Second-hand smoke hard on pets

I've always hated cigarette smoke. In fact, I used to avoid being near a person who was smoking mainly because I hate the smell cigarettes leave behind.

When California banned cigarette smoking in restaurants, bars and other public places I was the law's Number 1 fan. Four of my family members, on the other hand, felt persecuted.

I always felt that second-hand smoke was dangerous, but it sure took lawmakers a while to finally figure it out.

It took findings about second hand smoke to finally get some legislature passed. But what about pets living indoors with smokers?

Well, according to Shasta County Public Health's handout Paws for Tips, dogs that live with smokers have a 60 percent greater chance of developing cancer. In this same flyer, cats living with smokers are three times more likely to develop lymphoma or cancer.

It is a shame the legal system had to get involved in this issue in the first place when it involves people's lives. Common sense should have kicked in and dictated how each smoker should handle it. It stands to reason that cigarette smoke is more harmful in concentrated amounts than when allowed to dissipate out in the open air.

A medical studies/trials publication said if smoking is harmful to human beings, it would make sense that second-hand smoke would have an adverse effect on pets that live in the homes of smokers, said Dr. Carolynn MacAllister, a veterinarian with the Oklahoma State University Cooperative Extension Service.

She said, "Second-hand smoke has been associated with oral cancer and lymphoma in cats, lung and nasal cancer in dogs, as well as lung cancer in birds."

I don't want the government telling me how to run my life any more than smokers want to be told they can't smoke in certain places.

But why is it that so many smokers are in denial about the direct or indirect dangerous effects of cigarette smoke on people and pets?

How many pets that live indoors die before their time because of second-hand cigarette smoke? I don't know either, but it was suggested that the number is higher than we want to think about. Our pets ride in the car, live in the home where smokers refuse to do anything about it because of what reason? I don't think pets care about anybody's rights. Our pets don't care if we smoke or don't smoke and they don't tell us not to smoke. Actually, they can't tell us not to smoke.

So, if you truly care about your pets, perhaps you should step outside on the porch and do the smoking.

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