PETS AND HOME SCHOOLING

School is going to be different for a lot of children this year. 

 Kacey doesn't have any kids at his house, so he doesn't have to worry.

But, Chumley will have home schoolers here at our house.   We will be teaching two of the Bits here.

 Fletch isn't going to get into any home schooling stuff, but there are a lot who will have extra things around, so I thought we could look at the things that might not be safe. 

 A lot of kids' things say they are non-toxic, but it doesn't look at what dogs will ingest.

 We will be doing all kinds of things here -- learning cursive?   HMMM.  If we are practicing, we do NOT want the dogs to get into pencils, or pens or markers.

 We need to make sure that crayons and markers, glue, and batteries aren't available since they aren't meant for dogs to chew on or eat.   Kids might taste a crayon, or sniff the glue (don't do it! haha), but they aren't eating an entire box or container.   Dogs might do just that.

 Granger's kids will all be home for the semester at least.   They love science things-- and a lot of the ingredients are just not good for dogs.   Things like salt, alka seltzer, yeast (science experiments!), vinegar are NOT good for dogs.

 Stewart's kids might be home, too.  Kids have magnets-- they are terrible for dogs and some dogs will get into anything. 

There are also some "gooey" play things that my grandson loves.  BUT, I really don't like them.  If a dog gets it, the "movability" of the product can mean that surgery to remove it is VERY difficult.  Playdough is also a problem for dogs. 

Piper and Paddington will try to help me teach, I'm sure.   We will have to be extra careful with snacks, too.  Raisins are bad for dogs and lots of treats have raisins in them.   I don't buy sugar free things.   But, if you do, remember a lot of sugar-free means something artificial has been added.   And that may be very toxic for a dog.  Chocolate snacks, or sugary things can be awful for dogs.   Xylitol, an artificial sweetner can cause sugar level issues and liver damage.   (See link below.)

Home School Hazards | Pet Poison Helpline

Mattie doesn't have little ones around, but many of us will.  So, if you are home schooling-- or not-- be careful of what is available to your pets.  They can be drawn to things we never think about.  Don't let it happen to your precious pet.