Dog’s life for smokers' pets

PET-OWNERS who smoke in Warrington are being warned how second hand smoke could leave their pooch in very poor health.
The North West has some of the highest smoking rates in the country and 44 per cent of its homes have a pet – mostly a dog, cat or bird.
That means as many as 750,000 household pets in the North West could be at risk from illnesses like asthma, respiratory infections or even death due to inhaling their owners’ second hand smoke, according to Smokefree North West, a body of anti smoking organisations across the region.
David Tweedle, practice manager and veterinary surgeon at Lymm Veterinary Surgery, said: “Respiratory infections are very common, particularly in dogs and we see a lot of it.
“There is no doubt that living with an owner who smokes will affect a pet’s health. There is evidence that passive smoking in dogs causes chronic bronchitis and can aggravate feline asthma in cats.”
Now Smokefree North West and the British Veterinary Association are asking smokers to consider the health of their furry friends ahead of ‘National Pet Month’ in April.
Andrea Crossfield, director of Smokefree North West, said: “Our pets are part of the family and they have as much right to be protected from second-hand smoke as our children and loved ones.
“Our evidence suggests that many smokers aren’t aware of the damage that smoking around pets can have. If animals could talk, they would probably be asking their owners to go outside to have a cigarette.”
Harvey Locke, vet and president elect of the British Veterinary Association, said: “We would urge the public to think about the effect smoking is having on their pets and for them to not to expose animals to second-hand smoke or to any smoking products.”
Dogs are twice as likely to develop a cancerous tumour when living with a smoker – the most common forms relate to second hand smoke including cancer of the nasal passage and lungs.
Cats can swallow smoke and soot when they groom themselves. The risk of developing feline lymphoma cancer is also two and a half times more likely for cats living with smokers. **

**From a study at Tufts’ Foster Hospital for Small Animals conducted between 1993 and 2000 and reported in the American Journal of Epidemiology in 2002.