{"id":8593,"date":"2020-05-21T20:57:02","date_gmt":"2020-05-22T00:57:02","guid":{"rendered":"https:\/\/stjindy.com\/?p=8593"},"modified":"2020-05-21T20:57:02","modified_gmt":"2020-05-22T00:57:02","slug":"features-117","status":"publish","type":"post","link":"https:\/\/stjindy.com\/newindy\/?p=8593","title":{"rendered":"Features"},"content":{"rendered":"

Developers complete Phase 2 of F.C. Mason units<\/strong><\/p>\n

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F.C. Mason developers have announced the completion of Phase 2, the East wing along Railroad street. A few units are still available. See http:\/\/sjaptrentals.com\/<\/font><\/a> to apply for your new home.<\/p>\n

They beginning to plant more trees, hoping they take up and provide picnic spots on a future summer day.<\/p>\n

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The Voice for Clinton County’s Children says thanks<\/strong><\/p>\n

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Mary Beth Elstro, a Founding Member of our Board of Directors, thanks you for your amazing support of the agency. They could not do our work without you.<\/p>\n

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A Look Back Again<\/strong> – EMTs in 1972
\nby Barry Bauer<\/p>\n

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This photo was taken in 1972 of a group of EMTs getting a certificate.<\/p>\n

2nd from left, Herb Brown, 5th from left, Ken Gilson. In the back 2nd from right, Craig Knight. The last three on the right are Carl Fonger, Richard Mead, and Tom Benson. All the others are unidentified.<\/p>\n

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Maralyn’s Pet Corner<\/strong> – Is Toilet Water Safe for Pets to Drink?
\ncourtesy of David F. Kramer, Jennifer Coates, DVM<\/p>\n

When it comes to strange pet behaviors, drinking out of the toilet may very well be at the top of the list.<\/p>\n

Oddly enough, some of the reasons for a pet drinking out of the toilet are rather sensible\u2014at least on the surface. Dr. Jennifer Coates puts it this way, \u201cWhen was the last time you dumped and scrubbed your pet\u2019s water bowl? If you can\u2019t remember, the water in the toilet may be more appetizing than what\u2019s available in the water bowl!\u201d<\/p>\n

Why Are Pets Attracted to Toilet Water?<\/em><\/p>\n

The fact that your toilet is running (complete with sounds of flowing water) may very well speak to the primal nature of your pet to seek out running water in the wild. According to Dr. Coates, running water tends to be a healthier choice than stagnant water in a natural setting. \u201cPerhaps some of our pets have an instinctive pull towards running water and that\u2019s why they\u2019re attracted to water that \u2018moves\u2019 in our homes,\u201d she says.<\/p>\n

Ask anyone who has a cat that hangs out on the kitchen counter. Turning on the faucet can be an irresistible temptation for the cat to saunter over and have a sip. Similarly, many dogs love to drink water running from the hose when you\u2019re washing your car or watering the lawn. Even knowing this, pet owners still scratch their heads when, after they go to the trouble of providing fresh water\u2014perhaps even water of a trendy and imported nature\u2014their fur kids still line up for a crack at the toilet when they\u2019re feeling parched.<\/p>\n

Coates has another hypothesis. \u201cIt could be that some pets prefer the relative solitude of the bathroom. If their water bowl is in the middle of a chaotic home, they might not feel comfortable settling down to drink at that location,\u201d she says.<\/p>\n

So, are the dangers of drinking out of the toilet real, or are we worrying ourselves over something that is harmless for our pets?<\/p>\n

Is Toilet Water Dirty?<\/em><\/p>\n

\u201cI think [the dangers] are real,\u201d says Dr. Patrick Mahaney, a holistic vet who practices in Los Angeles, California. \u201cI\u2019m not a fan of letting your pet drink out of the toilet.\u201d<\/p>\n

Dr. Mahaney says, \u201cif you were to swab your average toilet there would be an issue. If you don\u2019t clean your toilet very often, you are going to put your dog or cat at risk for coming down with an infection, such as E. coli, because our feces can contain that\u2014as well as other bacteria.\u201d<\/p>\n

The risk of infection increases greatly when we ourselves are sick. According to Dr. Mahaney, humans can pass diseases like Giardia to their animals, and the consumption of toilet water can put your pet on the road to illness. And intestinal bacteria and parasites aren\u2019t the only risks. Humans who are undergoing medical treatments such as chemotherapy can also shed toxic chemical substances in their urine and stool. While the chances of such exposures may be low for pets, there remains a potential for it to happen.
\nToxic Toilet Cleaning Products<\/p>\n

