What you need to know about masks
Are you wearing a mask when you leave home?
With so many on the market, it can be confusing as to what is the best bet. Click on Read More to find out more about masks.
Here are some tips on how to get the best use of a mask.
According to the Centers for Disease Control and Prevention, a mask that fits well won’t have any gaps and will prevent air from flowing from the area near your eyes or from the sides of the mask.
“If the mask has a good fit, you will feel warm air come through the front of the mask and may be able to see the mask material move in and out with each breath.”
People with beards can use a mask fitter or brace to help the mask fit tightly over their face.
When wearing a disposable mask, the coloured side – usually blue – goes on the outside, and the edge with a piece of wire, or something similar, in it goes over your nose. The coloured side is water-resistant, while the white side is more absorbent and will suck up droplets and aerosols produced by the wearer.
⚠️ DOGS DIE IN HOT CARS. If you love them, don't leave them. ⚠️
It's a message we share time and time again, and this year, we're calling on you to help us spread that message further.
Did you know that calls to SPCA about dogs left inside hot cars made up a whopping 11% of all welfare calls last summer? This is a completely preventable issue, and one which is causing hundreds of dogs (often loved pets) to suffer.
Here are some quick facts to share with the dog owners in your life:
👉 The temperature inside a car can heat to over 50°C in less than 15 minutes.
👉 Parking in the shade and cracking windows does little to help on a warm day. Dogs rely on panting to keep cool, which they can't do in a hot car.
👉 This puts dogs at a high risk of heatstroke - a serious condition for dogs, with a mortality rate between 39%-50%.
👉 It is an offence under the Animal Welfare Act to leave a dog in a hot vehicle if they are showing signs of heat stress. You can be fined, and prosecuted.
SPCA has created downloadable resources to help you spread the message even further. Posters, a flyer, and a social media tile can be downloaded from our website here: www.spca.nz...
We encourage you to use these - and ask your local businesses to display the posters if they can. Flyers can be kept in your car and handed out as needed.
This is a community problem, and one we cannot solve alone. Help us to prevent more tragedies this summer by sharing this post.
On behalf of the animals - thank you ❤️
Would you like a free copy of our February 2025 issue?
Kia ora neighbours. We give away free copies to readers whose recipes are used in our magazine. We're still on the hunt for tomato recipes, so send your family's favourite way to use up your homegrown harvest, to: mailbox@nzgardener.co.nz. If we use it in the mag, you will receive a free copy of the mag