- Author: Jeannette Warnert
“It's the puppies and kittens you have to worry about,” Basso said. “Pet owners should become familiar with the toxic plants, even if they don't have them in their own homes and yards. After all, we walk our dogs, and cats will roam.”
Basso shared an experience of a dog owner in Northern California who had a lavender plant near the dog's water dish.
“He let the lavender fall into the dog's water dish and the dog had a seizure after drinking from it,” she said. “I, too, wouldn't have had a second thought about such a common plant.”
Basso advises pet owners to be careful, but not paranoid, about plants.
“I have many of the plants that are considered poisonous in my own home,” she said. “But I have never had a poisoning incident over the years with my many pets.”
Speaking at a Zoom presentation sponsored by the Woodward Park Library, Basso shared the names of plants that can cause mild symptoms like drooling, and those that cause much more serious concerns, even leading to death. Her list is not exclusive; there may be other less-common plants that can pose a danger to animals. Basso noted that all the plants she is sharing do well in the San Joaquin Valley and are commonly found in Fresno County homes and landscapes.
(For pictures of the plants and more information, see the Zoom presentation.)
Azaleas. Can cause vomiting, diarrhea, cardiac failure.
Asparagus fern. Causes gastric/intestinal upset and allergic dermatitis.
Box wood. Causes vomiting and diarrhea.
Calla lilies. They cause irritation to mouth and lips.
Chives. Causes blood in the urine and increased heart rate.
Daffodils. Cause vomiting, diarrhea, tremors and cardiac problems leading to death.
Day lilies. All lilies in the family are poisonous to dogs and cats. They can cause vomiting, tiredness, kidney failure and even death.
English Ivy. Causes increased salivation and abdominal pain.
Ficus and other euphorbias. They produce a white, milky substance within the stems and leaves that can cause blindness.
Fox glove (Digitalis). Can cause cardiac failure.
Garlic. Vomiting and breakdown of red blood cells
Geraniums (Pelargoniums). Cause vomiting, depression and dermatitis.
Hellebores. Can cause drooling, abdominal pain, diarrhea.
Holly. It has low toxicity, but can cause vomiting, diarrhea and depression.
Hydrangea. Cause vomiting, depression. It can eventually kill a dog or cat if they keep chewing on it.
Mistletoe. Can cause vomiting, diarrhea, low heart rate. (People bring in mistletoe during the holidays. This is not a good idea.)
Oleander. These grow all over Fresno, even on freeway medians, because they are drought tolerant and hardy. If eaten, it can cause drooling, abdominal pain and cardiac problems.
Onions. Causes vomiting and the breakdown of red blood cells.
Poinsettia. Causes excessive drooling.
Rhubarb. The leaves are deadly to pets. They cause kidney failure and excessive salivation.
Sweet peas. They can cause weakness, tremors, and even death in dogs and cats.
Tulips. Causes vomiting, diarrhea and depression. The bulb is worse than the flower.
White cyclamens. It can cause excessive salivation, vomiting, diarrhea, heart rhythms and even death.
Wisteria. Can cause vomiting, diarrhea and depression.
Common indoor plants toxic for pets:
Aloes. Can cause vomiting, diarrhea, lethargy, and occasionally, tremors. Severe dehydration is also a risk.
Amarillys. A very popular Christmas flower that can be purchased at nurseries, grocery and big box stores. They can cause vomiting, diarrhea and tremors.
Begonia. Can cause vomiting and excessive salivating in dogs and cats.
Dracaena. It can cause toxic vomiting and excessive salivating.
Dieffenbachia (dumb cane plant). It can cause oral irritation, swelling and drooling.
Geraniums: They can cause cardiac failure, leading to death.
Jade plant. They can cause vomiting, depression and lack of coordination.
Monstera deliciosa. This plant contains cyanide.
Pathos. It can cause oral irritation and excessive drooling.
Peace lily. Can cause vomiting.
Snake plant. Can cause nausea, vomiting and diarrhea.
Weeping fig. It can cause skin and gastric/intestinal irritation.
ZZ plant. Can cause vomiting and diarrhea.
Basso also shared a list of plants that are perfectly safe for pets:
Alyssum
Bachelors' buttons.
Boston fern.
Bottle brush.
Canna lily.
Cast iron plant.
Christmas cactus.
Coral bells.
Crape myrtles.
Creeping Charlie
Echevaria.
Parlor palms or golden butterflies.
Spider plants.
Zebra Hawthorn.
