Dietary indiscretion

Uh oh, your pet has just stolen and eaten something they shouldn’t have… What should you do?

If you think that your pet may have eaten something potentially toxic, it’s always best to seek veterinary advice as soon as possible. Time can be of the essence when treating poisoning cases, with prompt therapy often minimising symptoms and reducing overall treatment costs.

What are some common toxicities in pets?
Common toxicities seen in dogs and cats include:

Chocolate
Lily toxicity in cats
Human medications, such as ibuprofen
Rat bait
What can we do to help poisoned pets?
When seeking initial veterinary advice for your pet, it’s helpful if you can have the packet of what your pet has eaten close to hand (so you can read out the label to us), and an estimated amount that your pet could have consumed.

If your pet has eaten the toxic substance within the last two hours, we will discuss potentially making them vomit or flushing out their stomach under anaesthetic, to rid them of any undigested material and limit toxin absorption.

If it’s too late or unsafe to empty your pet’s stomach, or if they’re already showing symptoms, we will discuss ongoing treatment for their condition. Depending on the particular toxin, this can include:

Feeding them activated charcoal to help “bind up” toxin in their intestines (note: this only works with some substances)
Hospital care, including intravenous fluid support or medications to manage your pet’s symptoms
Administration of any relevant antidotes, e.g. Vitamin K1 for rat bait poisoning
Regular blood tests to monitor your pet’s health
With prompt veterinary treatment, we can improve the chance of your pet making a full, rapid recovery. Unfortunately, we haven’t yet mastered the art of teaching them not to do something silly again!