Poison Prevention
Many dogs die each year by accidental ingestion of household poisons, including pesticides, popular houseplants, medications and common foods (e.g. chocolate is dangerous of course). Dishwashing detergent, coffee grounds, fabric softener sheets, mothballs, potpourri oils, cigarettes, alcoholic drinks, etc could be dangerous for your pet. Prescription and over-the-counter medications including cold and cough medicines, painkillers, antidepressants, vitamins and diet pills, etc can be lethal to animals, even in small doses.
So what do you do about poisons in your garden, for example, when the lawn has been treated with fertilisers, herbicides or insecticides?
Poison prevention is the easiest strategy. It is recommended that you allow treated lawns to completely dry before letting your pet on to them, for example. Slug and snail bait / poisons are also extreemly toxic to dogs.
Also, a garden can have a large number of plants that can be poisonous but equally since the odds are against you recognising them or your pet even eating them it may be a little useless to ponder this (nevertheless you can check a list here of Poisonous Plants).
One item needs to be mentioned in this prevention category, and that is car antifreeze. Some types of antifreeze can be sweet tasting to your pet and therefore more likely to be lapped-up, so if you spill some don’t let your pet ingest it (Propylene glycol antifreeze is less poisonous though).
Poisonous "Food"
It can be useful to be aware of certain human foods that are poisonous to dogs but it should be mentioned that in some instances this is understood in the context of large quantities or frequent access. A possible exception is chocolate - this is dealt with lower down in this article, but because it can be very toxic to your dog, and be prevalent in our diets, access for your dog can be especially dangerour (see further discussion below).
Here is a list of some human foods that have proven a health hazard for your dog.
You may wonder at some of the above but each item is well documented as hazardous.
Poisoning from Chocolate
So what should you do if your pet does ingest what you suspect to be a poison? It seems the most likely poison is going to be chocolate, and the most likely to lead to death. Yes, OK but what about amounts eaten?, you might say - this is difficult to answer because not only does it depend on the size of your dog but also the amount of cocoa content in the chocolate consumed. For example, even small chips of milk chocolate have led to the death of dogs, whereas Baking chocolate can have 8 times the concentration of toxicity as milk chocolate, and pure cocoa 16 times. However, there are lots of variables at play, and the only clear thing that can be said is don't give it.
Symptoms of chocolate poisoning are: within a few hours possibly diarrhoea and vomiting, restlessness and hyperactivity (she might even come to you for help at this stage). When symptoms get worse her heart rate will become abnormal (arrhythmia) and other muscles may begin to twitch. Often frequent urination occurs. You will need to act before this occurs - her death is a strong possibility now!
Treatment at home involves keeping an Emergency Kit containing a special form of charcoal (activated charcoal which binds the chocolate) and an item that will make your dog vomit (hydrogen peroxide in water solution, give 1-2 teaspoons for a small dog is often recommended but check with your vet to see if anything better is now available).
Unless you are prepared to get this kit ready for such an eventuality, you will probably not be successful with what you get together on the spur of the moment!
The best way to proceed in such a case is to phone the vet for advice while someone quickly organises taking your dog to the vet for treatment immediately.
See following link for further information on chocolate poisoning: TippyPaws (despite being for big dogs)
Other Poisons
In the case of other types of poison, it is recommended that what ever poison ingested by your pet you need to quickly check what it says on the packaging, as you would if a human had ingested poison, and follow the poison instructions (often induced vomiting is suggested - if so check "Treatment" paragraph above). But it goes without saying that poison prevention is the best strategy, and dangerous medication, for example, should be secured out of harms way in the same way you would if a child were in the house.
This page was last modified on Friday, August 06, 2010 04:47:03 PM
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