by Kim Doner
Wanna paint pets? Like:
Draw on dogs?
Tint those turtles? Sharpie some shells?
Color the cats, acrylic a crab, pigment the parrot, ink an iguana, rouge the rat?
I’ll be direct here:
Don’t. Don’t. Don’t.
Years ago, a very entertaining book titled “Why Cats Paint” achieved bestseller status. It was a spoof, beautifully photographed, of several supposedly artistic cats, all working on serious creations with their paint-stained paws theatrically swiping one
last stroke. Shortly thereafter came “Why Paint Cats,” and the animals themselves became the art.
The second book did even better in sales. Produced in the earlier days of Photoshop, the digital genius behind it featured cats sporting incredible colors and patterns, as if their owners had actually managed to dye fur and create facial expressions of “haute cat-tour.”
Chemicals Can Harm Animals
Fast forward to today. How often do we see Facebook posts of a toddler who got
hold of Mama’s lipstick and proceeded to decorate the dog? It’s even funnier when there’s contrast, and Rover has white fur and a deep cherry stain splotched everywhere and looks mournfully stoic from being victimized in such a shameful way.
I’ve laughed at those photos many times but began to question how dyes, colors, and other chemicals affect animals. We humans discover when we’ve erred in our choices through a rash or other kind of reaction, what about when we foist dyes on animals?
Can color application hurt?
Well, it depends.
Let’s look at the options, beginning with the least objectionable:
1Food coloring. For the most part,
this is approved by the USDA and is believed to be safe for dogs and cats as long as there is no benzene in the mix. Apparently the Cleveland Clinic has linked benzene in children to hyperactivity, asthma, and tumor growth. So far, the study hasn’t been extended (that I can find) for pets. But it’s something to think about, especially because dogs and cats tend to be smaller than any children studied — so more of any drug will enter their systems than a human’s.
Another point: We usually bathe our children daily, but pet mammals “bathe” themselves, so the intake of any chemical is guaranteed to be ingested.
If you proceed, be prepared for the food coloring to last about two months on Rover or Fluffy. It will steadily fade and look like the pet has been in a car accident (if it doesn’t look like that already). If you will soon travel with the pet, there are a few states where it’s technically illegal to dye a pet’s fur — Maine, Colorado, and South Carolina for starters, although laws shift all the time. So check the calendar for timing.
2Commercial pet dye. Besides food
coloring, a few products have proved safe enough for coloring pets — Owpawz and Bright Colors by Crazy Liberty. If you are ever tempted to try an off-brand,
always be sure to read ingredient lists for cochineal extract (it makes red). My ability to vouch for customer — or victim — satisfaction is limited to zero experience, so roll your own dice there.
3Homemade dyes. There are still caveats to this approach. Xylitol, known as birch sugar, is dangerous for pets. It is found naturally in fruits such as strawberries and raspberries, which also have coloring properties one might consider for pet fur. Do your homework.
Aside from these, do not use human hair dye on any pets. It has toxins that can be quite harmful to skin and respiratory systems (which makes me question human safety, but then again, we’re the weird creatures who stick needles under our skin to permanently color ourselves, so not much is past us, right?).
Birds Are Not Toys
And what about other creatures we might be tempted to alter chromatically?
I’m so glad you asked. It gets worse.
Dyeing birds can lead to dying birds.
A common dye fed to birds is found in commercial hummingbird nectars, which are needless additional chemicals to make the buyer happy. Another ingested coloring is via the food that zoos give to flamingos. In nature, flamingos eat algae-covered brine shrimp that are loaded with carotenoids (which accounts for the colors in tomatoes and carrots). They metabolize
those pigments into their feathers. Zoos feed them a special diet as well, which can include canthaxanthin, a synthetic that hops up their coral shade and contributes to nesting and breeding; it has also been proven safe for the animals.
But coloring baby birds is also done, usually around Easter. Chicks will either be sprayed or have food color injected into the egg during embryonic development. The plan is to make them as much like toys as possible for sale; the problem is that they are then treated like toys, with predictably high death rates.
So possibly the coloring isn’t the problem as much as the lack of responsibility it encourages….
Shelled Animals Need Camouflage
Then there are our shelled friends.
Buying hermit crabs in painted shells means the animal was coerced into the new covering by either heating his shell until the crab can’t bear it and moves into the only choice — a nearby painted shell — or drilling a hole in the side and poking the animal until it’s painful enough for it to leave its chosen home. They don’t voluntarily choose painted shells because it goes against their need for camouflage. The paint will contaminate food and water, and the animal will stay stressed at the unnatural state it has to live in 24/7.
Much the same applies to turtles. Not only is painting them illegal in most states, but it compromises them at home or in the wild. Turtles and tortoises need vitamins to grow via the sun’s ultraviolet rays. If that doesn’t happen, they develop respiratory problems that can lead to death, depending on how long the paint lasts. Paint can also have toxins which invade the animals through the shell or damage the lining of their sinuses and lungs as they breathe.
As with the hermit crab, turtle shells are constructed for camouflage, so releasing a painted turtle is like putting a spotlight on its back for predators.
All in all, the best colored pets are those that require no maintenance or health worries. We call them “stuffed toys,” and I highly recommend them as an alternative to inflicting stress on or compromising the health of any hapless creature for “entertainment.”
