I know you're thinking about holiday gift-giving. Dogs and cats are a great part of that. We not only buy things for them but for our friends' companions as well.
I want to take a minute or two to remind you to be careful when buying toys for your pets or others. There is no regulatory group for pet toys. The industry relies on manufacturers to police themselves. That cute little toy you've been admiring may not be the safest thing for your beloved companion. And the way in which you play must also be considered.
Look for loose parts. If you can loosen it, your dog or cat can, too. And if the pet consumes it, disaster may follow with a swallowed toy, or toy part, getting lodged in your pet's throat or intestinal tract. A visit to the veterinarian or emergency veterinary hospital may ensue. And so might an expensive surgery to remove said object.
Dog toys with squeakers can be a real problem if the squeaker isn't secure. Remove the squeaker before the dog or puppies does precisely that and swallows it. Any little piece glued on can be easily removed. Chew toys made like twisted rags can shred and the yarn can be swallowed. They can also get very dirty. They're not a great idea unless they can be used to grab a loose tooth. Supervise all play with this type of toy.
Be careful of feathers on cat toys. They will usually come off and can be swallowed. Mylar cat teasers can cause the equivilent of a paper cut on the cat's mouth if it is caught by the cat at a certain angle. Why take a chance?
Interactive cat toys must be put away between play sessions. Cats can easily get tangled up in the wire or cord or string. Make play sessions with these toys special times for interaction each day instead.
Laser toys shouldn't be on your list. Having had laser surgery on my eye, I can tell you how powerful a laser can be and a rapidly moving dog or cat can easily find the light in their eye while the well-meaning owner is trying to keep up with movement. Opt for another toy instead. You can always use a flashlight if you want to play with a light. But be certain that the game starts with the light coming from a specific place and is "returned" to that specific place when the game ends so your dog or cat doesn't go crazy looking for the light!
If you're buying your cat a new cat tree or scratching post, be certain that it has a solid base and can't be tipped over. Also your cat should be able to stretch out full-length against it.
Dog toys that can be stuffed should have an opening at the other end so it doesn't create a vacuum, allowing the dog's tongue to be caught inside.
Inspect everything! Don't buy anything that looks "iffy." Since there is no overseeing body to ensure safety it's up to you to inspect all toys as you would for a small child.
And remember to stay in the room the first time you give a new toy to your pet. You want to be there in case something goes wrong. If there's a problem, you want to be there, on the spot to intervene. Your pets are depending on you!
Have a wonderful, safe holiday!
2 comments:
here is a crazy idea- like i never had any;)
OK- this one is for food for thought- take it with a grain of salt-
so my nephews ran downstairs with excitement as they found a cool TOY to make the little doggy(our Pomeranian named fluffy) go crazy- looks like fun- they found a small play toy LASER.
Immediately I told them to stop and I began to explain what i once heard- that the light makes the animal have self conscious issues as they never could catch the 'light"- i am sure it is so much more than this as explained by animal psychologists- but here comes MINE.
This "Light" might as well be a UFO to the animal- it doesnt understand- yet- many believe animals have greater senses than human in some areas- is it possible that humans which are blind sided to the world of god-=advanced entities-etc as we are kept in faith for all observations in order to grow as a race from nothing to present accomplishments be a sign of what animals know inside-
even though the UFO or "light" in which we understand is to the animal instinctive as spirit- as the "other side" in which communicates- since time immortal we hear stories of "light"- from moses and the fire or bush but light- from angels of light-
and now in past century- we have so many honest citizens- even ex pilots- CRAZY over "lights"- for thousands of years man understood spirit- light- something- but only with recent events of technology we TRY to make sense of it- of course god-advanced entities of light only show themselves this way but never FULLY as our life living is one of faith for faith is the greatest test of strength- it makes man push to infinity- thank god for this- though many curse it-
however, back to laser light- does our cute little pets that love us as family actually have instinctive in them to understand something far greater than blind humans?
