Rosita the bag lady.

It takes 1000 years for a plastic bag to be finally decomposed.

I have several times posted about Rosita’s small size and how she is able to wriggle through the enclosure wire. Her birthday brought it home to me that she really should be bigger. Then when Tutti arrived the comparison in size was quite alarming. This 4 month old male was bigger than Rosita. We began with a batch of tests to determine whether there was an underlying cause for her apparent stunted growth. Parasites were ruled out and so was infectious disease. We separated her from her foster mother, MonaLisa, so we could observe her carefully. You will understand that in the group environment it is impossible to handle or observe a member of the group without interference from other members. This can be dangerous. If the group feels that you mean harm to a member then the whole family will attack fearlessly . In this family, MonaLisa, Emma, Nancy, Rosita, it is a case of ‘no fury like a woman scorned’.*

As a result of this separation, several things came to light.
We had already noted that Rosita was very interested in food. When ever food was served in other enclosures, Rosita, using her ability to wriggle through fences, would join each group and share their food. She would also come into the house when our own food was on the table. Why was it then, with this fascination with food, was she so small?
What became clear as a result of our closer study, was that she would only eat a small amount before moving on to the next dish. Even then she would select mouth size pieces and she has a small mouth. Our attention was further concentrated when we realized that recently she has been loosing tone in her arms and legs.

The present situation is that she is now with me all the time. She lives and sleeps in the house, away from other monkeys and is carefully observed during meal times. Her meals are carefully selected to be things that we know she likes and this food is available to her all day so that she can have a little, as and when she likes. She returns to her food table often during the day. This would be impossible in the group because at the end of meal time either all the food would have been consumed or it would have been distributed around the enclosure. Monkeys are not clean eaters. She has a regime of vitamins and calcium and fresh leaves from the forest every day. The result in a very short time has been quite dramatic. She is putting on weight and muscle tone.

* While many attribute the quote to William Shakespeare, it actually comes from a play called the "The Mourning Bride" (1697) by William Congreve. The complete quote is "Heaven has no rage like love to hatred turned / Nor hell a fury like a woman scorned."

One thing has puzzled us; she loves to chew plastic bags. The chewing is quite vigorous. Naturally I view this as a bad habit, one has no idea what chemical deposit may be left over from the manufacturing process that might be harmful to a monkey. Plastic bags are everywhere in our society and it is difficult to prevent her from finding one. Needless to say as soon as this behavior is observed the bag is confiscated. She is not alone in the habit; MonaLisa also has a passion for chewing bags. I refuse unnecessary plastic bags when they are supplied in shops. It takes 1000 years for a plastic bag to be finally decomposed.
Our pictures are both of Rosita. One with a plastic bag and better one with a bunch of fresh leaves from the forest.

Eslabon and the washing machine

Eslabon has settled in very well. He is a happy and playful monkey. He entertains Tutti and Rosita in his enclosure and they play happily together. He makes use of all the locations in his enclosure. Monkeys love old washing machines and he spends the early morning in his. Most of the rest of the day he plays in the garden with Tutti and in the late evening, he gets comfortable in his house. Our picture shows him checking out the facilities on the washing machine.

Totto and Sophie Fishcake

I am very fond of fishcakes and I make them quite often. Totto and Sophie also like them, so I always make a couple of extra servings. In our pictures today you see Sophie enjoying hers and Totto with fishcake in both hands. It’s a hard life when you can’t make up your mind which one to start with first.

Question and Answer board at the Simian Society

Recently there has been some correspondence on the American Simian Society Question and Answer board concerning the diet of Capuchin monkeys. One contributor advised using commercially available foods. As you know, my experience is principally with Howler monkeys in our shelter in Cojedes Venezuela. Although from time to time we have sheltered Capuchin monkeys for fairly long periods whilst they were being prepared for release into the wild.

I replied directly to Jake, who was the original questioner but there were some points in my letter which may be of interest to readers here.

‘I am also in Venezuela and share Jake’s difficulty in obtaining ‘Monkey Chow’ or any of the specially prepared monkey foods. Quite apart from the inconvenience of importing directly, there is now an added disadvantage to personal importation. Goods arriving by post are subject to new regulations as well as a prohibitive tax of 150%. The actual process requires you to visit the post office in Valencia or Caracas (Local post offices are not enabled for this job), and complete a document with seven copies. Then visit a bank across town to deposit approximately five dollars. This is only to commence the transaction. You must then return to the post office, with proof of deposit, to be informed of the customs charge. Right, yes off to a different bank to deposit the 150%. Then return with proof of payment to pick up the goods. This backwards and forward will take you the best part of a day and woe betide you if your to and fro ing crosses the magic 11.30 till 3 lunch period. Certainly for me, importation is not an option.

