Yesterday morning my “Mum” was cleaning out the fridge. She was about to throw out some chicken thighs, and I heard her say “these are a bit suss, I’ll give them to Sammy”. Well, I gobbled them down and by the afternoon I felt a very nasty pain in my tummy. Before I could raise the alarm, I had a violent attack of diarrhea and vomiting all over the lounge room carpet! She was very cross with me. Was this fair? (Sammy, Kelpie Cross, 4 years, Narooma)
Dr Alan
Sammy, don’t be too tough on your “Mum”. She probably didn’t realise that dogs and cats suffer from food poisoning just like people do. As a rule of thumb, if your Mum won’t feed suspect food to her human family you should not eat it either, and she should learn it is not a good idea to give food that is a bit off to you! I know you bury nasty looking bones and then dig them up all the time, but those bones usually don’t have the type of bacteria that cause tummy upsets. Be a little more discriminating about what you eat is the best advice I can give you. Good luck!
My owner always leaves me out the backyard when she goes to bowls for the day. Last week, I came across this black wriggly creature and I went in for the attack, biting it several times. By the time my owner got home, I was feeling very woozy, my back legs were giving out and I was gasping for air. The vet came right away and gave me a jab. After a good night’s sleep I was OK. What was going on here? (Jerry, Wire Haired Terrier, 11 years, Dalmeny)
Dr Alan
Jerry, you were very lucky to survive a snake bite. There are two ends to a snake and when you bite the tail the head end will whip around and bite you, sometimes several times. Even a small amount of venom from a bite can cause your red blood cells to rupture, muscle cells to dissolve and kidney failure to occur. Larger amounts of venom paralyze the muscles you use to breathe and you will suffocate. Because your owner called for assistance immediately and the vet was able to administer the appropriate antivenom you survived. The key to success here is quick action. Around Narooma there are Red Belly Black Snakes, Brown Snakes and Tiger Snakes, all of which are very dangerous to pets (and people too) Statistics indicate a 70% mortality rate for dog snake bite victims when no antivenom is administered, not very good odds.
I’ve just got home from the vet’s place. What an experience! A few days ago I ate a pile of little green pellets that were spilled on the floor of the shed. They tasted good! After a few days I started feeling crook. I was tired and weak. My owner called the vet when they found what I had been eating in the shed. The vet did some blood tests and then put a needle in my arm and gave me someone else’s blood. (Yuk!) Now I have to take some Vitamin K pills each day. Can you tell me what was going on? (Jen, Jack Russell, 6 years, Kianga)
Dr Alan
Jen you’re one lucky dog. You ate some rat poison that caused you to bleed internally making you anemic and weak. The blood tests determined there was something wrong with your blood clotting mechanism that is reliant on Vitamin K. The most common rat baits use a chemical that interferes with the function of Vitamin K in the clotting process. You were in shock and the blood transfusion you received supported you while other drugs were administered to get your clotting mechanism working again. It is essential you keep taking the Vitamin K for a while as the chemical in the rat bait can last for several weeks. It would be wise to have some more blood tests when you stop taking the Vitamin K to make sure your clotting mechanism is working again.
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