Posted on 08/17/2014 12:18:13 PM PDT by Slings and Arrows
Though the dangers secondhand smoke poses to humans are well documented and understood, many smokers still subject their pets to these hazards on a daily basis. It is becoming increasingly apparent, however, that doing so puts our furry friends in harm's way as much as it does us. As recently as 2006, the Surgeon General's Annual Report stated that secondhand smoke puts pets at risk, and numerous professional organizations have issued statements encouraging pet owners to keep their homes smoke-free for the benefit of their animals. If you're considering quitting smoking but need a bit more motivation, think of the health benefits that your pet could gain.
Secondhand smoke can cause lung cancer and other diseases in many pets, but cats are at a higher risk than dogs. According to Americans for Nonsmokers' Rights, that fact has largely to do with the grooming habits of felines.
"One reason cats are so susceptible to secondhand smoke is because of their grooming habits. Cats constantly lick themselves while grooming, therefore they lick up the cancer-causing carcinogens that accumulate on their fur," Dr. Carolyn MacAllister, a cooperative extension service veterinarian with Oklahoma State University, told the source.
In addition to dogs and cats, birds have been known to acquire cancer and disease as a result of secondhand smoke.
This may be true but I’ve never heard of a cat dying from Ebola so there may be two sides to this story.
Well they do have nine lives.
Second, it will be a law.
Third, a government agency will be formed to enforce it.
Fourth and finally, a Federal SWAT team will lob flashbangs into your home and storm it with machine guns and MRAP armored vehicles, all for the dubious 'benefit' for the health of a cat.
LOL! The whole planet has gone insane.
Doggie ping!
I’ve also never heard of a cat looting an Ebola isolation ward. This is why I prefer cats to people.
*Perfect* graphic.
But...there’s nothing in the Constitution about it, so Federal intervention would be illegal.
.
.
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:^D
Since I have lived in this complex, I have seen two smokers basically kill their pets. One chain smoker had inherited his sister’s dog, and within two years after I got here, the dog died of cancer. The owner died about 10 months later of heart disease.
The other was my ex-next-door neighbor who had a cat. I watched that cat get sicker and sicker and saw her white coat look worse and worse as she slowly died of cancer. She has replaced the cat, but still chain smokes.
their lungs are much smaller, it doesn’t take much
That much, I know. And they were never meant to smoke. No thumbs, no lips.
Riot starting in 3...2...
Damn. That’s heartbreaking.
And I thought dogs were smart.
My beloved MaiseyJane was a year old when I adopted her. A vet asked me if anyone smoked in the home, as her lungs were not strong. No one in my house smokes, and a year after MaiseyJane moved in with us, her lungs were fine.
Point is, it took more than a year for her lungs to be clear and strong after leaving her smoking home.
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