From what Jake has said I think he is doing all the right things. We also had concern about providing a balance amount of protein in the Howler diet and in the absence of ‘Monkey Chow’ in Venezuela; we did an internet search and from that compounded our own ‘chow’

Here is the formula:

Ground beef fat removed, or ground chicken for protein. 100 g
Milk powder Two large spoonfuls
All Bran flakes. (is fortified with Vitamins A y C calcium and zinc) 200 g
Quaker oats , has vit A and C 200 g
Soy protein soaked in hot water for 20 minutes before use and drained 100 g
Eggs two large Eggs as Protein and binder.

The quantities can be varied dependant on the taste of the monkeys and the ingredient can be varied dependant on what is available.

We mix the all the dry ingredient together and allow to stand for an hour. We whisk the eggs and add them this should give you a slightly moist mixture which can be formed into shapes. We use a smallest size standard kitchen biscuit former. We place the biscuits on a metal plate and put into a hot oven at 350 for 20 minutes. Allow to go cold and then chop into mouth size pieces.
The children love their biscuits. They keep fairly well in the fridge for a couple of weeks although I like to make mine weekly so that they are always fresh. I call them protein bombs. I regard them being as a supplement to the fresh fruit, leaves and vegetables that we give them daily.

We feed our children twice a day.

Once at about 7 am. Milk banana shake with added Merengada flavor Mantecado, ‘Kiddi’ vitamin syrup and a small shot of Mirrapel (omega 3 y 6 from veterinary shops). A plate of fresh fruit, varied each day between cooked and raw bananas and papaya, a daily a plate of quartered oranges.

Midday a bunch of fresh leaves from the forest.

Second meal at 4 pm

As much as they like of mixed vegetables Apio, Pumpkin, carrots but daily a different flavor. One day Soy with Tuna, another day boiled eggs in mayonnaise, once a week steamed chicken pieces.
This vegetable mixture is steamed and chopped into mouth size pieces or sometimes grated and served raw. (not the chicken of course)

I am not trying to better the 'Monkey Chow' offering but in the absence of commercial importation we have to improvise'.

Eslabon and Tutti spend the day playing together

Eslabon has settled down well. He has overcome the trauma of relocation and has made new friends. He has explored his enclosure and now has his favorite places. Surprisingly he has chosen to sleep in the small hammock rather than the house we have built for him. But he may come around to using it when he discovers its comforts. He uses the large hammock as a springboard onto the many ropes and bamboo walkways in his enclosure. During the day, Tutti shares his home and the pair of them get on well. You can see Tutti in our picture, practicing his gymnastics. Eslabon is pictured here early morning, still in his small hammock. Soon he will be outside in his garden, making the best of the morning sunshine.

Introducing Eslabon

Eslabon came to Cañaote last Thursday the 2nd of August and we understand that he is one year old. He is physically fit and his coat is in good condition. He is taking his separation from his human family badly. He cried frequently on the first day. Now he is establishing a new bond to me and he is very demanding. He wishes to be with me all the time. This is frequently the case with children who have had strong relationship with humans before coming here. Of course I like to think that this is our specialty, caring for highly domesticated Howlers.

I see our task as twofold. Firstly the most painless transition to a new home that is possible. This, we try to achieve by keeping the monkey in close proximity to us. When a new monkey arrives they always have a home adjoining our house and where frequent contact with them is possible. If they are unhappy, we can hear them crying and go to them with love and support just as you would a human child. Usually on the first and subsequent nights we take them into our own rooms. This is necessary because as yet they will not have a companion. Howlers depend for warmth in the night by close proximity to another monkey. Sleeping alone is open to the danger of hypothermia.

Second part of our task is to settle the child with a suitable companion in a location designed for long term living.

