Thanksgiving Dangers For Your Pet

PET CARE

Thanksgiving Dangers For Your Pet

2 min read
May 08, 2023

Thanksgiving is a time to celebrate family – and furry family members are no exception.  While it is customary for families to integrate their pets into holiday celebrations, dog and cat owners should be aware of pet health risks during this season – especially during mealtime.

Here are a few tips to ensure pets stay healthy Thanksgiving weekend:

Preparing The Meal

Be extremely cautious of how you discard items used to cook or clean the turkey. Skewers, string, pop-up timers and roasting bags can easily be fished out of a trashcan or garbage bag. Swallowing such thingscan cause an intestinalblockage or perforation.

Don’t feed people food to your pets.  This includes scraps, bones of any kind and the skin or fat from the turkey.  Any dietary changes in your pet’s food routine can lead to gastric distress or pancreatitis, an inflammation of the pancreas that causes vomiting and dehydration.  

Any of this could lead to hospitalization for your pet.

Watch for foods such as onions, grapes or raisins, and garlic, that may fall on the floor or be within your pet’s reach on the counter.  These foods can affect your pet’s stomach, but can also lead to other conditions including renal (kidney) issues.   Other foods to be aware of include apple seeds, yeast dough, chocolate, alcoholic beverages, nuts and gum.

What to Do Instead

The best way to avoid gastric problems is to continue your pet’s meals around the same schedule they are accustomed to, including treats.  Always keep in mind your pet’s routine.

Give dogs or cats a new and safe toy to keep them occupied during the meal.
Educate guests not to share food with your pets.  Well-meaning family and friends may slip a scrap or sweet treat from the table to your pet unless you request them not to.

Try to keep stress, including the excitement of guests coming and going, to a minimum.  Stress can also create gastric issues for dogs and cats, resulting in unexpected messes.  

Consider Investing in Pet Insurance 

Looking for more ways to keep your pets happy and healthy? Consider investing in a pet insurance policy with MetLife Pet Insurance.1  Dog insurance and cat insurance policies can help pet parents keep their pets healthy. Get your free quote today. 

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Nothing in this article should be construed as financial, legal or veterinary advice. Please consult your own advisors for questions relating to your and your pet’s specific circumstances.   

1 Pet Insurance offered by MetLife Pet Insurance Solutions LLC is underwritten by Independence American Insurance Company (“IAIC”), a Delaware insurance company, headquartered at 485 Madison Avenue, NY, NY 10022, and Metropolitan General Insurance Company (“MetGen”), a Rhode Island insurance company, headquartered at 700 Quaker Lane, Warwick, RI 02886, in those states where MetGen’s policies are available. MetLife Pet Insurance Solutions LLC is the policy administrator authorized by IAIC and MetGen to offer and administer pet insurance policies. MetLife Pet Insurance Solutions LLC was previously known as PetFirst Healthcare, LLC and in some states continues to operate under that name pending approval of its application for a name change. The entity may operate under an alternate, assumed, and/or fictitious name in certain jurisdictions as approved, including MetLife Pet Insurance Services LLC (New York and Minnesota), MetLife Pet Insurance Solutions Agency LLC (Illinois), and such other alternate, assumed, or fictitious names approved by certain jurisdictions.

2 Provided all terms of the policy are met. Application is subject to underwriting review and approval. Like most insurance policies, insurance policies issued by IAIC and MetGen contain certain deductibles, co-insurance, exclusions, exceptions, reductions, limitations, and terms for keeping them in force. For costs, complete details of coverage and exclusions, and a listing of approved states, please contact MetLife Pet Insurance Solutions LLC.