Most Common Holiday-Related Medical Conditions for Pets

Whether it’s chowing down on Thanksgiving stuffing, sipping egg nog, or experiencing holiday stress, pets can suffer some potentially harmful and expensive medical conditions during the holiday season. With holiday celebrations, parties, events, extravaganzas, etc. planned throughout the remainder of 2012, VPI analyzed its database of more than 485,000 insured pets to determine the most common pet medical conditions associated with the holidays. Below are the results:

Vomiting and Diarrhea Claims Top the List In 2011, of the 267,915 claims processed during the holiday months (November through January), 24,262 were for conditions commonly associated with holiday festivities. Of those claims, 17,421 were associated with vomiting and diarrhea.

“Our data shows that most pet holiday accidents or injuries are related to pets eating people food or other holiday objects, such as tinsel, holiday houseplants, ornaments and ribbon,” said Dr. McConnell, DVM, MBA, vice president and chief veterinary medical officer for VPI. “Whether it’s holiday food or decorations, pets have a knack for ingesting foreign objects, and it’s important for pet owners to keep unsafe items out of reach.”

Chocolate Claims Climb During the Holiday Season VPI received 1,020 methylaxanthine (chocolate toxicity) claims in 2011. Of the claims, 227 were submitted in December, a 310% increase over the average of 73.3 methylaxanthine claims submitted during all other months throughout the year. In addition to December, February (Valentine’s Day), January (left over treats from the holidays) and April (Easter) were the months with the most chocolate toxicity claims. Chocolate toxicity claims had an average cost of $380 per pet.

Although death only occurs in approximately 1 in every 3,000 chocolate intoxication cases, the ingestion of chocolate could result in vomiting, diarrhea, urination, hyperactivity heart arrhythmias, tremors and seizures. Whether it’s chocolate or other harmful objects, in order to ensure a safe holiday season, pet owners should safeguard their homes and protect their furry friends from potential holiday dangers.

For more information about the dangers of chocolate toxicity, please visit the Pet HealthZone. Click here for a list of the most common pet toxins.