Vaping with Pets: What You Need To Know

-Authored by Randi Sprintis

If there’s one thing out there that all vapers can agree on, it’s the urge to keep our pets safe, happy, and healthy. If vaping could possibly cause them any harm, we’d like to know about it. That’s why it’s important to be aware of news, medical studies, or pet health reports that show evidence of any potential dangers. For instance, even though it clearly states on all e-juice packaging that you should keep it away from pets or children, some vapers with pets learned the hard way how dangerous it can actually be. In 2014 in the United Kingdom, there was a reported death of a 14-month old puppy that ate a nicotine capsule. This incident made people more cautious about vaping around pets. Here are a few ways to make sure you’re keeping your pet safe.

Proper Ways to Vape Around Pets

• Always be sure to keep any e-liquids, nicotine salts or capsules away from pets. Make sure they’re on higher shelves that they can’t reach. It’s safest to have them locked in drawers or cabinets.
• Make sure any guests who vape also understand that you have a pet in the home and it’s necessary for them to be aware of their own items that might contain any nicotine.
• Research shows that dogs may not have an adverse reaction to PG (otherwise known as propylene glycol, which is an ingredient in vape juice). However, cats will have a bad reaction to PG. At the end of the day, it’s best to keep it away from all animals to be safe.
• Keep your vaping device away from all animals in the home. Dogs, in particular, might have an urge to chew on the tip of a pen, allowing them access to the e-liquid. It’s important to keep pens, disposables, or box mods away from pets.
• Be sure to keep batteries or any other electronic equipment for your vape device away from your pet in a locked location.
• The evidence is clear that second-hand vaping is not nearly as dangerous as second-hand smoking. While it can be okay to vape in front of your pet, it’s best to make sure the room is properly ventilated. Do not blow clouds of vape directly into your pet’s face.
• Don’t allow your pet to lick the end of a vaping device, as there is nicotine in even small amounts of e-liquid.

What To Do if Your Pet Has Nicotine Poisoning

It’s important to know the signs of nicotine poisoning. Pets who have consumed e-juice or nicotine salts will show signs of sickness that include heavy panting, high blood pressure, fatigue, loss of appetite, diarrhea, vomiting, extreme fatigue, or even seizures or nosebleeds. Check your pet’s tongue for odd discoloration. Usually, pets who consume e-juice will have blue, red, or purple coloring on their tongue which will be very noticeable. Make sure you have pet poison control hotline phone numbers readily available around the house. Don’t hesitate to call Pet Poison Helpline at 1-800-213-6680 (free of charge) or your vet immediately if you think your pet might be poisoned.