It’s been a roller coaster ride for pets during the pandemic (疫情). All of a sudden, their families were home 24/7. While people got fascinated with cleaning, baking, and keeping themselves entertained, curious dogs and cats sometimes ended up getting hurt by these new habits.
The increase in these new pastimes saw a corresponding increase in the number of pandemic-related pet poisonings. “Our call volume has more than doubled since pre-pandemic. This is likely due to several factors including pets getting into more things at home simply because their people are doing more things at home,” says Dr. Ahna Brutlag. “Overall chocolate still remains our number one toxin (毒质), at least for dogs, but we were surprised to see how each of those listed increased relative to pre-pandemic times. We regularly see these types of cases, but we saw a surge of them during the pandemic.”
Although many pet owners look for eco-friendly cleaning products to keep their pets safe, there was a 92% increase in pet poisonings from cleaning products. Besides using eco-friendly cleaning products, there are things you can do to keep your pets safe at home, pandemic or not. “Pets are like kids. They are opportunists and will readily consume items left around the house,” Brutlag says. She suggests that pet owners think about pet-proofing their homes in the same way that parents kid-proof their homes in order to keep dogs and cats from getting into things that can hurt them. “Also, don’t underestimate how good their noses are and how high they can jump! They are experts at smelling food on a countertop and then finding a way to access it,” Brutlag says.
And if you think that your pet has had something potentially dangerous, reach out to your veterinarian or the helpline quickly. In potential poisoning cases, she points out, time is critical.
【小题1】What phenomenon is described in the first paragraph?| A．Pets prefer to play the roller coaster ride. |
| B．Working at home is a fashionable tendency. |
| C．The changes of people’s life style influence pets. |
| D．It’s hard for people and pets to live harmoniously. |
| A．Sharp decline. | B．Sudden increase. |
| C．Steady balance. | D．Rapid change. |
| A．Eco-friendly cleaning products can keep pets safe. |
| B．Dogs and cats are usually under their owners’ control. |
| C．Protecting pets is more difficult than protecting kids. |
| D．Food is easily accessible to pets at home. |
| A．Pets need more love and care. | B．Pet poisonings increase at home. |
| C．A survey on pets during the pandemic. | D．People’s fascinations with housework. |
