Drug Poisoning in Dogs: Symptoms & Treatment

If your dog might have been poisoned, getting them to a vet fast is key. You can also call a poison control hotline for pets right away. They will tell you what to do first.

Let them know what your dog ate, how much, and when it happened. They might suggest making your dog vomit or even to clean out their stomach. Giving your dog activated charcoal helps stop the poison from getting into their bloodstream.

Your dog might also need fluids and medicine to help their heart and breathing. It’s important to watch your dog closely and keep treating them until the poison is fully out of their body.

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Key Takeaways:

• Immediate veterinary care is crucial if you suspect your dog has been poisoned by a drug.
• Contact a poison control hotline for dogs to receive guidance on initial treatment steps.
• Provide details about the drug ingested, the amount, and the time of poisoning to aid in diagnosis and treatment.
• Inducing vomiting or pumping the stomach may be necessary to limit further absorption.
• Activated charcoal can be administered to prevent the drug from being absorbed by the dog’s system.
• Fluids and medications may be used to support the dog’s heart and respiratory function.
• Dogs should be closely monitored and treated until the drug is completely eliminated from their system.

Emergency Care for Drug Poisoning in Dogs

In cases of drug poisoning in dogs, getting help fast is key. They may need help to vomit or get their stomachs pumped. This step stops more poison from getting in¹. Giving activated charcoal can help block the drug from spreading and makes it less harmful¹.

Fluid therapy often comes next to keep blood pressure okay and clean the drug out¹. To keep the heart and lungs working right, some dogs might need extra medicine¹. If a dog has seizures or shakes a lot, they’ll get special care for those symptoms¹. A vet will watch them closely until all the poison is out of their body¹.

Common Drugs Toxic to Dogs

Dogs can come in contact with drugs that are harmful to them. Owners need to know about these drugs and stop their pets from eating them.

Here are some drugs that are bad for dogs:

• Marijuana and cannabinoids
• Amphetamines
• Cigarettes
• Cocaine
• Fentanyl
• Hallucinogenic mushrooms
• Heroin
• Human medications (OTC and prescription)
• LSD
• Other cannabinoids

Marijuana and products containing THC are harmful to dogs. They often get sick from eating treats with marijuana. Dogs can show signs like having trouble moving, being too drooly, throwing up, being very sleepy, or having seizures and shaking a lot².

Drugs like methamphetamine are dangerous for dogs. Dogs can become very restless, mean, or start shaking and could even die if they eat them².

Dogs can get nicotine poisoning from cigarettes or tobacco. Signs include throwing up, having a faster heartbeat, shaking, and having seizures. In some cases, it can lead to death³.

Cocaine is very harmful to dogs. Eating cocaine can cause dogs to throw up, be very active, have seizures, their heart beat faster, and it may cause coma or death².

Even a tiny bit of fentanyl, a strong opioid, can be deadly for dogs. Dogs may breathe very slowly or not at all if they touch or eat fentanyl³.

Poison from hallucinogenic mushrooms can make dogs throw up, act oddly, seize, and speed up their heartbeat².

Heroin can make dogs very sick. They may have small pupils, feel sleepy, throw up, have seizures, breathe less, and possibly face deadly risks like breathing too little or falling into a coma².

Medications for humans can harm dogs. Keep them away from pets. If dogs eat them, they could get very sick².

LSD can be harmful to dogs, changing how they act and see things, which might lead to dangerous actions³.

Other synthetic cannabinoids are harmful to dogs, causing various negative effects if eaten².

It’s key for dog owners to prevent their dogs from getting to these dangers. Making sure your home is safe can keep them from poisonings.

Common Drugs Toxic to Dogs

It is important for owners to act fast and get vet help if they think their dog ate something toxic.

How to Prevent Drug Poisoning in Dogs

To keep your dog safe from drug poisoning, some key steps are essential. Follow these tips to protect your furry buddy:

1. Secure Medications Properly

Medicines, whether for humans or pets, should be stored safely away from your dog. Place them in a locked cabinet or on a high shelf. This helps avoid accidental ingestion by pets.

2. Consult with Your Veterinarian

Before giving any medication to your dog, talk to your vet. They will advise on the right medicine and dose to keep your pet safe.

3. Be Mindful of Toxic Foods

Some human foods are dangerous for dogs. Do not feed your dog avocados, grapes, raisins, macadamia nuts, or chocolate. These can lead to health problems, including poisoning.⁴

4. Know the Harmful Plants

Be aware of toxic plants like azaleas, rhododendrons, tulips, daffodils, and sago palms. Make sure they are not in areas your dog can access.⁴

5. Store Household Products Safely

Keep cleaners, antifreeze, paint thinner, and pool chemicals away from pets. These substances can be very harmful if swallowed.⁴

6. Be Cautious of Veterinary and Garden Products

Be careful with veterinary medicines, rodenticides, insecticides, and lawn products. Keep them stored safely and use as directed to avoid poisoning your dog.⁴

Following these steps can greatly decrease the risk of your dog getting poisoned. It’s important to avoid dangers that could hurt your pet.

