You might want to rethink your New Years’ resolution as researchers have found smoking could be harming your dog.
There are believed to be 7,000 chemicals in tobacco smoke, and a group of researchers at the University of Glasgow have taken it upon themselves to investigate the affect these toxins have on our hairy companions… and the results are not pretty.
By measuring nicotine levels found in fur and scanning castrated dogs’ testicles, scientists discovered cell damage caused by tobacco-puffing owners.
If your cat likes to keep well groomed it is more likely to ingest those nasty toxins, and because dogs go longer without a bath than us humans, the chemicals linger.
Secondhand smoke in home can even cause dogs to pile on the pounds.
These scary factors lead to cancerous cell damage, which researchers found in animal genes.
And what do the experts suggest you should do to prevent all this? Stop smoking of course.
Cracking open a window and buying air filters will not protect animals from secondhand smoke, according to the Centres for Disease Control and Prevention.
However, people who dropped to just 10 cigarettes a day reduced the level of harm to their pets.
One of the study’s authors, Clare Knottenbelt, said that pet owners neglect to think about their cats and dogs when lighting up in the house.
Whilst you can reduce the amount of smoke your pet is exposed to by smoking outdoors and by reducing the number of tobacco products smoked by the members of the household, stopping smoking completely is the best option for your pet’s future health and well-being.
Naturally, cats and dogs are closer to the carpets and furniture where smoke is trapped, so the health risks are even greater than that of children.