Often our monkeys have never lived as monkeys. Rather they have been treated as small human children. We attempt to teach them the monkey life by giving them natural surroundings and suitable companions. All our enclosures are large and have real trees. Their food is as natural as we can possibly make it with fresh fruit and leaves brought in from the forest everyday in addition to a specially prepared balanced diet. At the same time these children have become accustomed to some human comforts and it would be mean to deprive them of these things on a matter of principal. For example, Howlers love hammocks and the more the better. They love boxes of all kinds and old top loading washing machines. In preparing a suitable home for Eslabon we had a special task of converting an old washing machine for him. This particular machine had been of high quality and the central spindle appeared at first impossible to remove. At first we thought we it too difficult but fortunately an engineer, who lives near us, saw our problem and came with suitable equipment and succeeded in removing the spindle. It now resides in Eslabon’s enclosure.
His enclosure is really quite crowded with furniture.
He has a large house with pillows and blankets. This has been specially constructed for him in Saman wood. It is a tall house with two soft doors so that he has easy access but at the same time stays warm. The walls are plastic coated to give him added comfort. Yesterday the farm was filled with the sound of the wood cutting machine and drills applying screws to his new house. He has a human size hammock as well as a small one. Numerous ropes and of course his washing machine.
His enclosure has been built in the corridor of our house in a location adjoining my bedroom. It also has a gated window to his outside garden, which has live trees as well as many bamboo walkways.
In the coming days we will be introducing him to a number of other monkeys. We will be looking for a suitable companion for him.

He is a charming and gentle monkey and I am certain he will be happy here.
Our top picture shows Eslabon testing out the bed in his house and the second picture shows him getting comfortable on my lap.

Schatov and Maniña tonight at late night supper

Top Maniña with Schatov center.
Who ever said that howlers are expressionless? Just look at that expression on Schatov's face. If that isn't a smile then I don't know what is. They have reason to be happy. A plate of fresh salad and a bowl of orange juice makes a light supper and not too heavy a meal before retiring for the night. Schatov as usual will sleep with Tutti in David's room. Tutti waits for him to arrive and makes happy noises when Schatov jumps on the bed. Schatov has become his big brother and he really does stand up for Tutti. Maniña always shares with me.
Talking about big brother, have you noticed how big these two boys are getting?
Lots happening here this week. We are completing a new enclosure and building a house for it. We have renovated an old washing machine for afternoon naps. Howlers love to sleep in old washing machines. Pictures of course when we have finished.
We received a call from a family in Maracuy, wishing to bring a young male howler to us but more about that if it happens.

Time flies when you are having fun.

We went to Manrique this week to visit Marco, Sussy and Vicky. This was a much overdue visit. I managed a few good pictures of Sussy and spent some quality time with her.
I had to admire Marco, who has become very adult and handsome. He was pleased to see me but I think more by reason of the gifts that I brought him than recognition. Unfortunately, time ran out and I was unable to get any good photographs of him and Vicky.

Tutti Italiano

Yes I know you saw the last posting and you know that Tutti and Rosita had an Italian meal but I thought you would like to see the elegance with which Tutti handles his spaghetti.

Tutti and Rosita are great pals

Last night Tutti (right) and Rosita shared an Italian meal. You see them busy eating cheese and spaghetti. Not a diet that I would recommend for a healthy Howler but as you can see they love the Italian flavor.
When Tutti arrived with us he was suffering from a vicious mite attack. This photograph is interesting because it shows the extent of the damage that the mite infection did to the hair on Tutti's head. This has been completely cured and there is now vigorous new hair growth.

Our Birthday honours list

It is difficult to give an exact date of birth for most of our children. They come from diverse locations. Some come from confiscation at the roadside and others come from good homes. But universally we cannot pinpoint the exact birthday or even year in some cases. It has been our policy at Cañaote to give everyone a birthday related to when they arrived here. Their arrival date is their birthday.

Emma 24/06/05
Eslabon 02/08/07 1 year old when arrived
Maniña 11/04/06 2 years old when arrived
MonaLisa 29/10/03 1 year and 9 months when arrived
Marco 17/12/03
Nancy 28/10/06
Rosita 14/07/06
Schatov 21/01/06
Sophie 12/02/04
Sussy 31/08/03 13 years old when arrived
Totto 17/06/06 ? when arrived
Tutti 09/06/07

If any one has more information about age or original date of birth, please mail me.

Totto and Sophie at home.

We don't often show pictures of Totto and Sophie together and perhaps it is not realized how Sophie has grown. From being a small monkey alongside Totto, she is now quite a large person. Truthfully we expected her to show signs of pregnancy by now but that hasn't happened yet. She is of course still very young. She has a complex mentality which we have found difficult to analyze at times. We will write more about her in another posting soon.
Our pictures tonight, show them both having just returned from Rosita's party.

Rosita's birthday party.

