Secondhand smoke affects pets too. Pets, just like humans, can be affected by secondhand smoke.
And your pets don’t just suffer the ill-effects of inhaling secondhand smoke. Particle matter within secondhand smoke also settles on their fur and is ingested by them during grooming.
Prolonged exposure to secondhand smoke will eventually take its toll on pets, who may go on to suffer the pain and distress of chronic breathing difficulties or cancer.
• Dogs are twice as likely to develop a cancerous tumour when living with a smoker
• Cats that are regularly exposed to secondhand smoke in the home are twice as likely to develop feline lymphoma, a potentially fatal form of cancer
• Birds cannot filter the air they breathe in, causing smoke to be trapped which blackens their lungs and can lead to pneumonia and secondary infections.
Pets also sometimes eat cigarettes and other tobacco products causing nicotine poisoning which can be fatal.
