The Dumb Dog.com Blog

Spring has Sprung, The Grass has Ris.  Where the heck my Flea meds is?

Tick and flea season is a year round problem in many areas, but spring is here, and ticks and fleas are getting spring fever!

So what about buying flea and tick meds online?  Yes they are cheaper, but take heed, they could be lethal to your dog or cat. Medications and dosage limits are regulated by the country of origin.  For example, the pyrithin levels for dogs is in Australia 5 times the level than the same chemical dosage allowed in the US.  It is hard to tell the country of origin for many of these products.  The other downside of buying online is the shelf life of the product.  You don’t know if the seller has had the product for over 6 months, whether it was purchased as closeout od discontinued product.  It may be good, but then again, it may be bad.  This, among other reasons is why TheDumbDog.com does not offer flea/tick medications.

Arm yourself with knowledge.  Know your product and the proper US approved dosage.  Most manufacturers have detailed web pages where you can get this information.  I’m not a Vet, so you won’t get recommendations or FDA warnings from me.  You will need to goto the source to get that
information.

Where do I shop?  My Vet is choice #1  My local Pet Supply Store is #2 Shopping online?  Be sure to pick a well known company that sells fresh product.  Petco and PetSmart are common places to go.  You can also shop at Dr. Fosters & Smith , and Valley Vet is another great place to find meds online.

Be sure to give your pup ear rubs from me.

I get information from different dog email groups on Yahoo! Groups.

This one I thought important enough to pass along:

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If you have a dog … PLEASE read

This and send it on. If you don’t Have a dog, please pass along to friends who do.

Written by:

Laurinda Morris, DVM

Danville Veterinary Clinic

Danville , OH

This week I had the first case in history of raisin toxicity ever seen at MedVet. My patient was a 56-pound, 5 yr old male neutered lab mix that ate half a canister of raisins sometime between 7:30 AM and 4:30 PM on Tuesday. He started with vomiting, diarrhea and shaking about 1AM on Wednesday but the owner didn’t call my emergency service until 7AM.

I had heard somewhere about raisins AND grapes causing acute Renal failure but hadn’t seen any formal paper on the subject. We had her bring the dog in immediately. In the meantime, I called the ER service at MedVet, and the doctor there was like me - had heard something about it, but … anyway, we contacted the ASPCA National Animal Poison Control Center and they said to give IV fluids at 1 & 1/2 times maintenance and watch the kidney values for the next 48-72 hours.

The dog’s BUN (blood urea nitrogen level) was already at 32 (normal less than 27) and creatinine over 5 (1.9 is the high end of normal). Both are monitors of kidney function in the bloodstream. We placed an IV catheter and started the fluids. Rechecked the renal values at 5 PM and the BUN was over 40 and creatinine over 7 with no urine production after a liter of fluids. At the point I felt the dog was in acute renal failure and sent him on to MedVet for a urinary catheter to monitor urine output overnight as well as overnight care.

He started vomiting again overnight at MedVet and his renal values have continued to increase daily. He produced urine when given lasix as a diuretic. He was on 3 different anti-vomiting medications and they still couldn’t control his vomiting. Today his urine output decreased again, his BUN was over 120, his creatinine was at 10, his phosphorus was very elevated and his blood pressure, which had been staying around 150, skyrocketed to 220 … He continued to vomit and the owners elected to euthanize.

This is a very sad case - great dog, great owners who had no idea raisins could be a toxin. Please alert everyone you know who has a dog of this very serious risk.

Poison control said as few as 7 raisins or grapes could be toxic. Many people I know give their dogs grapes or raisins as treats including our ex-handler’s. Any exposure should give rise to immediate concern.

Onions, chocolate, cocoa and macadamia nuts can be fatal, too.

Even if you don’t have a dog, you might have friends who do. This is worth passing on to them.

Confirmation from Snopes about the above!

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Watch out for those treats you give your dog, and be sure to give them ear rubs from me.