James Herriot would be proud…

It was a stormy night in Tauranga, with gale force winds creating havoc everywhere. The winds scattered huge polystyrene blocks from a house construction site across a farm, and also dislodged a small block of rat poison from a high up shelf.....

And guess who found the tasty treat? Two naughty terriers! Luckily, their owner also saw the broken up bait block and rushed Fred and George to the vet clinic straight away.

Rat poison is very dangerous for dogs, it can make them bleed to death inside. Some dogs need blood transfusions and intensive care to survive. Luckily rat poison doesn't cause trouble immediately, but after a few days it can cause fatal internal bleeding by interfering with the blood clotting system. At this early stage, both George and Fred were fine, happy and proud of their adventure. But we didn't know which one had eaten the poison…..

….so we had to make them throw up the poison. How do you do that? Vets have a special Magic Trick called Apomorphine - just put a little bit under an eyelid, and it makes the dog feel sick and puke everything in their stomach. James Herriot would be proud!

So who was the culprit? Which dog needs treatment?  It could easily be both of them, so we had to make both dogs vomit.

Well, 5 minutes after being given apomorphine, Fred just sicked up his breakfast and went to sulk in the corner, feeling very sorry for himself.  I am so sorry Fred, but we had to do it!

But George, oh boy, he vomited up a lot of blue green poison. And more. And more. And more! He had snacked on enough poison to kill a dog much bigger than him. Getting rid of it from his stomach was a good first step, but some of it might have already got into his system. So we needed more treatment.

 First, we made him swallow a big syringe full of activated charcoal - a nasty black stuff that gets everywhere! George was amazing, he took it like a champ, even though it was gross. The charcoal should stop any leftover poison in his stomach from getting absorbed. His poo will be black for a few days, never mind.

Secondly, we started him on vitamin K injections and tablets; this is what fixes the damage that rat poison does to the blood clotting. We had to start it before he started bleeding internally.

Thirdly, we did a blood test after two weeks of daily vitamin K treatment, to make sure he is all clear. Yes, the poisons effects can last that long!

But the good news for George is that we caught it early, so we hope to prevent any bleeding problems altogether. Fred and George can now go back to being curious little terriers!

It is important rat bait is stored well out of reach of any curious animals. Preferably secured in a way it cannot be blown off a shelf or carried off by rats. It is also very important that pets are seen by your vet as soon as possible if there is any chance that they might have eaten rat poison.

Tell your dog-loving friends about this story - you might save a life!

We hope you loved this vet “tail” of doggy mischief, and we hope that you will follow us on our upcoming adventures full of animal encounters!