Antifreeze
We were having a wonderful time while visiting my parents for the 4th of July. As usual we had brought our bubbly pup Chloe with us. On Saturday night my dad had let us know that he had been having issues with skunks (they live in the country) and that he had set out some antifreeze to try to poison them. We had kept Chloe on a leash or on her chain while she was outside the whole time and had her far away from the deadly, sweet drink.
This morning as we were getting ready for the meal, we put Chloe outside since it was still cool out. She managed to wrap her chain around the corkscrew into a rather amazing knot. Kevin let her off the chain for just a minute to untangle it. She sniffed around nearby him and then he looked up and didn't see her at first.
Then he saw her over on the edge of their property...lapping up some of the antifreeze.
Immediately we called a vet and they told us to induce vomiting with hydrogen peroxide. We called my sister-in-law Karen who lives nearby if she had some on hand. Thankfully she did. We drove quickly over there and within 15 minutes of ingesting the poison, we got the hydrogen peroxide in her. She puked four times. We then gave her lots of water throughout the day.
We brought her into the emergency veterinary hospital in Eden Prairie on our way home from my parents. She seemed fine the whole time after she had puked. Typically animals appear drunk if they have ingested too much and are poisoned, so we had assumed we'd gotten it out of her system fast enough.
However her lab results showed differently. She had consumed a lethal dose.
There is an antidote that can be administered intravenously for 48 hours to stop the body from metabolizing it. Without the antidote, antifreeze will eventually lead to kidney failure and then death.
They gave us an estimate as to what it would cost to give Chloe this treatment: $2000. As I read the estimate, hot tears burned in my eyes. That seemed like so much money. I used to think people who spent money like that on their animals were stupid. A dog is just a dog. An animal...right?
I looked Kevin in the eyes, and we both knew what we had to do, even if it was really hard.
Chloe has been such an amazing pet, she's truly a part of our family. There was no way that we were going to let her suffer and die. We signed the statement and paid the minimum.
As I gave Chloe a hug goodbye before she started her treatment, the hot tears spilled down my face. How could I have let this happen to my little girl? I told her to be good and squeezed her soft, fluffy little body. It was hard watching her walk through the door with the vet tech, but I knew that she was in very good and loving hands.
The vet called recently and said as of right now her kidneys are still functioning normally, but it's a little too early to tell if there will be any permanent damage. I hope we got her in there in time...
For those of you who pray, please say a little prayer for our Chloe-pup. That she'll be comfortable and that she'll heal completely and have no kidney issues.
This morning as we were getting ready for the meal, we put Chloe outside since it was still cool out. She managed to wrap her chain around the corkscrew into a rather amazing knot. Kevin let her off the chain for just a minute to untangle it. She sniffed around nearby him and then he looked up and didn't see her at first.
Then he saw her over on the edge of their property...lapping up some of the antifreeze.
Immediately we called a vet and they told us to induce vomiting with hydrogen peroxide. We called my sister-in-law Karen who lives nearby if she had some on hand. Thankfully she did. We drove quickly over there and within 15 minutes of ingesting the poison, we got the hydrogen peroxide in her. She puked four times. We then gave her lots of water throughout the day.
We brought her into the emergency veterinary hospital in Eden Prairie on our way home from my parents. She seemed fine the whole time after she had puked. Typically animals appear drunk if they have ingested too much and are poisoned, so we had assumed we'd gotten it out of her system fast enough.
However her lab results showed differently. She had consumed a lethal dose.
There is an antidote that can be administered intravenously for 48 hours to stop the body from metabolizing it. Without the antidote, antifreeze will eventually lead to kidney failure and then death.
They gave us an estimate as to what it would cost to give Chloe this treatment: $2000. As I read the estimate, hot tears burned in my eyes. That seemed like so much money. I used to think people who spent money like that on their animals were stupid. A dog is just a dog. An animal...right?
I looked Kevin in the eyes, and we both knew what we had to do, even if it was really hard.
Chloe has been such an amazing pet, she's truly a part of our family. There was no way that we were going to let her suffer and die. We signed the statement and paid the minimum.
As I gave Chloe a hug goodbye before she started her treatment, the hot tears spilled down my face. How could I have let this happen to my little girl? I told her to be good and squeezed her soft, fluffy little body. It was hard watching her walk through the door with the vet tech, but I knew that she was in very good and loving hands.
The vet called recently and said as of right now her kidneys are still functioning normally, but it's a little too early to tell if there will be any permanent damage. I hope we got her in there in time...
For those of you who pray, please say a little prayer for our Chloe-pup. That she'll be comfortable and that she'll heal completely and have no kidney issues.
Comment
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Comment by Geri & Sidney on July 6, 2009 at 2:39am
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Oh, I'm so glad you got her to the vet! I know you miss your Chloe terribly, but she'll be home soon. We'll be thinking of you and praying she pulls through with flying colors.
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Comment by John Wolff on July 6, 2009 at 1:35am
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pet first aid
REMEMBER THIS NEXT TIME YOUR CAR BOILS OVER.
I boiled off a lot of coolant climbing a steep logging road on a hot day. I didn't realize immediately that my car was dripping a lot of coolant through the overflow tube. It was all over the ground. We had 2 dogs in the car. I was lucky that time.
There are various exotic coolants on the market these days, but IF it is ethylene glycol (standard antifreeze, with the sweet taste because it's nearly a sugar), then the old-fashioned antidote is ethanol, chemically similar to ethylene glycol (which is a kind of alcohol). Ethanol has a higher affinity for the otherwise poisoned enzymes, and displaces the ethylene glycol. So if you're in a truly desperate emergency situation with no recourse to a poison center, and you have some hard liquor.... I suppose you could guess how much liquor would get you drunk but not unconscious, and divide your body weight by the victim's, and dose accordingly?
I've heard that there are propylene glycol coolants, much less toxic (but still maybe sweet). One might ask for that.
Give yourself credit for being alert to the hazard and getting treatment started promptly.
Our best wishes.
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Comment by Owen's Mom on July 6, 2009 at 12:28am
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Sending our prayers... it is so easy to make such mistakes... we love our pups and as smart as they are sometimes they don't know what is best for them.. found owen with a staple in his mouth one day not too long ago... we pray she pulls through
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Comment by Queenie and Chico on July 5, 2009 at 10:48pm
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My prayers are with you and Chloe..I hope she makes it through..Omg.. I pray she's going to be ok.
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Comment by Melanie Stage on July 5, 2009 at 10:44pm
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no one should ever put poision out for any reason not only pets but children, endangered species etc. If people have a wildlife problem they can go to the internet for ways to solve it, or last resort get a licensed trapper to remove the critter. I hope your folks learned a valuable lesson. Skunks rarely cause any problems and our a valuable part of our ecology. I pray for your pup. just paid 2,500 for emergency operation on my rottie they are family I understand.
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Comment by Libby and Dyddy!! on July 5, 2009 at 10:38pm
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Aww oh no! We will pray and cross paws for a quick recovery!
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Comment by Melissa on July 5, 2009 at 10:23pm
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I was so scared every second reading this. I know the feeling of seeing a vet estimate and just knowing that I would make it work no matter what to save my baby. I am sending Chloe all my strength so she can recover quickly and be back in your arms soon.
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