Original Article: https://blog.theanimalrescuesite.greatergood.com/pets-paracetamol-risk/

Vet bills. Pet food. Insurance.

People could feel their heads reeling from all of their financial concerns due to the rising inflation and economic chaos wrought by the pandemic.

There is crisis everywhere, and among those who are adversely affected by these troubles are the animals who live with us. Our pets who depend on us for food, home, love, and other essentials.

Due to financial hardship, many have surrendered their pets to animal shelters. Others chose to simply abandon them because their personal and family needs must come first.

But still, there are pet owners who are determined to keep their companion animals come hail or storm. However, there are certain sacrifices that must be also made.

“Whenever you get a situation where people are genuinely short of money or are worried they are going to be, there will inevitably be pet owners who either delay seeking attention from a vet or even, sadly, don’t seek attention at all,” said vet Robin Hargreaves, former president of the British Veterinary Association.

One of the signs that this has been happening was the rate of Google searches for “can I give my dog paracetamol” which the Royal Society for the Prevention of Cruelty to Animals (RSPCA) recently discovered. The charity organization found out that the rate of Google searches for this topic increased almost three times since January 2020. Worse, the rate of searches for the same phrase in May 2022 was 28% higher than in April 2020, when the entire country was in lockdown and there was no access to vet clinics.

Veterinary experts along with RSPCA are worried since giving paracetamol to dogs can have deadly consequences.

Further, according to the People’s Dispensary for Sick Animals (PSDA), paracetamol should never be given to cats as well. “It is extremely toxic to them and can be fatal,” said PDSA vet Claire Roberts. “If you feel your pet is in need of pain relief, you must seek advice from your vet – never give them human pain relief unless your vet has asked you to.”

To help pet owners in dire need, RSPCA has been opening pet food banks since last year. This way, pet surrender or abandonment due to financial difficulties could be prevented.

For RSPCA, the first half of 2022 was a very challenging period because they had to take under their care 49% more rabbits, 14% more cats, and 3% more dogs compared to the first half of 2021. And since the animals were too many, RSPCA has to place some of them in private boarding — more than 250 animals in waiting until there are vacancies in RSPCA centers.

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Source: The Animal Rescue Site Blog