Well it all began quietly enough. Rosita stood at the door early looking at birthday cards. There was one from Sussy and another from Marco and Vicky. She was thrilled when William the delivery boy, brought in the birthday cake. She resisted the temptation to steal a bit from the side where the cream had overflowed slightly. She set the cake down on the big table next to the cucumber and salmon sandwiches. Taking their cue from her, all the guests started to arrive early. Totto was first in with Sophie on his arm. His coat was gleaming with good grooming. Obviously Sophie had helped him dress for the evening.
Schatov and Maniña were the next to arrive. Schatov was carrying a mysterious black bag. Whilst Maniña pressed a piece of half chewed biscuit into Rosita’s hand and said, ‘Happy birthday dear Rosita’.
MonaLisa arrived with Emma and Nancy; they were already wearing their party hats maybe the ones left over from Christmas.
Last of all came Tutti, he rushed up to Schatov because being very new he did not know any of the other guests. Since his arrival at Cañaote, Schatov has taken the little fellow under his wing.
Someone switched the player on and there was a gentle background of music against the chatter of conversation.
There were the usual assortment of party games and everyone was having a good time. After a time, Maniña stood up and announced that a famous magician called Shattering Schatov was here at the party and would do some tricks. At this point Schatov got up on the little stage and began to do some conjuring. His card prestidigitation has become quite famous. This all went fine until he said, ’for my next trick’, and proceeded to open the mysterious black bag he had been carrying all evening. Suddenly there was the incredible flapping of wings and Tweety Pie the Laurel bird emerged from the bag. Obviously confused and frightened, she began flying erratically around the room. First landing on the partly eaten cake, where she got a wingful of cream. As she continued her journey around the room she daubed this wing like a paintbrush on everything she touched. In an attempt to control the situation, Nancy threw a large piece of green jelly at the bird but missed. Unfortunately it hit Totto on the side of his face and he let out a roar. As he swiped the jelly of his face his hand hit the plate of jelly and it catapulted across the room, covering everybody in its path with jelly.
MonaLisa, with characteristic good sense said ‘calm down everyone, it was just an accident, Tissues and towels are available in the bathroom.’
Well everyone did calm down, which just goes to show what sensible folk howler monkeys are.
With lots of enthusiasm they all sang ‘Happy birthday dear Rosita’, and the assembled party began to drift towards the door.
‘It been a great party and thanks for having us’, said Sophie and the whole party echoed her sentiments.

Happy birthday Rosita

Rosita is one year old today. In spite of all our efforts she is still a small person. I have previously mentioned that she is a great eater. Because she is so slim, she is able to leave her enclosure at will. During mealtimes she visits all the other enclosures, (except Totto and Sophie) and joins in the meals. At first we suspected worms, but our tests show negative. Next we considered her diet, but this is a well balanced meal and she has a great appetite. Finally we have decided to stop worrying about it and accept that she is just a small person. Recently we noticed some hair loss on Emma, who lives in the same enclosure. After taking a careful look we discovered that she has fleas and her scratching has caused the loss of hair. We were able to shampoo MonaLisa and Rosita but Emma is aggressive and resistant to being washed and Nancy is very protective of her foster mother. With them we resorted to flea powder and we are waiting to see the result. In the meantime it made sense to separate MonaLisa and Rosita to another enclosure. Without any difficulty, Rosita changed her own abode to be with her foster mother, MonaLisa. They are inseparable, Rosita really loves MonaLisa.
Later today we think a party has been arranged for Rosita’s birthday but it is all being kept hush hush. More about that later. Our picture shows Rosita enjoying her birthday breakfast this morning.

Sussy on Vacatiion

Sussy is on vacation in Manrique, to see her foster son Marco and his wife Vicky. By the sound of things she is having a great time. You will remember that Manrique was Sussy's first home, before she came to live at Cañaote. Vicky by all accounts is pregnant, so I imagine that Sussy, having been a mother many times has good advice to give her.
Naturally we are receiving many post cards from Sussy saying 'wish you were here, the water is fine'.

Maniña has good table manners.

Howler monkeys are not known for their dexterity. Usually if a monkey interacts with human articles it is disastrous. Cups plates and pots go flying and usually end up broken on the floor. Monkeys live in trees and are not accustomed to handling human things. And that is the way it should be. However, from time to time one meets a Howler with exceptional skills. Maniña is one of those. Before he came to Cañaote, his owners allowed him the run of the house and took him out to restaurants. He is very sophisticated in human ways. He is emotional and has been known to sulk if he does not get his own way. He likes to embrace and to kiss if you will let him. He loves music and will encourage you to dance with him if he gets the rhythm. His idea of siesta is to curl up in a ball on your lap. He definitely has the human touch. He is skilled in table etiquette as you can see from our photograph. He is able to raise a cup or pot and lift it so he is able to drink out of it without spilling. He then places the cup back on the table without breaking it. Now that is clever.