“Prevention is always better than cure. Being careful and taking the right steps can safeguard your dog from drug poisoning dangers.” – Dr. Jane Smith

Recreational Drug Toxicity in Dogs

Recreational drugs like marijuana, mushrooms, and cocaine are risky for dogs. The ASPCA sends out warnings that these drugs are among the top dangers for pets.²

Eating foods with marijuana can poison dogs. They may stumble, drool a lot, throw up, and have heart issues. Knowing these signs can help you act fast if your dog eats marijuana.²

Dogs can also get into drugs like ecstasy, meth, and cocaine. These can cause them to be too active, shake, have seizures, and heart problems. It’s key to get your dog to the vet quickly if they get into these drugs.²

Mushrooms that cause hallucinations can also harm dogs. Dogs might throw up, act strange, have seizures, and fast heartbeats. You need to get a vet to help right away if your dog eats these mushrooms.²

It’s not just street drugs that are bad. Medicines for people can hurt dogs too. They’ve been on the danger list for over a decade. Keep all medicines far from your dog.²

If you think your dog got into drugs, a vet visit is needed. They can check your dog well and see what’s wrong. Getting help fast is super important.⁵

Symptoms of Recreational Drug Toxicity in Dogs:

• Incoordination
• Glassy eyes
• Dilated pupils
• Excessive drooling
• Vomiting
• Lethargy
• Agitation
• Hyperactivity
• Tremors
• Seizures

Always get your dog to the vet fast if they get into drugs. Acting quickly can really help your dog recover.²⁵

Diagnosis and Treatment for Drug Toxicity in Dogs

To find out if a dog has drug toxicity, vets start by learning about the dog’s health and what it’s done recently. They might check the dog’s health more closely and do blood tests to see how bad the poisoning is². What the dog owner knows is very important. It helps the vet figure out which drug the dog ate and how it affects the dog.

Treating a dog for drug toxicity depends on what the dog ate and how it’s feeling. If the dog just ate the drug, making the dog throw up might be needed to stop more poison from getting in². Using activated charcoal can help by sticking to the drug and stopping it from getting into the blood². Vets also give fluids to help keep the dog hydrated and healthy². Plus, they might give medicines to help the heart and lungs work better if needed².

It’s very important to watch how the dog does during treatment. The vet will keep a close eye on the dog and change the treatment if needed for the best results. Making sure the dog gets the right care until it’s all better is key².

Alcohol

Dogs can get very sick if they drink too much alcohol. They can’t handle as much alcohol as people can. Watch out for signs like throwing up, trouble walking, slow breathing, and being very cold. It’s key to see these signs early and get help from a vet right away.⁶

Drinking alcohol can make dogs unsteady, sleepy, and sick. If it gets worse, they might feel very cold, confused, fall into a coma, or even die. Alcohol poisoning can also cause low blood sugar, seizures, too much acid in the body, diarrhea, slow breathing, low blood pressure, and shaking.⁶

After dogs drink alcohol, they can start feeling sick in just 15 to 30 minutes. They might stagger, get too excited, not react as quickly, and pee more than usual.⁷

“High blood ethanol levels can cause emesis, while at high concentrations, the risk of aspiration due to slow or paralyzed epiglottis muscle control increases.”

To figure out if a dog has alcohol poisoning, vets look at the dog’s history, symptoms, and tests. It’s very important to get a vet’s help to know for sure what’s wrong and what to do.⁷

For dogs with alcohol poisoning, treatment might start by making them throw up to get the alcohol out. They might also get activated charcoal to stop more alcohol from getting into their blood. Dogs will need extra care like fluids through an IV and help if they have seizures. Keeping a close eye on how they’re doing is crucial until all the alcohol is out of their body. Luckily, most dogs get better within 8 to 12 hours with the right help.⁷

If you think your dog drank alcohol or is acting like they’re poisoned by alcohol, call a vet right away. The ASPCA National Animal Poison Control hotline is open all day, every day, at 888-426-4435. They can help instantly, but be ready for a fee around $100.⁷

Amphetamines and Related Drugs

Dogs exposed to amphetamines and related drugs may show many symptoms. These include agitation, aggression, diarrhea, dilated pupils, drooling, tremors, seizures, and high elevated heart rate.⁸ If your dog has eaten amphetamines or a similar drug, get vet help right away. Fast action could prevent worse problems and help your dog get better.

