Intoxicated Pets

[Gregory Matthews]

I have just returned from visiting my son in California. He is a correctional officer at a major prison.

During the visit, we went hiking along a river trail and took his 8 lb., 18 month old dog with us. After the hike we stopped at a restaurant and ate outside.

Later that day the dog gave signs of illness. As we walked in the door of the Vet. office the doctor said: We know exactly what has happened to your dog. It is showing classic signs of intoxication, probably marijuana. It needs immediate treatment. This is the 6th dog what we have recently seen with marijuana intoxication.

It was explained to my son that depending on the lab tests and whether or not the dog was hospitalized, the treatment could reach $2,000, or even more if more extensive hospitalization was required.

We were lucky. The dog did not need hospitalization. Permanent damage seemingly was not done and the cost was less than $600 to restore the dog to good health.

When we told the Dr. where we had been the vet. identified where the dog had probably eaten something with marijuana in it.

Marijuana, as we have learned is toxic to some animals. For more information on this, see:

http://www.aspcapro.org/sites/default/files/v-vettech_0403.pdf

If you access the ASPC website you can read much more than the above on this subject.

[Gail]

Wow! I'm glad that all worked out in the end. Who woulda thunk?

[Naomi]

That happened to a friends dog in Texas. Unfortunately their dog became ill in the night, by the time they were aware it was too late to save the poor thing. Very happy that your son's dog had a much better experience.

It's one thing to use the stuff, but to be so careless that pets and small children are exposed and suffer is simply inexcusable.

Yes, I have heard reports of this happening to little children.

[Gregory Matthews]

My son and his wife are committed to giving their pets the care that they may need. This is the 3rd or 4th time that they have had to take the dog to the vet. The dog has been stung by bees, I think swallowed one, and who knows what . But this was potentially the most expensive.

The ran lab tests, put the dog on an IV, pumped activated charcoal into his stomach and who knows what all they did. in any case the dog was under the care of a vet for several hours.

[rudywoofs (Pam)]

we had a Cocker Spaniel that liked to sneak up on bees and snatch them... he'd get stung, his lip would swell up, but he'd never learn... but he lived to the ripe old age of 17..

[Gail]

Dgrimm, they are like kids. They don't always know what they're doing...

My husband doesn't like to leash our dogs, he never has. With ours the bad offenders are salmon carcass by the rivers where he fishes. I'm sure the dogs can't believe their luck at spawning time... But they reward him for their foraging on the way home in the back of the car!

Funny story:

On one of these escapades I was sitting in the passenger seat of the SUV and we were on the way home. Cocoa barfed in the back and freaked Spooky out so much that she squeezed her way between the window and the headrest to get onto my lap in the front seat. Spooky is a big dog!!! Thankfully she is quite skinny but she's quite a bundle for anyone's lap!

[Liz]

I'm glad the dog was o.k. When we first moved to the country our lab found and played with a porcupine. He had quills all over his face and in his tongue, gums and cheeks. He was so miserable, at least he learned his lesson it never happened again.