’s Day than with a glass of wine? To close Valentine’s Day dinner with a flourish, wine cannot be missing from the table, and in many cases, wine is not the only alcoholic beverage present.

Alcohol can cause a lot of damage to your pets, from respiratory problems to kidney failure, even if they only consume small amounts of it.

This is why you should do everything you can to keep your pet away from alcohol, so you should avoid, for example, having your pet drink the alcohol in your drinks. Be careful! This also applies to chocolates with liquor, a very frequent gift during these dates. In this case, there is an added danger, and that is that as we mentioned before, chocolate in large quantities can be deadly for some animals.

As you may have noticed in this article, Valentine’s Day presents some dangers for your pets that you must take into account if you want to have a nice and smooth day. Remember, there is no greater love than the love your pet has for you, so it is important to be a responsible owner and keep your pet safe on this celebration.