Springtime and warmer weather brings with it a few dangers for dogs that can often be avoided if one is aware of the hazards.
Flowering plants attract bees which can attract curious dogs. Bee stings can cause allergic reactions in some dogs that vary from hives and facial swelling to vomiting and even difficulty breathing and collapse. If symptoms of an allergic reaction are observed, contact your veterinarian. If you can find the stinger, remove it or scrape it out with a credit card or other stiff material. This can help prevent passage of additional venom into the skin.
When grasses in fields or an overgrown backyard become dry, the seed heads called foxtails release the seeds or grass awns. The arrow-shaped awns with barbs allow it to travel in one direction, which it seemingly does with no obvious method of propulsion. As children, we would take the entire grass seed head and place it pointed end first under our shirt sleeve (long sleeves only) and stroke the outside of the shirt sleeve downwards and it would “crawl” up our arm under the sleeve. In dogs, once the pointed end gets under the skin, it can start to “migrate” with licking and rubbing. Finding where it has “migrated” so that it can be removed can be challenging. Even where it is unlikely to “migrate,” the barbs cause it to become “stuck” and result in irritation. These areas are any holes or crevice on the body. Ear canals, nostrils, under eyelids and vulvar openings are all potential sites. As the weather warms and the seed heads dry out, any dog running and sniffing in the grass is at risk. Make sure any tall grass is mowed or cut down before it dries and keep your dog out of deep grass. Foxtail hoods can be worn, especially for those with vacuums at the end of their snouts. Signs of your dog having a foxtail incursion include constant and violent sneezing, head shaking, licking at paws or a wound that won’t heal and eye discharge or squinting.
Mold growth
Warm weather encourages the growth of molds. One of the molds, penicillium mold, can produce a toxin referred to as a tremorgenic mycotoxin. The penicillium mold can be present in moldy foods such as bread and dairy products and in compost piles. Dogs eating compost or getting into garbage that contains this mold can be exposed to this toxin. Symptoms can appear within 30 minutes of ingestion and initially include restlessness, panting, drooling and possibly vomiting. Symptoms can progress to moderate muscle tremors and even seizures. Unfortunately, dogs being dogs are attracted to the most disagreeable smells, so keeping garbage and compost in inaccessible locations is essential.
While perhaps not as common locally as elsewhere, warm weather can bring on the growth of cyanobacteria in standing or still water. With spring and summer, the cyanobacteria blooms referred to as “blue-green algae” produce toxins that can target either the liver or neurologic toxins.
Areas within a pond or lake where the cyanobacteria are present may not be obvious. This is not the mossy material on top of the water; rather, it causes the water to have a pea soup appearance. Higher water temperatures in warm weather encourages the growth of the cyanobacteria which can grow in locations such as bird baths or horse water troughs.
The onset of symptoms can be very rapid and neurotoxins can result in tremors, seizures, sudden fatigue and death.
With warming temperatures, gardening is a more common activity and along with that in this area is the use of snail bait.
Fortunately, the use of and availability of the snail bait pellets containing metaldehyde toxin has decreased over the last couple of decades. A common symptom of exposure to this toxin is a fever that can progress to tremors and seizures. The newer snail baits such as Iron phosphate are not a problem if only a few pellets are eaten but if a large portion of the bag is consumed, liver damage is a concern.
While it is still months until any backyard grapes ripen, they and raisins are a popular sweet treat. The toxin in grapes that results in kidney damage has not yet been determined but it is suspected to be tartaric acid. There are no reports of poisoning from grape juice, jelly, leaves, grape seed oil or wine. Initial symptoms typically include vomiting within a few hours. Evidence of kidney damage can take one to three days after ingestion to appear. Not every dog will be affected, but aggressive treatment is needed to prevent kidney failure in those that are affected. There is no method to determine who doesn’t and who does until it may be too late.
With the joys of spring and warm weather there are many nasty surprises hiding and waiting for your dog to eat, drink, or snort up the nose or just be too inquisitive – all part of the joys of being a dog.
Dr. Kenton Taylor is a veterinarian with Miramonte Veterinary Hospital, located at 1766 Miramonte Ave., Mountain View. Miramonte Veterinary Hospital is accredited by the American Animal Hospital Association since 1996. For more information, call (650) 962-8338 or visit miramontevet.com.