Another danger associated with consuming toilet water come from the chemicals that we use to clean our toilets\u2014with chlorine bleach products being one of the main offenders. Toilet cleaners can contain sodium hypochlorite, hypochlorite salts, sodium peroxide, sodium perborate, and other chemicals that can be lethal when directly consumed.<\/p>\n

Restricting your pet\u2019s access to the bathroom for a few hours (and a few flushes) after you\u2019ve cleaned is a good rule of thumb. And never use the types of cleaners that are added to the toilet reservoir. They continuously release chemicals into the water with every fill of the bowl. Of course, it is also a good rule to be vigilant for symptoms of any sort of poisoning.<\/p>\n

Poorly diluted toilet bowl cleaners can cause chemical burns in the mouth and throat while going down, as well as other serious complications once fully ingested. Symptoms of bleach ingestion in pets can include vomiting, drooling, redness in and around the mouth, abdominal pain, and a sore throat.<\/p>\n

\u201cAny toxin is not good for a pet to ingest,\u201d says Dr. Katie Grzyb of One Love Animal Hospital in Brooklyn, New York. Dr. Coates agrees but adds, \u201cwhen used properly in a toilet bowl, bleach is usually so diluted that healthy animals would be expected to show only mild gastrointestinal upset after ingestion.\u201d
\nHow to Stop Your Pet Drinking from the Toilet<\/p>\n

\u201cI think the best way to curb drinking from the toilet is to keep the lid down and the door closed. Also, offering several bowls of clean, cool, fresh water around the house can help to deter toilet-water drinking,\u201d says Dr. Grzyb.<\/p>\n

Dr. Mahaney also advises owners to keep the lid closed, but realizes that is not possible for everyone. \u201cIf you can\u2019t [keep the toilet closed] because you have children, for example, then just try to keep the toilet as clean as possible,\u201d he says.<\/p>\n

For pet owners who want to offer all of the excitement of drinking from the toilet without the risk, a pet water fountain can provide that experience. Dr. Coates recommends them, \u201cparticularly for cats who may not drink enough water from bowls to stay well hydrated.\u201d<\/p>\n

Of course, you\u2019ll need to keep your pet\u2019s fountain filled with fresh water, as well as thoroughly cleaning the interior once a week and periodically changing the filters. Dr. Coates cautions, \u201cif you don\u2019t clean and maintain your pet\u2019s water fountain, the water in it just may be dirtier than what\u2019s available in your toilet.\u201d<\/p>\n","protected":false},"excerpt":{"rendered":"

Developers complete Phase 2 of F.C. Mason units F.C. Mason developers have announced the completion of Phase 2, the East wing along Railroad street. A few units are still available. See http:\/\/sjaptrentals.com\/ to apply for your new home. They beginning to plant more trees, hoping they take up and provide picnic spots on a future Read More<\/a><\/p>\n","protected":false},"author":2,"featured_media":0,"comment_status":"closed","ping_status":"closed","sticky":false,"template":"","format":"standard","meta":{"footnotes":""},"categories":[2],"tags":[],"class_list":["post-8593","post","type-post","status-publish","format-standard","hentry","category-features"],"_links":{"self":[{"href":"https:\/\/stjindy.com\/newindy\/index.php?rest_route=\/wp\/v2\/posts\/8593","targetHints":{"allow":["GET"]}}],"collection":[{"href":"https:\/\/stjindy.com\/newindy\/index.php?rest_route=\/wp\/v2\/posts"}],"about":[{"href":"https:\/\/stjindy.com\/newindy\/index.php?rest_route=\/wp\/v2\/types\/post"}],"author":[{"embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/stjindy.com\/newindy\/index.php?rest_route=\/wp\/v2\/users\/2"}],"replies":[{"embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/stjindy.com\/newindy\/index.php?rest_route=%2Fwp%2Fv2%2Fcomments&post=8593"}],"version-history":[{"count":0,"href":"https:\/\/stjindy.com\/newindy\/index.php?rest_route=\/wp\/v2\/posts\/8593\/revisions"}],"wp:attachment":[{"href":"https:\/\/stjindy.com\/newindy\/index.php?rest_route=%2Fwp%2Fv2%2Fmedia&parent=8593"}],"wp:term":[{"taxonomy":"category","embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/stjindy.com\/newindy\/index.php?rest_route=%2Fwp%2Fv2%2Fcategories&post=8593"},{"taxonomy":"post_tag","embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/stjindy.com\/newindy\/index.php?rest_route=%2Fwp%2Fv2%2Ftags&post=8593"}],"curies":[{"name":"wp","href":"https:\/\/api.w.org\/{rel}","templated":true}]}}