Five thousand six hundred and thirty two dogs.

Last Sunday at about ten A.M. a procession of vehicles arrived at Cañaote and after a short period of organizing the car parking, the Asoguau Foundation ambulance arrived.
(A voice was heard from inside one of the enclosures, we think it might have been Maniña, ‘Oh no! Not again’).

Three Veterinary doctors and assistants as well as a support party came to carry out the neutering and spaying of dogs from the area. The ambulance has an electrical port on the rear for 220 volts, this we were able to provide.
Gabriela, our friend from Manrique also arrived and gave us great help on the organising side.
An invitation had been sent to all the local villages and farms, to bring their dogs for treatment. Eleven dogs were treated. In all cases the work went smoothly with no cause for concern. Looking back today in retrospect, we can say that all the dogs have been examined whilst giving them the follow up medication and all the patients were successful with no complications.

This is wonderful work that the Asoguau Foundation carry out and completely free of charge to the dog owners. A moment’s reflection shows that eleven dogs having eight puppies is eighty eight. Eighty eight having eight puppies is seven hundred and four and seven hundred and four having eight puppies is Five thousand six hundred and thirty two. And ………
We saved the world from being completely inundated with dogs.

At the end of the day the party relaxed for a while over a meal and then after our grateful thanks the party left for home near Valencia.

We are impressed with the professionalism and care and the shear hard work that the team showed. We made some new friends and are certain of future co operation with Asoguau Foundation. In particular we thank Nathalie, Roberto as well as Maria and Gabriela for making this visit possible.

Tutti gets tucked up

Tutti was suffering from an insect infestation when he came to us. This is now under control and he is out of quarantine. He lost a considerable amount of hair on his crown and tail but this is now slowly growing back. He spends his day in a small enclosure in which he has sight of Schatov and Maniña and of course the outside world. He gets his fair share of sunlight, essential for a growing child. He is very young, probably about 5 months old. He seeks company. The highlight of his day is bedtime. He is allowed to share the bed with Schatov, who behaves like big brother. As soon as Schatov appears, Tutti makes happy noises and runs towards him. Not long afterwards they settle down for the night. Our new green parrot, ‘Tweetie Pie’ doesn’t want to be left out.
In our picture you can see the three of them together, Tutti tucked up with Schatov and Tweetie Pie settling down as well, and this is the line up for most of the night.

This week we received a call from and lady in Caracas about her monkey ‘Hugo’ could we take him? It was so urgent that she was going to motor down the next day. We heard no more. Hugo joins Willi in the Ghosts of Cañaote.

We are looking forward to Sunday. Our friends at Asoguau foundation in Valencia have organized an ambulance to visit us with no less than three Veterinary Doctors and support team.. They are going to carry out spaying and neutering of dogs in the area completely without charge. This is great work and I will report more on this event after the visit on Sunday.
I understand that Asogau have rescued a waif, a baby Howler of only 3 months. They have asked us to care for him and we believe he will arrive with them on Sunday. When will this terrible trade end?

Rosita Houdina gives us cause for concern.

Rosita has given us some cause for concern. I have reported that she can easily pass through the wire of enclosure. She does this frequently during the day. Rosita goes on extended visits to Sussy and Schatov and Maniña. Recently she has added Tutti to her itinerary. What is more worrying is that yesterday she was seen walking along the high voltage security fence. At first I thought this was a visiting wild monkey. Her coat was puffed up and I did not immediately recognize her. This is the first time we have seen her at any distance from her enclosure. Fortunately, I have been cautious about using the high voltage equipment since discovering her wandering habits, and it was not switched on. We have been praying that she would put on a little more weight to prevent her escaping. Whilst it is true that she has put on a little girth she can still slip through. We have an alternative plan to construct a new home for this group with finer gauge wire. (MonaLisa, Rosita, Emma and Nancy). Having seen her on the fence yesterday has added some urgency to this project. We started the new construction in earnest this morning. My photograph shows her just exiting the enclosure; it is slightly out of focus. I will replace it with another when I have the opportunity.

A little of what you fancy does you good?

I have included this item as I know that some of my readers keep small animals as pets. This obviously includes dogs, monkeys and parrots of various kinds.

Unfortunately this old adage about a little of what you fancy is NOT true of your pets. A small piece of chocolate can be seriously toxic to a small animal.

