Rat Poisoning in Dogs: Symptoms and Treatment

Most curious animals can roam in various alleys, bushes, dumps, setting goals, small game, insect or plant. Some of these situations result in the dog being poisoned by something that contained rat poison. This incident is very serious, but quite rare, since almost always the poison is masked unattractive for the animal, for example, in the bodies of poisoned rats. The effect of a toxic substance on a pet’s body is possible only when it uses a fairly large dose. According to statistics, the number of people who applied to veterinary hospitals to assist an animal poisoned by rat bait did not exceed 0.1% of all visits to veterinarians.

An increased risk that an animal can eat a poisoned bait occurs when some meat products are used for poisoning with poison, which can equally attract both rodents that are planned to be killed and a pet. If a pet ate one carcass of a dead animal infected with rat poison, this may not affect his general well-being. In order to get a serious infection with a toxin, it is necessary to absorb at least three or four carcasses of dead from the rodent venom.

How does rat poison affect the body of an animal

The use of rat poison is intended solely to destroy the invasion of pests such as mice or rats. This substance is added to special bait for rodents, the basis for which in most cases is taken grain. In addition, in the modern market for a long time there are varieties of lures containing rat poison in the form of finished briquettes, pastes or granules.

Rat poison, or as it is also called, rodenticide, is divided into two categories: substances with acute action and substances with chronic action. Only rat poison of chronic action can be freely purchased, since it represents a lesser danger, both for humans and for animals.

There are several main methods of ingestion of rat rat poison. This may be due to the fact that the dog will eat several dead carcasses of poisoned mice or rats, or if some meat product that could attract the pet by smell was used as a bait for rodents. Of course, the direct ingestion of a toxic substance into the body is much more serious and faster affects the general condition of the animal than it will be due to the absorption of a dead poisoned rodent. It should be noted that recently manufacturers of poison for rodents have begun to include special aromatic additives with the smell of meat in the composition of poisons, since it is able to attract pests quite well. Accordingly, the same smell may be of interest to the pet, which will lead to the absorption of rat poison in its purest form. And this is more dangerous for the dog.

For a serious reaction that can pose a real threat to the life of the animal, it is necessary to get into the body a fairly large amount of this poison, which is a priori impossible. In the amount that can accidentally enter the body, only mild or moderate poisoning can occur.

Depending on what kind of toxic drug got into the animal’s body, its influence on the organs of the poisoned pet takes place.However, upon detection of the first signs, it is necessary to urgently give the dog first aid.

Poisonous substances are divided into the following types:

1. First-generation rodenticide, which is found in pest control products such as isopropylphenacin, warfarin, triphenacin and others. It is these toxic drugs that are most often added to rodent baits. When any of them enters the body and begins to spread through the animal’s circulatory system, there is a violation of the synthesis of vitamin K, which is responsible for blood coagulation. As a result, significant internal hemorrhages occur, which lead to a large loss of infected blood if they are not removed from the body in a timely manner. Usually, the elimination of such toxic drugs is carried out naturally. Of all the poisons that belong to this group of rodenticides, the greatest sensitivity and susceptibility in dogs is observed for warfarin - the critical dose of the drug, which can lead to fatal consequences, is 6 mg per 1 kg of animal weight.
2. Second generation rodenticide is preferably found in bromadiolone, flocumafen and brodifacum. The toxin of this group affects the animal’s body in much the same way as the toxin of the first generation, but its difference is that it has accumulative properties. Therefore, the withdrawal of a drug containing this toxin is much more difficult. Also, unlike the first generation, the lethal dose of drugs belonging to the second generation will be significantly lower due to the high concentration of toxins. As is known, the critical dose of brodifacum is 4 mg per 1 kg of animal weight.
3. More dangerous than rodenticides is rats, because its toxicity is several times higher than previous substances. In addition, it affects the body in a slightly different way during the period of infection. In addition, its spread is manifested much faster. This poison causes convulsions, pulmonary edema, impaired heart function.

The danger of poisoning with such a toxic substance as rat poison is that any manifestation of symptoms does not begin to occur immediately, but only after three to four days. This is due to the fact that the infected person has a certain amount of vitamin K in his body, and when it is exhausted, signs of poisoning begin to appear. Such a long stay of the toxin in the body can be very dangerous and cause serious damage to the health of the animal.

Signs of poison in the body

There are several common symptoms that are a clear indicator that the animal has been poisoned by rat poison and contains a large amount of toxic substances in its body:

• a sharp increase in body temperature of the pet;
• the appearance of blood discharge from the anus;
• complete and sharp loss of appetite;
• severe weakness and weakness.

In case of detection of at least one of the listed signs in an animal, it is necessary to immediately provide first aid.

Depending on what kind of toxin is affecting the body, in addition to the main symptoms, others may appear, such as shortness of breath or bleeding from the nose or mouth. If the degree of poisoning is severe, then in the appendage to the listed signs, severe bleeding from various holes, vomiting with blood, and even partial paralysis are added.

First aid for poisoning an animal with rat poison

If symptoms of infection of the animal with rat poison are detected, it must be immediately taken to a veterinary clinic, where a qualified specialist will be able to provide assistance, establish which substance has been poisoned and prescribe the appropriate treatment.

Before the dog gets to the veterinarian, it is necessary to provide first aid in the form of:

1. Provoking a gag reflex, which can be caused by putting a tablespoon of ordinary rock salt at the root of the animal’s tongue.
2. Washing the stomach of a poisoned pet, which can be done by using a warm water enema, the water can be completely replaced with potassium permanganate for disinfection purposes.
3. The introduction into the body of an animal of absorbent preparations by oral route, for example, feed with activated charcoal.

Also, the dog needs to provide a plentiful drink, which will help cleanse and quickly eliminate the toxic substance from the body. For desoldering, it is recommended to make decoctions of flax seeds, or replace with hercules or rice decoction.

It is very important to know that if more than four hours have passed since the dog absorbed the rat poison, provoking the vomiting reflex is useless, since during this time the poison manages to move directly into the intestine. In addition, it is impossible to prevent the consumption of dairy and sour-milk products, as they allow the toxic substance to be absorbed into the blood faster.

Poisoning antidote

In case of poisoning the animal with rat poison containing an anticoagulant, vitamin K1 can help it. It occurs under the supervision of a veterinarian in a clinical setting through the injective administration of a vitamin into the body of an animal. When rats provoke intoxication, the dog must be soldered with a special solution with one percent tannin content. And when poisoning poison containing zinc phosphide - the animal is soldered with a solution containing copper sulfate.

Treatment of the effects of poisoning

When it is not possible to establish a specific toxin that has got into the dog’s body, a general treatment course is prescribed in the form of vitamin K1 for 7-10 days, glucose injections and various cardiac and diuretic drugs. A procedure for blood and plasma transfusion can also be carried out in order to restore the level of red blood cells in the blood, and resume the process of coagulation.

If the intoxication of the animal’s body was severe, they first treat the symptoms, restore liver function, prescribe drugs to restore normal heart function, and also relieve pulmonary edema.

Video: first aid for a dog in case of poisoning