Happy Father’s Day!

❤️ Happy Father’s Day!⁣⁣

⁣⁣Wishing all of the fabulous dads and fur dads a special day of relaxing and celebration! You deserve it! ⁣⁣

⁣⁣Treat yourself today to a special romp or run with your four-legged friend, a swim with your kids, a delicious Bar-B-Que, a day at the lake, a baseball game, or even better – a nap on the couch, or your favorite chair, or in the hammock! ⁣⁣

⁣⁣Enjoy your special day! You are appreciated!

Not only can food bags and containers travel into yards, beaches, forests, and more, putting deer, foxes, squirrels, birds, raccoons, and other wild animals at risk, but wildlife and fish can also get tangled in, caught in, and suffocate in all types of trash – just like this raccoon who got a paw caught in a drink can.

Luckily, WILD Florida Rescue, a nonprofit ER service for injured and sick wildlife, was able to rescue two raccoons recently who both had a paw stuck in a drink can. They carefully captured the raccoons, got them treatment for their injuries, and released one already back into the wild.

Not every story of injured wildlife ends so well.

So, what can you do?

✔️ Cut up your food bags before you dispose of them ⁣

⁣✔️ Never leave trash outside, no matter where you are ⁣

⁣✔️ Pack any food you take outside of the home in plastic containers rather than plastic bags⁣

✔️ Cut up all string, rope, netting, fishing line, and plastic drink holders before disposing of them

✔️ Crumple up all drink cans and food cans

✔️ If you see an animal, bird, fish, or pet in distress, please try to help them or call for help

Little changes can save the lives of many wild animals! ❤️

Photo from WILD Florida Rescue.

Many pet owners believe if they crack a window, they can leave their dog in the car while they run a quick errand.⁣

⁣❌ We’re here to remind you that this isn’t safe!⁣

⁣As the summer days heat up, it’s crucial not to leave your dogs alone in the car, even for a minute.⁣⁣

⁣⁣The inside of a car can heat up to deadly temperatures within minutes, putting your dog at risk for heatstroke. Any outside temperature over 70 degrees can prove fatal to a pup left inside a vehicle, even with cracked windows.⁣ 🚗⁣

⁣⁣If it is 75 degrees outside, it only takes 10 minutes to reach 100 degrees inside a car. If it’s 100 degrees outside, it only takes 15 minutes to reach 140 degrees inside.⁣⁣

⁣⁣Dogs overheat very quickly and struggle to cool themselves down. ⁣

⁣Play it cool, and leave your pups at home during these hot days! 🐶

Have you ever played fetch or catch with a ball with your pup? Did you know toy balls could get lodged in your dog’s throat, leading to suffocation within minutes?

Two years ago, Mary de Ranitz’s husband was playing fetch with a hard rubber ball (the size of a tennis ball) with Hayden, her 10 year old Pitbull Mix. Hayden loved to chase after the ball and return it. Unfortunately, this time the ball’s velocity caused it to get stuck in Hayden’s throat. Mary writes, “The ball bounced back with such force that it landed in his trachea. He was still standing, breathing, and frothing at the mouth. We tried to pry it out, but just couldn’t. So I rushed us out the door to the ER vet. Hayden hopped right into the backseat, and I thought, “Awesome, at least he’s not lethargic.” By the time I started backing up, I realized Hayden was down. I stopped the car and opened the passenger door. Hayden was slumped against the front seat. I tried again to get the ball out, but I couldn’t. And by this time his tongue was hanging out and purple. I then sped to the ER vet, but they couldn’t revive him. It took three staff members to pry the ball out of his trachea. They tried CPR for ten minutes with no results. The only remaining option was to break his ribs to hand-massage his heart, but the vet said even if that were successful, Hayden would be left with significant neurological damage. I told them to let him go peacefully.”

Devastated, Mary reached out to the Center for Pet Safety (CPS), a non-profit research and advocacy organization dedicated to companion animal and consumer safety. After CPS started receiving more reports on this, they conducted testing and concluded these heavy balls with a smooth surface were particularly culpable in getting lodged in a dog’s throat, especially the balls thrown with a launcher. (See Tufts University Article.) CPS recommends pet owners be very careful about throwing smooth and heavy balls to their dogs. If you use a ball launcher, launch away from the dog.

Playing with our pups is one of the best parts of owning a dog. It’s important to always put your pet’s safety first! 🐶🐱🐶

Happy Memorial Day Weekend! 💥

⁣With holiday celebrations in full swing this year, Memorial Day is known as the unofficial start to summer! It’s the perfect weekend to celebrate with family, friends, and pets with a pool party, BBQ, backyard games, or watching baseball.⁣

⁣No matter how you celebrate, it’s important to keep your pet’s safety in mind. Below are some tips to help protect your pets from mishaps and accidents while preoccupied with entertaining or playing. ⁣

⁣✔️ HOLIDAY FOODS – Make sure your pet can’t ingest any holiday foods and treats like bones, grapes, onions, chocolate, xylitol, and alcoholic beverages.⁣

