Are Mushrooms Poisonous To Dogs
Mushroom is on ASPCA’s list of common people foods toxic to dogs. Dog owners are warned not to give this human food to the pet because of its toxic effects. Considering the dog’s tendency to roam and to eat anything that catches its fancy, preventing the dog from ingesting mushrooms can be difficult. Mushrooms grow everywhere. Mushrooms would pop out almost anywhere – on the lawn, on the yard and in the nearby woods. Except during the winter months, mushrooms would be seen growing everywhere.
Mushroom is a gourmet food commonly used as an ingredient in Japanese, Korean and Chinese cuisine. Being a low calorie food, raw or cooked mushrooms are favorite of people battling the bulge. Aside from the delicious taste, mushrooms are also favored for its vitamins and essential minerals content. It is rather unfortunate that not all mushrooms are edible and identifying the poisonous ones would be very difficult given the fact that different types of mushrooms almost look the same. Moreover, edible and poisonous mushrooms can grow side by side.
Dogs often get into dangerous situations because of their voracious appetites and inquisitive nature. A lot of dogs die from poisoning thus owners are being vigilant to save the pet from this concern. Dogs eat grass every now and then and in doing so may ingest poisonous mushrooms. The dog may use the tongue to investigate the mushroom and the interesting taste would encourage the dog to eat. These are the possible situations where the dog would ingest poisonous mushrooms.
The effect of toxicity would depend on the kind of mushroom ingested by the dog. Among the poisonous species of mushrooms, the Amanita phalloides, commonly known as death caps are considered to be most toxic. Dogs that have ingested poisonous mushrooms would vomit and have diarrhea. Some species of mushrooms would have more serious effects on the dog such as the destruction of the kidney and liver cells. Yellowing of the eyes and the mucus membranes are signs that the liver was already damaged. Dogs can get into coma and die if the mushroom ingested contains high level of toxic substances.
Urgent treatment is necessary for dogs that have ingested poisonous mushrooms. The toxins the mushroom contains would damage the dog’s vital organs and the damage must be addressed but removing the toxin from the dog’s body must be given priority. Activated charcoal is commonly administered to soak up the toxin in the dog’s stomach. To induce vomiting, the dogs will be given hydrogen peroxide or syrup of ipecac.
Mushrooms and dogs. Find out more at Sarah’s Dogs. What is more you can read all about dog breeds.