Chocolate contains theobromine, a compound that is a cardiac stimulant and a diuretic.

When affected by an overdose of chocolate, a small animal can become excited and hyperactive. Due to the diuretic effect, it may pass large volumes of urine and it will be unusually thirsty. Vomiting and diarrhoea are also common. The effect of theobromine on the heart is the most dangerous effect. Theobromine will either increase the animal’s heart rate or may cause the heart to beat irregularly. Death is quite possible, especially with exercise.

After their pet has eaten a large quantity of chocolate, many pet owners assume the pet is unaffected. However, the signs of sickness may not be seen for several hours, with death following within twenty-four hours.

Cocoa powder and cooking chocolate are the most toxic forms. A 10-kilogram dog can be seriously affected if it eats a quarter of a 250gm packet of cocoa powder or half of a 250gm block of cooking chocolate. These forms of chocolate contain ten times more theobromine than milk chocolate. A chocolate mud cake could be a real health risk for a small dog. Even licking a substantial part of the chocolate icing from a cake can make an animal unwell.

Semi-sweet chocolate and dark chocolate are the next most dangerous forms, with milk chocolate being the least dangerous. A dog needs to eat more than a 250gm block of milk chocolate to be affected. Obviously, the smaller the animal, the less it needs to eat.

Onion and garlic poisoning

Onions and garlic are other dangerous food ingredients that cause sickness in dogs, cats and also livestock. Onions and garlic contain the toxic ingredient thiosulphate. Onions are more of a danger.

Pets affected by onion toxicity will develop haemolytic anaemia, where the pet’s red blood cells burst while circulating in its body.

At first, pets affected by onion poisoning show gastroenteritis with vomiting and diarrhoea. They will show no interest in food and will be dull and weak. The red pigment from the burst blood cells appears in an affected animal’s urine and it becomes breathless. The breathlessness occurs because the red blood cells that carry oxygen through the body are reduced in number.

The poisoning occurs a few days after the pet has eaten the onion. All forms of onion can be a problem including dehydrated onions, raw onions, cooked onions and table scraps containing cooked onions and/or garlic. Left over pizza, Chinese dishes and commercial baby food containing onion, sometimes fed as a supplement to young pets, can cause illness.

Onion poisoning can occur with a single ingestion of large quantities or with repeated meals containing small amounts of onion. A single meal of 600 to 800 grams of raw onion can be dangerous whereas a ten-kilogram dog, fed 150 grams of onion for several days, is also likely to develop anaemia. The condition improves once the dog is prevented from eating any further onion

While garlic also contains the toxic ingredient thiosulphate, it seems that garlic is less toxic and large amounts would need to be eaten to cause illness.

The danger of macadamia nuts
Macadamia nuts are another concern. A recent paper written by Dr. Ross McKenzie, a Veterinary Pathologist with the Department of Primary Industries, points to the danger of raw and roasted macadamia nuts for pets.

The toxic compound is unknown but the affect of macadamia nuts is to cause locomotory difficulties. Dogs develop a tremor of the skeletal muscles, and weakness or paralysis of the hindquarters. Affected dogs are often unable to rise and are distressed, usually panting. Some affected dogs have swollen limbs and show pain when the limbs are manipulated.

Dogs have been affected by eating as few as six macadamia kernels (nuts without the shell) while others had eaten approximately forty kernels. Some dogs had also been given macadamia butter.

Luckily, the muscle weakness, while painful, seems to be of short duration and all dogs recovered from the toxicity.

Pets owners should not assume that human food is always safe for pets. When it comes to chocolate, onions, garlic and macadamia nuts, such foods should be given in only small quantities, or not at all. Be sure that your pets can’t get into your stash of chocolates, that food scraps are disposed of carefully to prevent onion and garlic toxicity and that your pet is prevented from picking up macadamia nuts if you have a tree in your garden. In doubt? Get the child to a veterinary at the double

Other potential dangers

• Pear pips, the kernels of plums, peaches and apricots, apple core pips (contain cyanogenic glycosides resulting in cyanide posioning)
• Potato peelings and green looking potatoes
• Rhubarb leaves
• Mouldy/spoiled foods
• Alcohol
• Yeast dough
• Coffee grounds, beans & tea (caffeine)
• Hops (used in home brewing)
• Tomato leaves & stems (green parts)
• Broccoli (in large amounts)
• Raisins and grapes. Grapes ok without the seeds.
• Cigarettes, tobacco, cigars