- Author: Lauren Fordyce
In February we recognize Valentine's Day, President's Day, and Black History Month, but did you know it is also IPM month?! Join us in celebrating by learning more about integrated pest management (IPM), how you can use it in your everyday life, and the pest management resources and information offered by UC IPM.
What is IPM?
Integrated pest management (IPM) is a more sustainable, environmentally friendly method for managing pests like insects, diseases, weeds, and unwanted wildlife. IPM can be used by anyone: homeowners, tenants, farmers, gardeners, janitors, groundskeepers, professional landscapers and pest control operators, and more.
IPM focuses on the long-term management of pests through prevention and monitoring. This reduces pests reaching damaging levels and becoming difficult to control or requiring pesticide use. One way pests can be prevented outdoors is by providing plants with proper care (water, sunlight, and nutrients). You can prevent pests from coming indoors by sealing gaps around windows and doors. Monitor for pests using tools like sticky traps, or visual inspection.
Once a pest becomes a problem, it must be correctly identified so the correct management solution can be chosen. Many pests can be managed without the use of pesticides. In IPM, we often choose nonchemical solutions first:
- Biological control: the use of natural enemies—predators, parasites, pathogens, and competitors—to controlpests and their damage. Some examples of natural enemies include ladybeetles, lacewings, and spiders.
- Cultural control: practices that limit pests from establishing, reproducing, and living where they're not wanted. These practices can include increased cleanliness, proper storage of food, good plant care, and well-maintained landscape irrigation systems.
- Mechanical or physical control: kill a pest directly, block pests out, or make the environment unsuitable for them. Examples include traps for rodents, mulches for weed management, and flyswatters for flying insects.
Pesticides can still be an important part of IPM, but they should be used in combination with nonchemical solutions for long-term management. Pesticides alone will not solve a pest problem or prevent pests from becoming a problem again later. When pesticides are needed, choose products that are less toxic. Less toxic pesticides are those that pose fewer risks to people, pets, the environment, and natural enemies like ladybeetles. Learn more about less toxic pesticides at https://ipm.ucanr.edu/QT/lesstoxicinsecticidescard.html.
Whether you are trying to control cockroaches in an apartment, weeds in the garden, or diseases on landscape plants, UC IPM has the tools and resources to help you using an IPM approach.
To learn more about integrated pest management, visit https://ipm.ucanr.edu/what-is-ipm/ or view our resources for managing specific home, garden, and landscape pests using IPM at https://ipm.ucanr.edu/PMG/menu.homegarden.html.
/h2>- Author: Mike Hsu
Planning brochure for pets, livestock fills crucial need as fires an increasing threat
With the McKinney Fire creeping closer to Yreka in the summer of 2022, Emily Jackson and her mother potentially faced the enormous task of getting all their goats, chickens, dogs and cats to safety – while Emily's father and twin sister Lindsay were away fighting the fires.
Fortunately, Emily and Lindsay had gained crucial knowledge about evacuating animals through a 4-H service-learning project they helped lead in 2018. A group of eight 4-H youths, ages 14 to 18, had created a “Pet Emergency Evacuation Plan” (PEEP) brochure, aimed at educating their neighbors in Siskiyou County about the necessary preparations for livestock and pets.
The brochure, available through the Siskiyou County website, remains in use today in this densely forested region that saw another spate of wildfires this summer. The PEEP project team was composed of Kylie Daws, Emily Jackson, Lindsay Jackson, Will Morris, Madison Restine, Maryssa Rodriguez, Emily Smith and Callahan Zediker.
Within those stressful hours in 2022 when the McKinney Fire prompted an evacuation warning during which residents could be required to leave at any moment, Emily Jackson said she and her mother had a game plan in place – thanks to her work on the PEEP project.
“At the time, it wasn't even on my mind,” Jackson said, “but looking back now, I know that having the experience from making that brochure was driving my thought process at the time.”
And while the Jackson family and their neighbors ultimately were not asked to evacuate in 2022, many community members have benefited from the hundreds of copies of the PEEP brochure in circulation, which prompts residents to at least think about what their animals would need in an emergency, Jackson said.
Pet and livestock evacuation tips were needed
Such a resource previously had not been available among the county's emergency preparation materials, according to Jacki Zediker, the 4-H regional program coordinator in Siskiyou County who advised the PEEP project group.
“One piece that was missing was how to help our communities understand that when they evacuate, and they take their pets with them…it's not as simple as just taking their pets with them,” said Zediker, citing the example that some shelters do not take in animals – or do not take animals without proof of vaccination.
Other items to add to the pet's emergency kit include food for several days, water, medications, comfort items or toys, and recent photos of the owner with their animal (proof of ownership).
