Cold Weather Care for Your Pet When the temperature falls below freezing, your pets need extra care. The following list provides you with some things to keep in mind during the winter season. Following these guidelines will help during freezing weather.
Frostbite
Even though pets have a coat of fur to protect them, they can still get frostbite. Cats and small dogs should be kept indoors during freezing weather. It is still important to make sure your pets get exercise by going on walks, but at this time of year the walks should be shortened.
Rock Salt and de-icers
These ice-melting products will irritate a pet’s paws. Thoroughly wipe off your pet’s paws when they come into the house. They can accidentally ingest these dangerous chemicals from licking their paws. Before going out onto sidewalks that may have these products on them, you may want to rub baby oil on the pads of the paws and sprinkle baby powder on them. This will help protect your pet’s paws from becoming sore.
Diet
The change of your pet’s metabolism during cold weather demands different eating patterns. If your pet is staying outdoors, it will need more calories to help it produce enough body heat to keep itself warm. If your pet is staying indoors during this time, it may need fewer calories because of its more relaxed lifestyle.
Beware of cats under your car
During cold weather, cats may seek warm shelter under your car. They like to crawl up by the engine, where it is warm. Before starting your engine, make sure there are not any cats under your engine by lifting the hood of your car, honking your horn, or by slapping the hood hard enough to frighten the cat out. If you start the car with a cat under the engine, it could get caught in the fan and become seriously injured.
Away from drafts Make sure your companion animal has a warm place to sleep, off the floor and away from all drafts. A cozy dog or cat bed with a warm blanket or pillow is perfect.
A BIG Thank You! We always have many cats in our facility due to the harsh winter. We have taken in an even larger number of cats these past few months. After many months of caring for these homeless felines, we found ourselves short on cat food. Thank you for responding to our plea for cat food donations! We received over 500 pounds of cat food and approximately $750 in monetary donations! Your donations will help to satisfy the many homeless cats that continue to come through our doors! With great appreciation,
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The cats and staff of the Cedar Bend Humane Society