Owners urged to keep chocolate and dried fruit out of paw’s reach

WITH Easter just around the corner, Dogs Trust is reminding pet owners to keep chocolate and other harmful foods away from their four-legged friends.

Both Dogs Trust Bridgend and Dogs Trust Cardiff are raising awareness of the dangers seasonal treats can pose to dogs, particularly chocolate and certain dried fruits, which are toxic and potentially fatal if ingested.

Chocolate contains theobromine, a chemical that dogs cannot metabolise effectively. Even small amounts can cause vomiting, diarrhoea, excessive thirst, excitability, drooling and in severe cases, seizures or fatal heart problems.

Likewise, dried fruits including raisins, sultanas, currants and grapes can cause acute kidney failure in dogs. That means hot cross buns, Simnel cake, and other fruity Easter fare should be kept well away from canine companions.

If your dog eats any of these, the advice is clear: contact your vet immediately.

Dogs Trust’s Easter safety tips:

• Never feed dogs chocolate or dried fruits, and make sure children and visitors know the dangers too.
• During Easter egg hunts, keep dogs away from the area or supervise them closely on a lead.
• Secure your bins to prevent dogs from scavenging leftovers.
• Don’t leave treats on kitchen counters or low tables where curious paws can reach.
• Teach the “leave it” command, so your dog learns to walk away from harmful items.
• Watch out on walks – dogs can easily pick up discarded chocolate or fruit-filled snacks.

Victoria Phillips, Veterinary Surgeon Manager at Dogs Trust, said:
“Our dogs are part of the family, so it’s natural to want to include them in Easter celebrations. But while chocolate eggs and hot cross buns are treats for us, they can make dogs seriously ill – and in some cases, can be fatal.

“That doesn’t mean they have to miss out entirely. Why not plan a dog-friendly Easter hunt using safe, healthy treats such as carrots, strawberries, cucumber or broccoli?

“You could even hide toys or treats in empty Easter egg boxes and encourage your dog to sniff them out – it’s a great way to bond and keep them mentally stimulated.”

For more advice on keeping dogs safe and healthy over the holidays, visit: www.dogstrust.org.uk/dog-advice

A MAN from Cwm Cou, Newcastle Emlyn has pleaded guilty to the attempted murder of a baby.

Rhydian Jamieson, aged 28, appeared at Swansea Crown Court on Thursday (Apr 10), where he admitted to trying to kill the infant, who cannot be named for legal reasons.

The offence took place at an address in Y Ferwig, near Cardigan, just before 10:15pm on Wednesday, January 15.

Police responded to reports concerning the welfare of a child, and the baby was taken straight to hospital.

Jamieson was arrested at the scene and later charged.

At an earlier hearing, concerns had been raised about whether he was fit to stand trial. A provisional date had been set for September 1, but this has now been cancelled following his guilty plea.

Judge Paul Thomas KC remanded Jamieson into custody and said he would be sentenced on May 27.

Caroline Rees KC appeared for the prosecution, with John Hipkin KC defending.

PLAID CYMRU has accused the UK government of failing to support Welsh steel communities equally, after it emerged that nationalisation is being considered for British Steel’s Scunthorpe plant—but was ruled out for Port Talbot.

The party has renewed its call for public ownership of the Port Talbot steelworks following comments from Chancellor Rachel Reeves, who said nationalising British Steel remains an option to save jobs at its loss-making Scunthorpe site.

Plaid’s economy spokesperson, Luke Fletcher MS, said: “If it’s good enough for Scunthorpe, why wasn’t it good enough for Port Talbot?”

In September last year, Tata Steel closed its two blast furnaces at Port Talbot with the loss of 2,800 jobs. The closure followed a £500 million support deal with the UK government to help the firm transition to greener steel production—but nationalisation was not considered.

Fletcher, who represents south-west Wales, told BBC Radio Wales: “We were asking for nationalisation to be looked at until we were blue in the face. Labour promised that having governments in Cardiff and Westminster would save Welsh steel—but in the end, the deal they offered wasn’t much different to the Conservatives’.”

Back in 2016, the Conservative government said nationalisation was not an option for Port Talbot. The £500m package announced last year under Labour was broadly the same as the one proposed by the outgoing government.

Plaid’s Swansea spokesperson, Dr Gwyn Williams, said nationalisation could have allowed Wales to adopt hydrogen-based steelmaking, like Tata is doing in the Netherlands.

“Tata are using green hydrogen at their Dutch site but have refused to do the same in Wales,” he said. “Plaid believes Wales deserves world-class green technology to build a sustainable economy for future generations.”

On Thursday, Tata said it had taken a major step forward in decarbonising its operations at Port Talbot, signing contracts with Clecim and ABB Limited to deliver a new pickle line—specialist equipment used in modern steel processing.

Meanwhile, British Steel’s Chinese owner, Jingye, has said the Scunthorpe site is losing £700,000 a day. Around 2,700 people are employed there and the plant is home to the UK’s last blast furnaces.

Talks to try to secure the future of the site are expected to resume this week, with the UK government reportedly offering to buy coal to keep the furnaces running. On Wednesday, Chancellor Rachel Reeves confirmed that “all options” are being considered—including nationalisation.

Carrie Bone, UK steel editor at Kallanish Commodities, told BBC Radio Wales Breakfast that both Tata and British Steel were in similar situations—facing major losses and needing to modernise.

She noted that Tata accepted the £500m offered by government, while British Steel reportedly turned it down and asked for £1 billion.

“You can understand why the government might be hesitant to offer that much,” she said. “It’s not clear why nationalisation wasn’t considered for Tata, but there are thousands of jobs at stake—and the optics of letting the UK’s last blast furnace close are politically very difficult.”

The UK government has been approached for comment.