Hanukkah is almost upon us (woohoo!), so I wanted to give a quick reminder to all my fellow Jewish reptile keepers to avoid lighting candles in the same room as a reptile!
Even the smoke from small Hanukkah candles can be very dangerous for reptiles, especially hatchlings and juveniles. Reptiles can’t cough, so any smoke they breathe in stays in their lungs and can cause respiratory illness very quickly. It’s less dangerous on the first night when you’ve only got two candles going, but by night eight, it can be a recipe for disaster! This is true if you have an oil-based chanukkiah, too!
To keep your pet reptiles safe and healthy, make sure you always light your chanukkiah in another part of the house, and keep your reptiles out of the room while your Hanukkah candles are burning.
!חג אורים שמח
Hanukkah is almost here! If you have a pet reptile, please take a moment to think about a safe place to light your candles where your pet won’t be exposed to them.
And very much birds too! They are sensitive little creatures to any sort of fume, smoke, essential oil etc!
