How to Treat a Poisoned Dog

We all know how dogs are, always sniffing around here and there and eating anything they come across. Because of this, they often end up poisoned, whether accidentally or intentionally, and it can even be fatal.

Knowing the first aid steps to take with a poisoned dog is essential to help them survive until we reach our vet clinic. Let's look at the steps to follow.

My dog has been poisoned — what do I do?

First of all, we need to stay calm, since their life will now depend on how we act. If we notice our dog showing signs of poisoning, or we know for certain they've been poisoned, the first thing to do is call our vet.

Most vets have emergency phone lines, available 24 hours a day. They'll tell us how to proceed and will start getting everything ready for our arrival at the clinic.

Important information to gather

Any detail about how the poisoning happened will be a great help for our vet in treating the dog once we arrive at the clinic. That's why, if we know what product our dog ingested, we should bring it with us to the clinic so the vet can analyze it.

If our dog has vomited, we can collect a sample in a glass jar or even a bag, so it can be analyzed later. Even if we notice an unusual smell, we should make note of it to tell the vet — though it's only a rough guide, since many poisons have a characteristic smell:

• Garlic-like smell: Can point to arsenic, organophosphates, thallium, or zinc phosphide.
• Acetone smell: Aspirin and other salicylates, acetone, benzene, toluene, phenols, xylene, and isopropanol.
• Bitter almond smell: Associated with cyanide.
• Intense, unpleasant smell: Associated with paraquat.

Should I make my dog vomit?

It seems logical to think that making the dog vomit will expel the poison, but that's not correct. In many situations, inducing vomiting can actually worsen our dog's condition, so we should never do anything without first checking with our vet.

For example, in the case of chemical substances like some of those described above, inducing vomiting would mean passing that substance back over mucous membranes like the esophagus and mouth, causing irritation and possibly ulcers there.

If it's indicated, and if no more than two hours have passed since our dog was poisoned (based on phone guidance before heading to the clinic), our pet may be made to vomit.

How to induce vomiting in a dog

The most common home remedy for inducing vomiting in dogs is using hydrogen peroxide, at about 2 milliliters per kilo of the dog's weight. For example, if they weigh 10 kg, we could give them 20 ml of hydrogen peroxide orally. It's a good idea to mix it with regular water.

In an urgent situation, if you have no way to measure it, you can try inducing vomiting with a glass filled half with regular water and half with hydrogen peroxide. It's important to get them to drink the whole thing, since sometimes if the full amount isn't given, they may not end up vomiting.

Hydrogen peroxide irritates the stomach and triggers vomiting. It's been shown to be more effective when the stomach is partially full, so we can give them a bit of food beforehand.

Dogs usually vomit within 5-20 minutes of being given this. If they vomit many times, it's a good idea to keep them on a stomach protectant for a few days, such as omeprazole or famotidine (dose to be recommended by the vet), to help restore the affected digestive lining.

Using activated charcoal

One of the most widely used absorbents for its effectiveness is activated charcoal, which should be given at a rate of 2 ml per kilo of the dog's weight, suspended in water, always following the product's package instructions.

This product's job is to absorb toxins from the bloodstream into the digestive tract as much as possible, so they can then be excreted. It's not recommended while inducing vomiting, so you should wait until that's done, or use it in cases where vomiting is contraindicated.

If more than 3 hours have passed, it's less effective, since the toxins may already be more widely spread through the bloodstream, making them harder to bind.

Poisoning on the skin or eyes

If the toxin is on our dog's skin and is in powder form, we should brush the area with a stiff-bristled brush to clean it, being careful not to chafe their skin and making sure the powder doesn't reach their eyes or mucous membranes.

If the toxin is liquid, we should apply plenty of water, lathering and rinsing repeatedly for at least 20 minutes. If the liquid is oily, we can use a degreasing product, being extremely careful that it never reaches their eyes or mucous membranes.

If the toxin is in their eyes, we should flush them with plenty of water or saline solution. This will be tricky, since it's a very sensitive area and our dog won't cooperate easily, but it's necessary to prevent more serious complications. We'll also put on an Elizabethan collar while heading to the vet, to stop them from scratching.

All of this should be done under the guidance of the vet advising us, since it's easy to miss something or do it wrong and make the poisoning worse.

Poisoning from insects or animals

If it's a bite or sting, keep in mind that veterinary care is urgent. Under our vet's phone guidance, we can apply the following advice, depending on which insect is involved, before heading to the clinic.

Contact with pine processionary caterpillars

Thoroughly rinse the affected area with lukewarm water, without applying any pressure, to avoid the processionary caterpillar's tiny hairs embedding further. Anaphylactic reactions can occur, so this is an extreme emergency.

Home treatment alone will never be enough to treat this kind of poisoning, since the tongue can become necrotic, breathing difficulty can develop, and in very severe cases swelling and inflammation of the throat can occur, seriously endangering our animal's life.

Snake or other animal bites

We should avoid applying a tourniquet, since this could make things worse (unless our vet explicitly tells us to). We also shouldn't try to suck out the venom from a snake bite. We should call our vet immediately. In Spain this isn't usually a common cause of poisoning.

Insect stings

If a wasp or bee stings our dog, we should try to remove the stinger and keep our dog calm and still to prevent their heart rate from spiking, while quickly heading to a vet to have the appropriate medication given.

Poisoning by inhalation

If our dog has breathed in some toxic product, the first thing to do is remove them from the contaminated area and get them into clean, open air, so they can breathe safely. Then immediately go to or call our trusted vet so they can provide supportive treatment, since severity will vary depending on the exposure.

Rodenticide poisoning

This is a very common type of poisoning if you're in Spain or Mexico. To get rid of rat infestations, this kind of product is often used. If ingested, it can cause internal bleeding and clotting problems. It's extremely urgent to get to the vet without trying anything else, since depending on how much was ingested, the dog may only have hours left.

First aid will help increase our dog's chances of surviving the poisoning, but it's absolutely essential to always follow our vet's instructions, since our pet's life depends on how and how quickly we act.

Bibliography Cerenini A, Ciarroca E, Di Nicola U, Fico R, Gonzalez (2012) Manual operativo para la gestión veterinaria de casos de presunto envenenamiento de animales salvajes y domésticos. Http://www.venenono.org/wp-content/uploads/2012/09/Manual_veterinario_espanol-1.pdf Programa Nacional de tenencia responsable de animales de compañía Cerda P, Silva L, Gutiérrez W, Mieres J J, París E, Ríos JC, Intoxicaciones veterinarias en Chile reportadas al centro de Información Toxicológica de la Pontificia Universidad Católica de Chile Daza MA, Ayuso E, Revista AVEPA, 24(4), 231-239 (2004). Intoxicaciones más frecuentes en pequeños animales. Martín P, IM veterinaria 62-64 Intoxicaciones que originan síntomas neurológicos en perros y gatos parte II