Halloween Pet Dangers from a Veterinary Toxicologist

With Halloween approaching fast, it’s good to know potential dangers may be avoided as explained by an expert on Steve Dale’s Pet World, Dr. Renee Schmid, manager of veterinary professional services and senior veterinary toxicologist at the Pet Poison Helpline.

Emergency clinics are so busy at Halloween but these ER visits can often be avoided. While people generally know how dangerous chocolate may be, they’re not always paying attention. Dark chocolate is more an issue than lighter chocolate and the size of the dog matters, combined with the amount of chocolate the dog got into.

Sometimes trick or treaters these days come home with raisins; they can cause acute kidney failure, which may be fatal.

With Xylitol (a sugar substitute) even getting into a very small amount can cause an emergency.