Forbes: Wildfire Smoke Is Dangerous To Pets. Here’s How To Keep Them Safe

“If a pet has a predisposing illness — pulmonary disease, lung disease, asthma, airway disease, something like that — that puts them at risk,” he said. “Those pets are probably going to be showing clinical signs earlier on than an otherwise healthy dog or cat.”

“It doesn’t take a lot of energy for a normal, healthy dog to breathe, but as they become distressed, they’re putting more energy, more effort into their breathing,” he said. “You start seeing them really working to bring air in and out. Anybody could probably recognize, ‘Hey — my dog is having a problem breathing.’ But if cats get to that point, that can be a very serious problem.”

“Maybe they start becoming weak, not wanting to move around, not doing their normal activity. And then further signs might be they’re becoming disoriented, they might stumble,” he said. “Those are very serious signs. Those cats need to be seen by a veterinarian sooner than later.”