Pet health is arguably the most important aspect to keeping a pet. Click here to find 3 essential facts you need to know about pet health.

Do you own a pet? Do you often worry about how you can keep them happy and healthy? How about the health of you and your family when caring for a pet?

Keep reading to learn a few essential pet health facts you should know when owning a pet.

1. Practice Good Hygiene

When you own a pet, you oftentimes start to think of them as a member of the family and less as an animal. Unfortunately, this type of thinking can lead to a relaxation of hygiene practices such as washing your hands often. You should wash your hands after touching them, handling their waste, and before cooking and eating.

Your dog’s feces contains bacteria that can be harmful to people so it is important to remove it from your yard or during your walks. If you have a cat, clean their litter box often, and keep small children away from it. Your children’s play sandbox should be covered when not in use to keep neighborhood cats from using it as a litter box.

2. Keep Routine Veterinary Visits

No matter what type of pet you have, large or small, you should provide them with routine veterinary care. Your pet should have routine vaccinations, flea and tick control, and deworming. Pets who are allowed outdoors are more at risk for carrying pests, which can spread serious diseases such as Lyme disease or Rocky Mountain spotted fever.

These routine veterinary visits will help keep your pet healthy and are a great opportunity to tell the vet about any issues your pet is having or questions you might have.

3. Avoid Dangers to Pets

There are certain household dangers to pets that we may not even realize can be a risk to our furry friends. Some pets can be particularly curious and will try to taste and eat things that they shouldn’t. You should make it a point to keep your medications out of the reach of your pets, just as you would if there were children around.

In addition to medications, alcohol and tobacco products should be kept out of reach of your pets and monitored while being used by yourself. Some foods can be harmful to your pets as well. Chocolate is a delicious treat for you and your family but it contains theobromine and two forms of methylxanthines that can be particularly harmful to dogs.

The caffeine in chocolate and coffee can also be harmful to your pets. Your holiday candy collected at Easter or Halloween should be safely tucked away in a cabinet to avoid your curious animal from trying to eat some.

Learn More About Pet Health and How to Keep Your Animal Safe

Pet health is one of the most important aspects of owning an animal. It is important to keep them healthy by taking them for regular veterinary check-ups and make sure they don’t ingest substances that might be harmful. It is also important to practice good hygiene when handling your pets by washing your hands frequently.

If you’d like more information regarding your pets be sure to visit our website daily!