Sometimes, no matter how careful you are, your dog may get into something that is poisonous to him/her.
About a month after we adopted Copper, while we were away from home, he managed to open the cabinet door under the kitchen sink and got into some roach tablets. In fact the picture shows the actual box he got into. These tablets are mostly boric acid. The Lovely Shane and I were very concerned because Copper was vomiting when we got home.
It is important that you know what to do in an emergency like the one I described above. I strongly suggest that you call the Pet Poison Helpline immediately. The 24/7 Telephone number is 800-213-6680.There is a $39.00 per incident charge for the call but it is well worth the money. If you have to take your dog to the emergency veterinary hospital they will always call the helpline and bill it to you anyway. Once you call the Helpline, they give you an incident number that you can pass on to your emergency vet. The Helpline will inform you if you need to immediately take your dog to the emergency veterinary clinic.
In Coppers case, he did not ingest enough of the poison to be life threatening. He was, however, very sick and I stayed up all night with him. The nice people at the hotline gave me detailed instructions on how to treat Copper and what to look for as signs that he was not recovering as expected. I could call back as many times as needed on that incident without additional charges. After a long night, Copper recovered fully. I never knew a dog could vomit that much :) .
There are more than things than insecticides that are potentially poisonous to dogs. For instances grapes and raisins are not good at all for the little guys. There is a searchable list on the Pet Poison Hotline website. I strongly encourage you to look it over soon.
Regardless of what anyone tells you, please, please, please do not use home remedies here. Call the helpline and follow the instructions that they provide. Do not try to induce vomiting or feed the dog until you talk to a professional on the helpline. There is a very good list of emergency instructions on their website. I strongly suggest that you become familiar with them before an emergency occurs. And, for your dogs sake, please dont wait, call immediately!
It is also a great idea to know the location and phone number of your nearest emergency veterinary clinic. If you live near the Dog Trainer Shack here in Fayette County, Georgia. Your nearest one is likely Southern Crescent Veterinary Emergency Clinic. They have a few locations. The one in Fayetteville, GA is at :
1270 Highway 54 East
Fayetteville, GA 30214.
The phone number is: 770-460-8166.
I hope you are never faced with this sort of emergency. But, if you are, it is great to be prepared ahead of time!
Please contact me if you have any training needs or dog related questions.
Till Next Time
-William -
William Moore
William Moore Canine Training
678-702-4791
fayettedogtrainer@gmail.com
