Common Winter Weather Health Problems
Poisons in the Home
Have you ever noticed how the same news seems to recycle on a regular schedule in the news? I mean every Christmas I read the same story about Christmas tree fires, how the mail is backed up, poinsettia poisoning in pets and chocolate story around Valentine's Day and Easter as well). These stories are always written like they are news, which in fact they are not, but I never fail to get a call or two, often from news channels asking about how poisonous is chocolate and how much poinsettia does it take to hurt a pet. Today, I will discuss a few of the more common things that can poison our dogs that are commonly found in the home and give some relatively as to how much you should worry about them.
Ah, chocolate - the miracle food. It is hard to believe that a food that the experts say does as much good for all of us (I think it does well for even us men too, although the stories I read usually discuss women) could be deadly to dogs. I wish I had a dime for every call I got like this one from my parents about ten years ago. It went something like this. "Gary, we are about a hundred miles south of the border. Keeta (their husky) has just eaten Dad's box of cherry chocolates. (You see it has been a family tradition that Dad got a big box of cherry chocolates for Christmas from someone.) What can we do?" my frantic Mom asked.
"Well, Mom, how many did she get?" I asked.
"The whole box, about twenty-five. Is she going to die? There's no vet around here for several hundred miles and for sure none that could speak English."
"Well, Mom, I would have a few towels on hand and maybe a bucket. Keeta is going to get real sick in a little bit. Tomorrow may be worse from the other end if you are traveling. Tell Dad hi and I will get him another box of cherry chocolates when he gets back to the States."
This scenario is pretty typical. Chocolate poisoning is not common especially with milk chocolate or partially milk chocolate products. I have never seen chocolate poisoning in my twenty years as a vet, so do not deny yourself any longer. Go get some chocolate, just do not feed it to your dog on purpose. Joking aside, it is the bakers' chocolate that is fairly toxic. The drug found in chocolate is called theobromine and it can cause fatal heart and other problems. Fortunately, bakers' chocolate is not particularly tasteful to dogs, although as we know some dogs will eat anything. One ounce of bakers' chocolate contains about 450 mg of theobromine. It takes about 100 mg per pound of dog to cause death, so a fifty-pound dog would need to consume about 10 ounces or more. A smaller dog, though, would require quite a bit less. There is a lot of variation, however. Milk chocolate would take five to ten times that amount and that would probably cause vomiting, which would purge the dog before poisoning takes place. It would take an awful lot of things like chocolate cherries to cause poisoning and, in fact, they probably could not. Maybe a major sugar buzz might get the dog pretty excited though. Unfortunately, signs of chocolate toxicity include vomiting and excitement. My advice, if you think your dog ate enough chocolate or got into the bakers' chocolate, would be to induce vomiting. I usually use a teaspoon or two of salt mixed with a little water to induce vomiting. If that does not do the trick than a tablespoon or two of hydrogen peroxide usually will work. Syrup of Ipecac also works.
Poinsettias are toxic also, but I have not seen a death from the plant ever. The juice of the plant causes irritation of the gums and is quite bitter so most pets will eat much and if they do they usually vomit.
Many houseplants are slightly toxic but as with poinsettias most will cause vomiting at the most. As with any suspected poisoning, however, a call to the vet or poison hotline would be in order.
Finally, the most toxic thing I have experienced in the house without doubt is anti-freeze. The ingredient, propylene glycol, is highly poisonous. This stuff should never be kept where any animal could come upon it and that goes for any leaks on the garage floor. Unfortunately, the stuff is a little sweet so animals tend to like it. Usually, by the time your pet shows signs of poison which may include a "drunken" gait, it is too late. Later signs may include vomiting or diarrhea but these signs are due to secondary and often irreversible damage to the kidneys. Quick treatment from the vet is the only hope and success depends heavily on the time and amount the animal consumes. It takes about a half-teaspoon to be fatal to a cat and a bit more for a dog, depending on size. I have lost most of these animals in practice.
In conclusion, keep perspective and common sense in mind when dealing and thinking about common household poisonings. Clearly, one should keep all known poisons out of harms way from both animals and people (prescription, medications, cleaners, pesticides and especially anti-freeze) and do not use chocolate or candy in general as treats for your pets. If they seem to enjoy chewing on the plants, get rid of the plants. In all cases, if you suspect any type of poisoning call your vet for early treatment.
