With the holiday season comes more food and larger family gatherings which can also impact our pets.

Dr. Christy Fields is a veterinarian with Companion Veterinary Clinic of Greene County and she advises people to stay away from feeding our furry friends foods that are outside of what they normally eat, including people food.

“Then we see some GI (gastrointestinal) upset when pets aren’t used to having that kind of stuff. And pancreatitis is a big one around the holidays for pets to get into, specifically high fatty things like turkey carcasses. And pancreatitis can cause pretty significant vomiting that leads to dehydration and can be life threatening.”   

Dr. Fields points out another thing that pets deal with is the stress of having more people inside a home.

“Make sure that if you’re having a big family get together that your pet has a way to move away and go to a quiet place if they need to.”

Dr. Fields adds to also keep an eye on your pet that they don’t try to eat a turkey carcass because of the sharp bones that could cause damage and other health issues.