are the lights in the sky that make man go crazy as to WHY the same instinctive impulse as in the animals as we tease them with "lights'- no question secular society has destroyed ideas of god into aliens and such- always pushing man and god apart- but all is meant to be and will make sense in time-
I too have my UFO story- lights in the sky in 1987- i admit i thought of aliens at first as I grew up with star trek and secular tv- and thus- my 'meeting" was scary-a lesson for man- stop with the aliens already- we are one- a family- past present and future are one- life after death is true- this ride of life like an amusement park ride- one in which it is up to us to make the ride better for all of us during trip- when ended- the "light" at the end of the tunnel is the realization of an entire amusement park- the universe and all awakened to see it then- do we wait a long time for next ride- who knows- but here is my UFO story now and I hope you got something out of that light story with animals-
let me tell you when I seen a UFO- an unidentified flying object- it was 1987 and I was studying physics at Kutztown University approximately 40 miles from my place of birth-I love physically working out and the nighttime is my favorite time- it was 11pm and I was in the university football field alone. I was atop a wooden platform skipping rope where the football instructor yells at the players. I was a good way through skipping and feeling the workout- I tell you this because it is not a college party but in fact when my wits were strongest- straight and physically active-thus it would be hard to pull the wool over my eyes- the setting is this; small university town surrounded by many farms- I was on a football field between two main buildings and I faced towards a direction away from the buildings into the football field--after the field about 150 yards was a tree line-after the tree line was a farm field full of corn for miles- it was dark with clear skies and stars in the sky- as I was skipping and feeling very strong I noticed a moving small light to my right in the far off distance- as I see stars in the sky- it looked like a tiny white light the size of as star about 50 miles away-just guessing- and immediately I figured it was a jet in the sky moving- Thus-as I was skipping rope and noticed this small light which looked like a star in the distance and was moving like a jet as I initially thought- it did not impress me at all- my eyes look to the left and then back again AND WHAT I SEEN MADE ME STOP IMMEDIATELY- this small light which I thought was a jet in the distance is now half way to my position- this thing was moving so fast it made me stop skipping rope- in the time span of first seeing it to me reacting was only a second- the time to look right and then left and then back again as I skipped rope- I was in awe- for this white light was not a white light at all- across the field in which I stood and stared-this thing traveled above the tree tops (approx 50 yards behind it-thus from me 200 yards)
This thing was about a third the size of the trees as I looked at it race across my view-maybe 30 feet in diameter- a perfect round sphere red in color- no doors-lines-wings-anything- completely round and a glowing red- like a soft red light on a brake of a car- perfectly round with no tail like a comet- can you imagine how I felt- its not over- right behind it- approximately 50-100 feet behind was a smaller blue one in the exact line of travel as the first- but this one was a third the size of the red one- same as the first in regards to obvious lines or markings on it- simply a perfect sphere of light moving with incredible velocity right in front of me- you can think what you want at this stage- but I will tell you this- I knew immediately this thing was not of this earth- and I wanted to be the first to find it. As I stood on this platform and watched this thing fly across my view in less than 2 seconds and it seemed like it landed approximately 2 miles away at a 30 degree angle- I immediately flew off that platform and into my Pontiac firebird parked about 30 feet away- I WAS GOING TO FIND THIS THING- I zipped out the parking lot of this university with no care whatsoever for wreckless driving as I would want the police to follow me- I drove ¼ mile to the main intersection of the university-made a right onto the main street and continued past the college town and into farms fields-about 2 miles-at least 100 miles an hour- I took a road that beared left as I believed this was the best estimation of its landing( for what it is worth- the majority of my life is hiking extensively in the toughest forests- most of which I do alone- I have a good sense of direction and not known to be afraid of anything at night) my mind was filled with the energy of finding this thing- it took me at least 2-3 minutes to make it here- and needless to say I was pumped- I believed this spot on this dark road was it- I pulled over like a race car driver - it was a small patch of grass area of at least 20 feet wide and then into a small area of trees and an opening behind It as this is what I deduced driving into this area from the road- HERE IS MY FEELING- FROM SEEING IT TO DRIVING OVER TO FINDING IT I WAS PUMPED UP WITH SO MUCH ADRENALINE- AS SOON AS I HOPPED OUT THE CAR AND INTO THE TALL GRASS TO THE AREA I BELIEVED IT WAS IN- MY MIND CHANGED INSTANTAENOUSLY- DON’T GO FURTHER- YOU DID ENOUGH- LEAVE-
I believe I was tested- encouraged in some ways- for what happened to me in 1987 kept me on my initial goals of finding a major scientific advancement for society and there is no question it has done so- for at this stage in my life- I was reevaluating my life- why do I spend so much time on science when most others play-have fun- make money-when most of my mental energies are spent on science- for some goal and dream that was put into me at the age of 17 to continue in science-
THAT IS MY UFO STORY- LIGHTS in the sky to an animal on the ground
I love cat toys because it can surely give my pets some time to play and enjoy an activity that is simply exciting.
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