The ASPCA Animal Poison Control Center
Look in My Ears Once in a While
It is wintertime and it is rather nasty outside for many of us, so our canine companions are spending more time in our living rooms. But wait, what is that smell? It is a kind of yeasty sweet smell. I call my dog over and check his ears. Oh man, that dark gooey stuff is truly disgusting. I also noticed the click clack of paw sounds on my once nice wood floors. As I was trying to wipe my hand on a Kleenex, Heidi gave me a big wet one across the cheek and the smell nearly gagged me. I flipped a lip and boy were those teeth atrocious but I still gave her a nice hug but the button on my shirt got snagged in the tangle of fur behind her left ear. She jumped back and several puffs of shed hair that never made it out of her coat floated softly to my once clean rug.
Ok, Heidi is a fictitious dog but how many of these things in varying degrees of severity does your dog have? If you are like me, you probably have at least one or two. Wintertime is a great time to be sure those general maintenance chores are done for dogs. Over the years I have found some tips and hints to help with the routine so following is a little list of what we need to do on a regular basis.
Ear care: About once a week look into ears. I usually give them a quick smell and stick my finger down into the canal and see if anything sticks to it. It is normal to get a little clearish oil but if you get a dark waxy material or especially a pussy liquid you have a problem. Also check for soreness or redness. Obviously a trip to the vet is in order if it is severe. Otherwise, go ahead and wash them. There are a lot of commercial washes on the market. Some smell like alcohol, some do not. Some smell like roses, some do not. In my experience, I prefer an alcohol based wash as it will leave the ear dry. I often see ear canals full of ear wash and that sets up infection. I usually dump the stuff all the way down the canal and squish it around by squeezing the lower canal from the outside. I use chunks of cotton from a cotton roll to mop the results up. You can stick the cotton in as far as your finger will allow without fear of hitting vital structures. Never use a Q-tip in the canal unless you want to see your vet and pay for anesthesia to retrieve the broken tip from the eardrum (yes, I have done this more than once). My secret homemade ear formula is as follows: 2 parts alcohol, 1 part water and 1 part white vinegar. The vinegar lowers the pH which helps control microbes.
As I say to my vet techs when checking out animals, "Flip a lip." What I mean is to check the dog's teeth and be sure to lok at the back ones. Those back teeth are the most important as they will cause the most problems. If you start to see a tartar build up, try to pry it off with your fingernail. Sometimes that is all it takes. Sometimes you will find a little loose food in the mouth that is stuck and it will really smell. If the tartar is really built up and there is gum irritation, a trip to the vet is in order. Brushing once is a while is probably worth it, but to be honest my own dogs have never had that pleasure. If you do, use a finger or gauze. Do not open the dog's mouth but simply put finger under the lips and clean the outside surfaces. You can use doggy toothpaste or a little baking soda. Do not use Crest or other human products. The foaming action is cool for us but not so with our dogs.
Toenail trimming can be fun and exciting. Yeah, right! Actually it is one of the least favorite things I do (next to expressing anal glands). Some dogs never need it, especially those on concrete but when you have to clip, here are a couple of suggestions. Use the good clippers such as Millers Forge. If you pay less than 412 the probably are no good. I never use the Rescoes, as they tend to pinch and wear out quickly. A grinder works well if your dog has been conditioned to it. A good pair of clippers will last a lifetime. Always make your cut perpendicular to the top edge of the nail. The blood curves down towards the point so by cutting this way you will get more nail and less quick. Trim nails as often as you need to as a long nail leads to injury of torn nails or even worse.
Trim, pull or brush out mats. Check behind the ears and under the belly for small ones. These mats often lead to local areas of skin infection and certainly are uncomfortable.
Check body condition and adjust the food if needed. Just like us two legged animals, dogs tend to put on weight in the winter due to lack of exercise and our desire to make them as plump as us. (Just kidding.) Anyway, you should be able to feel the ribs easily and if you cannot start cutting back on the amount of food or take them on a nice romp in the snow every day.
This is a short list of things to do and there is nothing in here that all of us do not know about already. However, knowing and doing are two different things entirely (that is how I earn my living as a veterinarian and also explains the fact that my own dog is working on a rather stinky yeast infected ear). So go out and check these things on you own dogs. You may prevent a problem and you may save a bunch of money as well.
Gary Cotton, D.V.M.