We have had a tragic case recently of 2 cats poisoned by antifreeze. We do see this sort of poisoning from time to time, in both dogs and cats, but I am really worried that we may see even more cases.

The dog we saw last year with antifreeze poisoning was due to the dog drinking neat antifreeze out of the owner's garage. Unfortunately, ethylene glycol, the active ingredient, is sweet and attractive to animals. It initially makes them a bit drunk, as it is closely related to alcohol, but then rapidly causes kidney damage which very often leads to death. There is treatment available, but the response depends on the amount the pet has drunk, and the time between drinking it and getting treatment. The dog survived after intensive treatment; sadly the 2 cats were more severely affected and despite very intensive night and day treatment for several days, they died.

People are generally aware of the risk to pets and people from antifreeze used in cars. However, we believe that the source in this case was an ethylene glycol product used in water features in peoples' gardens. Cats love to drink running water, and the added poison would make it even more attractive. This is such an upsetting thought that we would like to get the word out to everyone who has a water feature, not to use antifreeze, please just switch it off until the risk of frosts is gone. The suffering of pets and owners is just not worth it.