Smoking hurts pets too

By Dr PHILLIPA MASON, veterinarian
HORACE was a sulpher crested cockatoo with magnificent plumage.
He had been in perfect health for years, had lived with the same family for his whole life and knew more than 100 words, some of which I cannot repeat.
Gradually Horace became less interested in food, developed a cough and started chewing at his own feathers.
By the time he came to the vet clinic he was in a sorry state.
His feathers were broken or missing over large chunks of his chest and he had lost a fair amount of weight, but the overwhelming feature was his smell. He smelt like an ashtray.
It is disappointing to see that many animals come into vet clinics smelling like they have been in a night club.
In an era when the ill effects of smoking are well known, it never ceases to amaze me that people do not realise that the ill effects of passive smoking will be felt by their pets as well as other humans.
Birds are particularly susceptible with many developing respiratory problems which only clear up once they are removed from the source of the smoke.
They are also notorious for developing feather plucking disorders in an attempt to clean their feathers and remove the smell.
It does not take much imagination to work out that birds hate the smell of smoke on their feathers.
Dogs and cats confined to smoking households often suffer the effects of passive smoking also.
Mostly this manifests as respiratory disorders but in some households, where the smoking is particularly heavy, cancer has been a recorded outcome for the pets.
In Horace’s case an uncle had moved into the house a year previously.
He was a heavy smoker and Horace spent a fair degree of time in the uncle’s room.
I advised that the uncle smoke outdoors and Horace was back to normal within a month, except for the feathers, which took half a year to grow back.
While this is a fictional story I am using to illustrate the point that smoking is a habit that effects every community member, whether directly through passive smoking or indirectly through the increased medical costs associated with their care when they get sick.
As a child that grew up with a heavy smoker, I cannot tell you how deeply I hated having no choice about being smoked around.
I implore all smokers, if you cannot kick the habit, have the decency to smoke away from nonsmokers, including animals.
Don’t punish your dog or bird just because they cannot tell you passive smoking makes them sick.
•This is a fictional story used to illustrate the effects smoking can have on pets.