⁣✔️ FOOD BAGS – Keep all food bags like chip bags, snack bags, and plastic bags safely stored away from your pets to prevent pet suffocation. Cut up all bags and dispose of properly. With more guests and children around, it’s easy to get distracted and not notice what your pet is up to. ⁣

⁣✔️ POOLS – Never leave your pets unsupervised around a pool, lake, or other bodies of water. Have your dog wear a flotation device when on boats. Don’t allow your dog to drink pool water which contains toxic chemicals. ⁣

⁣✔️ SHADE – Pets can get dehydrated quickly, so if you’re spending time in the yard, at the beach, or at the pool, make sure your dogs have plenty of water and shade. ⁣

⁣✔️ IDS – With the hustle and bustle of traveling over the weekend or celebrating with friends and family, you want to ensure your pet doesn’t escape or get lost. Make sure that your pet is microchipped or has an ID tag on his collar.⁣

⁣With these pet safety tips in mind, you can relax and enjoy the kick-off to summer!

It’s National Rescue Dog Day!

This beautiful Border Collie/Labrador mix named Huckleberry was rescued in 2017 by a loving family. She was able to be given a new life instead of languishing in a shelter.

⁣National Rescue Dog Day was founded to bring awareness to the countless number of amazing dogs in shelters waiting to be adopted, to educate young children about animals, and to encourage spaying and neutering of pets.⁣⁣

⁣⁣Rescue dogs often overcome extreme circumstances, and yet they often provide comfort, security, love, and friendship as devoted family pets.⁣⁣

⁣⁣How can you get involved today? Here’s a list from nationalrescuedogday.com:⁣⁣

⁣⁣🐶 ADOPT: If there is room in your life for a dog, consider adoption and giving one a forever home.⁣⁣

⁣⁣🐶 FOSTER: Many dogs abandoned in shelters benefit from socialization or would just thrive better outside of a shelter environment. Others may be in need of some medical care or rehabilitation in a home setting before an adoption can take place.⁣⁣

⁣⁣🐶 DONATE: Shelters always need donations. In addition to financial donations, shelters have a list of much-needed items such as blankets, toys, treats, and leashes.⁣⁣

⁣⁣🐶 VOLUNTEER: Help out at your local shelter. Taking dogs for walks, grooming them, and giving them plenty of affection improves their socialization.⁣⁣

⁣⁣🐶 SPAY/NEUTER: Be responsible for your pets. Overpopulation is the number one reason shelters exist.⁣⁣

⁣⁣Visit nationalrescuedogday.com for more information!

Are you looking forward to having a BALL this summer? 🌞🚣‍♀️🚲🍔

As the sun continues to shine, and we begin spending more time outdoors – don’t forget about your pets when you’re hiking, walking, barbecuing, picnicking, swimming, or camping!⁣

⁣Snacks such as potato chips, popcorn, pretzels, sandwiches, cookies, granola, and candy are great for groups, but the bags that they’re packaged in pose a serious suffocation risk for your pets.⁣⁣

⁣So, what can you do?⁣

⁣✔️ Cut up your chip bags, snack bags, pet food bags, and all other food bags before you dispose of them. ⁣

⁣✔️ Make sure to serve your snacks in plastic bowls and containers and cut up all food bags before disposing of them.⁣⁣

⁣✔️ Take extra precautions when you are at a beach, at the lake, on a picnic, or are camping, hiking, or biking.⁣

⁣✔️ As you’re socializing, it’s important to keep an eye on your pets, as well! Don’t leave them unattended around the delicious food and snacks, as pet suffocation happens within minutes! ⁣⁣

⁣✔️ Leave no trash behind if you’re bringing snacks, drinks, or any type of food bags or containers outside.⁣

⁣With a little extra precaution, you can enjoy this summer freely without putting any of our wonderful pets at risk!⁣

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Happy Mother’s Day from Prevent Pet Suffocation! ⁣

⁣Jag and I want to wish all of the wonderful moms and fur moms a special day of joy and celebration! Your dedication, kindness, loyalty, tirelessness, and love for your families and pets is appreciated! ⁣

⁣Before summer sneaks in, don’t forget to take time for yourselves – a romp with your pup, a playdate with your kids, a fun date night, or some well-deserved self-care! ⁣

⁣Enjoy your special day!

Prevent Pet Suffocation is on YouTube, and we’d love for you to subscribe to our channel!⁣
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It’s here that we’ll share important shorts, videos, media interviews, podcasts, and PSAs detailing steps you can take to keep your pets safe from pet suffocation.⁣
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Click on the link https://www.youtube.com/channel/UCKXhhXZ6cxqJczU88ZuqkDw to subscribe to our YouTube Channel, so you can be in the loop when it comes to preventing pet suffocation! 🐶🐱

PET CPR: Have you learned this vital procedure to help save a dog or cat in distress?⁣
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Learning pet CPR might sound complicated, but it’s actually a simple way for you to ensure that your pet is much safer from the risks of suffocation!⁣
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Not sure where to start? Visit our website, preventpetsuffocation.com, click on “Blue’s Blog” and watch the Pet CPR video to learn this valuable, life-saving tool.⁣
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A bit of time and attention can make all the difference when it comes to saving the lives of your pets! 🐶🐱