WEST PALM BEACH, Fla. — With National Pet Suffocation Awareness Week coming up in November, the pet suffocation awareness movement is gaining traction online.
“This is Boone and this is Blainey,” Laura Levine told WPTV at the City Paws Dog Park in West Palm Beach. “They’re my children. The children that will never leave home.”
So, Levine would be devastated if anything ever happened to her two dogs.
“Dogs will always get into just about anything they can, especially if there’s food involved,” she said.
A food warning for pet owners is gaining traction online ahead of Pet Suffocation Week, which is the week after Thanksgiving.
“What we want to do is keep getting that word out,” Bonnie Harlan said.
Harlan started the movement.
“I could see from afar that he had a Cheetos chip bag over his head and he wasn’t moving,” she said.
She’s talking about her dog, Blue. It happened back in 2011. The chip bag got stuck around Blue's head and he suffocated.
“I called my vet crying," Harlan said. " He rushed over and when he got there, he said to me, you know Bonnie there are 100 things I could have warned you about, a chip bag would not have been on the list.”
So, Harlan launched preventpetsuffocation.com and since then, she’s heard from thousands of families across the U.S.
“I have about 2,000 dogs, and some cats as well, who have either suffocated or almost suffocated,” she said.
The best way for pet owners to prevent suffocation is to cut chip and snacks bags after use and throw them away immediately, keep food stored safely away from pets, put lids on jars and containers when disposing them, and keep all trash can lids tightly fastened, locked, or behind a cabinet.
Levine told WPTV these are tips she’ll consider from now on.
“I will probably be more cognizant of leaving things like that on the counter and making sure my trash is not easily accessible to them,” she said. “Can’t be too careful with them.”
