Chicago air quality: How to keep your pets safe from wildfire smoke

Like us humans, older animals and those with underlying health conditions are most at risk of feeling the effects of this bad air quality. Lincoln Park Zoo enacted its air quality alert protocol yesterday, beginning with taking a closer look at the animals most at risk, including those with known respiratory conditions. All animals with outdoor access were also given the option to find relief from the hazy air inside. But so far, General Curator Dave Bernier says none have shown signs of distress that would require staff to keep them inside today and through the weekend, a team of about 75 zookeepers will continue to monitor their behavior closely and they can assess the animals that they have in their care, whether or not they should have outdoor access. Should they be only inside or can they have both? We restrict how much they exert themselves on exhibit. So a lot of times we make them work for their food, right? We want to use food bins. We use food enrichment devices in order to get them to stretch out their foraging time. In cases like this, we want them to exert themselves less. We also spoke with an emergency vet to find out what pet owners should watch for. She says this is a good weekend to skip that long walk and keep dogs indoors as much as possible, taking them out only for quick bathroom breaks. You'll also want to pay extra attention if your dogs or cats exhibit signs of distress. If they are coughing, struggling to breathe or having trouble with normal activities, don't ignore it. If you know that your dog already has something such as heart disease or asthma and they are struggling, they are coughing more. They really can't catch their breath. Um, exercise intolerance is a big one where they used to go up the stairs really fast. Now they're just taking him one at a time. That's a big clue. Um, the air quality also affects our cats. Cats have asthma. Um, and cats do not open mouth breathe. So if you see a cat that's panting, that's an emergency needs to be seen right away. Dr. Ross also says short faced dogs like french bulldogs are most susceptible to feeling these symptoms. She has seen an uptick in that breed coming into the vet since yesterday. Live in Studio 32 Casey Cronus, Fox Chicago. Interesting. A lot of good information there, Casey. Thank you.