Zediker had connected the young people with Jodi Aceves, senior deputy agriculture commissioner/sealer for Siskiyou County, who had been overseeing the county's Animal Control programs and emergency response.
“There's a lot of information out there for people evacuating, but not necessarily for livestock and pets,” Aceves said. “Unfortunately, we have had some fires where there were lots of pets and livestock lost.”
She met several times with the 4-H group, discussing the county's evacuation systems and processes and the role of the Office of Emergency Services and law enforcement agencies, and sharing key considerations in preparing for emergencies – such as having a pre-agreement in place with someone who could house an evacuee's animals.
Aceves praised the teens for distilling the vital information into a short and simple brochure that community members could easily read and remember. She also was impressed by the energy and genuine care that the young people put into the project.
“Most of their lives, every summer, they've been in fire,” Aceves said. “It's close to their hearts, and they've seen a lot of their neighbors and other people in the county either affected by fire or evacuated at some point.”
For Lindsay Jackson, in particular, fire and serving the community have been lifelong passions, inspired by her father's work in the area.
“My dad was a volunteer fire chief for the South Yreka Fire Department; he was doing that since I was about two or three, so I grew up watching him go to the trainings, go to a call,” she explained. “When I was 15, I joined the fire department as a cadet to help out with the medical side, but the more I volunteered, I really liked the fire side, too.”
Jackson added that Zediker has a special knack for nurturing and encouraging the interests of the 4-H participants and applying them in a productive way.
“Jacki was really good at figuring out where our passions were and then how we could put our passions into a service-learning project,” she said. “She knew I was really big into fire and helping the community in that way since I was young.”
Zediker also helped the Jackson twins on their senior project, a fire-safety field day at the South Yreka fire station. More than 100 schoolchildren learned fire safety basics, met firefighters and emergency personnel, and heard about 4-H from Lindsay and Emily.
4-H experiences, mentorship inspire career paths
The PEEP project group also was asked by several organizations to share their knowledge about emergency preparations for animals. In addition to presenting a poster about their work at the 4-H California Focus conference in 2018, the group handed out the brochure and shared information at a table during a Juniper Flat Fire Safe Council workshop and resource fair.
Beyond distributing the PEEP brochure at 4-H club meetings, school events and community meetings, the youths have lent their voices to advocating for emergency resources for animals. Zediker noted that they contributed testimonials that helped the county acquire grants for purchasing more portable kennels.
But the most enduring impact of 4-H participation and community service, however, is that those experiences were a springboard for the young adults' careers. Emily Jackson – who participated in 4-H from age 5 to 19 – is now working toward a master's degree in biology at Cal Poly Humboldt, studying how fire suppression and other factors have changed plant communities in the Russian Wilderness.
Whether training colleagues as a U.S. Forest Service crew lead for the past couple of summers, or leading lab sections in general botany as a graduate student, Jackson said she draws on her 4-H experiences – and Zediker's inspirational example – as she pursues a career in teaching.
“In my development as a young adult into an adult now, I cannot overstate how big of a role Jacki played in that,” Jackson said.
Her sister Lindsay, meanwhile, has pursued her passion for fire all the way through the fire academy at College of the Siskiyous, where she also earned her emergency medical technician (EMT) license. Most recently working on fires near Pondosa in Siskiyou County, Jackson has been a seasonal firefighter based at the McCloud CAL FIRE station since 2020.
“It's hard because, in the last three years, I haven't left Siskiyou County, there's just been so many fires here,” she said. “But it's nice being able to help your community and know you're making a difference.”
Lindsay Jackson intends to pursue a bachelor's degree in leadership studies at Cal Poly Humboldt in hopes of getting a full-time position with CAL FIRE.
/h3>/h3>/h3>- Author: Pamela Kan-Rice
- Author: Mike Hsu
On National Pet Day, April 11, we paused (or PAWsed) to honor our furry friends.
Thanks to all of you who posted pet pics on the ANR Employees Group Facebook page or sent photos, we got to see some of the furry faces that inspire our UC ANR colleagues.
Someone has to work to put pet food on the table – and a woof, sorry!, roof over your heads – and it may as well be you. Those treats and toys don't buy themselves. Thanks for making the world a furrier and friendlier place.
For your a-mews-ment, we present the following:
- Author: Pamela Kan-Rice
Show us the animals that inspire you each day. Post a pic of your pet on the ANR Employees Group Facebook page or email photos labeled with pet names to pam.kanrice@ucanr.edu with "Pet Pic" in the subject line.
We'll put them in the April edition of ANR Employee News.