Tips to keep pets safe this winter
Posted Jan 5, 2016 02:34:57 PM.
Last Updated Jan 5, 2016 04:44:27 PM.
This article is more than 5 years old.
As winter weather hits the Region, it’s important to be mindful of how the extreme cold can affect pets.
Gary Boes is an inspector with the K-W Humane Society and says they’ve already received complaints from concerned citizens.
“I was out yesterday responding to concerns from citizens about dogs outside, which was for everything from a dog left in a vehicle to a dog left in a backyard while no one was home. We need to be mindful of the cold, and make sure our dogs have proper shelter, proper bedding material, and access to food and water.”
Boes says dogs can get frostbite and hypotermia– just like us. He adds that some dogs can tolerate the cold much better than others, but no dog is completely immune to the dangers caused by the bitter cold.
“I use a rule of thumb– would you do that to a child? You wouldn’t leave a child unattended in a vehicle or in your backyard because it’s wrong and because there’s laws in place— so don’t do it to your pet. We need to have laws in place in the same way to protect pets.”
The Humane Society is also reminding dog owners that when when you are walking your pets and they get salt on the pads of their paws, to wipe that off– or if you’re a home-owner, to just use a pet-friendly salt.
Boes says another tip to keep in mind is that it’s important to be careful when filling anything up with anti-freeze, because if it spills and your pet ingests it– they will die.
“And if people are seeing things out there, it’s important to not jump the gun right away. We’ve had some calls today where people say a dog has been out for about half an hour, it’s important to keep an eye on it but not do anything prematurely,” explained Boes.
He added that it is important to leave a name and a number when filing a complaint to the Humane Society– it is confidential, but it’s important for the officers in case an address was written down wrong.
If the Society finds that someone has endangered or caused harm to a pet– they could face penalties of up to $60,000 and 2 years imprisonment under provincial legislation.