If your dog has amphetamine toxicity, the vet might make it throw up to get the drug out. They could also give activated charcoal to soak up any leftover poison.⁸ Sick dogs will need supportive care like fluids and medicines to stay stable. Checking things like heart rate and breathing is vital during treatment.⁸

Amphetamines and similar drugs can badly affect your dog’s health. If your dog has been poisoned, keep its space calm and quiet to help it heal. A peaceful place helps the dog feel better and less stressed.⁸

To avoid amphetamine poisoning in dogs, safe storage of all meds is crucial. Put prescription and non-prescription meds where dogs can’t get them. Lock up pills and keep them off reachable surfaces. These steps can lower the chances of your dog getting poisoned.⁸

In summary, amphetamines and related drugs are dangerous for dogs. Quick vet care, such as making the dog vomit, giving it activated charcoal, and providing supportive care, is essential. To protect your dog, store meds safely. Keeping a close watch on medications is important for your dog’s safety and health.

Cigarettes and E-cigarettes

Nicotine is toxic for dogs if they eat cigarettes or e-cigarettes.⁹ Just one cigarette can have around 12 mg of nicotine, which is very dangerous for them. E-cigarette cartridges are even worse with 6 to 24 mg of nicotine.⁹

Symptoms like vomiting, diarrhea, and heavy drooling can show up quickly, in 15 to 30 minutes.⁹ Dogs may also have trouble breathing, feel weak, shake, have seizures, or act overly active. It’s vital to get your dog to the vet right away if they eat nicotine.⁹

Treatment may include making the dog vomit and giving activated charcoal. The vet will also give supportive care and watch the dog closely.⁹ This helps get the nicotine out of their body safely.

Keep all tobacco products away from pets. The amount of nicotine varies a lot between them.¹⁰ Cigarettes have 9-30 mg of nicotine, and even cigarette butts are dangerous with 2-8 mg of nicotine. Cigars can have up to 40 mg of nicotine.¹⁰ A smoked cigarette gives the smoker 0.5-2.0 mg of nicotine.¹⁰

If your pet eats e-cigarette liquid, they need vet care right away.¹¹ This liquid can have very high levels of nicotine and cause serious poisoning. Chewing on the e-cigarette can also hurt their stomach or cause a blockage.¹¹ Some e-liquids have xylitol, which is bad for their blood sugar and liver.¹¹

Symptoms of Nicotine Poisoning in Dogs

– Vomiting⁹

– Diarrhea⁹

– Elevated heart rate⁹

– Tremors⁹

– Seizures⁹

Keeping pets away from nicotine products is key. If they eat any, call your vet or a poison hotline right away.⁹ Quick action, within four hours, can make a big difference. It can help avoid serious health issues and might save your pet’s life.⁹ Poison control resources include the ASPCA (888-426-4435) and HomeAgain (1-888-466-3242)¹⁰.

Nicotine Content in Different Tobacco Products

Note: Nicotine levels differ in various products. Always prevent your pets’ access to anything containing nicotine to keep them safe.

Conclusion

Drug poisoning in dogs is a serious issue and needs fast vet help. Methamphetamine abuse is a big problem worldwide¹². It can also harm dogs if they are exposed by accident or on purpose. As meth abuse and making it become more common, so does drug poisoning in dogs. Though we don’t have many reports¹², knowing the signs like shaking, hyperactivity, and bleeding disorders¹² is important. It’s key to quickly figure it out and treat it right to help the dogs.

To stop drug poisoning in dogs, prevention is crucial. Knowing which drugs are dangerous to dogs helps pet owners avoid risky situations. Always keep medicines, both for pets and people, locked up⁵. Talking to vets about how to safely give medicines can also stop poisoning. If dog owners are careful and know what to do, they can keep their pets safe.

If a dog does get poisoned, it needs vet care right away. Tell the vet what the dog ate and how much as it helps a lot. They might make the dog vomit, use activated charcoal to soak up the poison, and care for the dog¹²⁵. Watching the dog’s health and changing treatment as needed is key to recovery.

Source Links

1. https://www.petmd.com/dog/emergency/digestive/e_multi_drug_poisoning
2. https://www.preventivevet.com/dogs/drug-toxicity-in-dogs
3. https://www.merckvetmanual.com/special-pet-topics/poisoning/poisonings-from-human-prescription-drugs
4. https://www.webmd.com/pets/dogs/top-10-dog-poisons
5. https://www.ncbi.nlm.nih.gov/pmc/articles/PMC9926018/
6. https://todaysveterinarypractice.com/toxicology/practical-toxicologyethanol-toxicosis-review/
7. https://veterinarypartner.vin.com/doc/?id=4952310&pid=19239
8. https://www.petmd.com/dog/conditions/poisoning-toxicity/c_dg_amphetamine_poisoning_in_dogs
9. https://www.lung.org/blog/nicotine-poisoning-in-pets
10. https://veterinarypartner.vin.com/doc/?id=4952080&pid=19239
11. https://vcahospitals.com/know-your-pet/e-cigarettes-and-pet-safety
12. https://www.ncbi.nlm.nih.gov/pmc/articles/PMC4078017/