My girlfriend is a vet and wrote this article for the company she works for (Pet Poison Helpline). Some good info on what you need to watch out for to keep your dog safe...
Pet Poison Helpline Offers Safety Tips for Hunting Dogs
Hunting season is upon us – tips to keep your dog safe
Minneapolis (October 5, 2009) – As you and your Labrador retriever, German shorthaired pointer, or Irish setter prepare for hunting season, it’s important to make sure that you’re keeping your dog out of harm’s way. Be aware of potential hazards to your hunting dog to help ensure a safe, enjoyable and bountiful hunt.
Toxin alert. Hunting dogs encounter risks that backyard pets don’t. Here are some toxins you should know about.
Blue-green algae (cyanobacteria): Each year, hunting dogs in the US die as a result of drinking from water contaminated with blue-green algae. Toxic blue-green algae contain liver and/or neurotoxins and often occur during hot, dry weather and give the water a “pea soup” appearance. Signs of poisoning show up immediately, and include vomiting, diarrhea, weakness, collapse, tremors, seizures, and jaundice (yellow skin and gums). Death from the neurotoxin can occur within minutes while death from the liver toxin may take several days. Because treatment is often unsuccessful, prevention is key. Providing fresh water for your dog is imperative.
Lead Shot/Bullets: Aside from the trauma caused by gun shot wounds, the lead found in pellets and bullets may lead to lead poisoning if left in the body. If your dog is shot, seek veterinary care immediately. If the bullet fragments or pellets cannot be removed, check blood lead levels to ensure that chronic lead poisoning doesn’t occur. Signs of lead toxicity include behavioral changes, gastrointestinal signs (i.e., vomiting, diarrhea), and neurologic problems (including walking drunk, seizuring, and blindness.)
Clay Pigeons: These contain coal tar and heavy metals such as lead, zinc, copper, and nickel, and can result in toxicity if ingested. If you have a “mouthy” hunting dog known to ingest toys or rocks, beware. Make sure they’re not eating scattered pieces of clay pigeons, as poisoning can result in liver, brain and kidney damage.
Mushrooms: Being that hunting dogs are exposed to the great outdoors, they’re more likely to ingest a mushroom in the field than a couch potato dog. While most mushrooms are generally non-toxic, certain types can be very dangerous. One of the most dangerous is the plain looking Amanita phalloides ordeath cap mushroom, found throughout the United States. Because proper identification of mushrooms is extremely difficult and often only done by experts, consider all ingestions of unidentified mushrooms as toxic until proven otherwise. Depending on the type of mushroom ingested, symptoms include vomiting, diarrhea, abdominal pain, depression, tremors, and seizures, with ingestion usually leading to liver and kidney damage.
Safety tips
As hunting dogs are more likely to run through barbed wire or lacerate themselves by running through dense brush, it’s important to keep your dog in a blaze orange chest protector vest. Not only does this protect vital organs from injury, but it saves on expensive vet bills.
For dogs that don’t have an electronic shock collar on, the excited hunting dog can take off after a scent, resulting in hours of searching for your companion. Make sure identification tags are well secured onto your dog’s collar to ensure a happy reunion.
Rarely, a genetic abnormality in Labrador retrievers called “hunting dog hypoglycemia” can result in an acute drop in blood sugar, resulting in the collapse of a normally active dog. Making time for frequent water and snack breaks throughout the day is important.
Heat stroke is always a big risk early in the hunting season – dogs are excited and combined with the higher air temperatures, this can increase chances of heat exhaustion. Keeping a canine first aid kit handy, along with a thermometer, is important in case of emergency. If you notice your dog constantly panting, make sure to take frequent water breaks and water dips (in ponds without blue-green algae.) When in doubt, always play it safe and give your dog a break to cool off.
Make sure to scope out the area where you are hunting and have the phone number for a local veterinarian, emergency veterinarian and Pet Poison Helpline programmed into your phone in the event of an emergency.
The best thing any hunter can do is to be educated about the common hazards or toxins which predominantly effect hunting dogs. When in doubt or if you think your pet has been poisoned, contact your veterinarian or Pet Poison Helpline immediately at 1-800-213-6680 with any questions or concerns.
About Pet Poison Helpline
Pet Poison Helpline is a service available 24 hours, seven days a week for pet owners, veterinarians and vet techs that require assistance treating a potentially poisoned pet. Staff can provide treatment advice for poisoning cases of all species, including dogs, cats, birds, small mammals, large animals and exotic species. As the most cost-effective option for animal poison control care, Pet Poison Helpline’s fee of $35 per incident includes follow-up consultation for the duration of the poison case. Pet Poison Helpline is available in North America by calling 800-213-6680. Additional information can be found online at www.petpoisonhelpline.com.
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Media Note: Representatives from Pet Poison Helpline are available to discuss fall hunting, fall toxins or other topics pertaining to pet health and safety.
Thanks for the tips, Dan! I know I've read all these before, but a friendly reminder never hurts! And thanks for the poison hotline #, too. I'll write it on the inside of Zoomie's first aid kit.
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Vizslas... because life's too short to hunt with an ugly dog.
When my dog was a pup she actually got into some mushrooms and nearly died. 2 years after that she got into some onions and left a mess out of her backside thru the house that looked like a crime scene. Apparently she wised up after those 2 incidents and doesn't touch anything other than her food or what we're eating. I do know a guy who lost a dog to algae in a stagnant water hole...nasty stuff.
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"Assumption is the mother of all screw-ups."
I think most of these are no brainers. That beeing said some things that dogs get into in the field that most poeple dont think of. Porcupines, skunk,ferel cat, and the famous stick in the eye. I think that if she were to touch on these she would have something. BTW yes my dogs have been involved with all of these some more that once. Shorthairs just didnt get it.
The probable reason for this conclusion is that there are insufficient financial resources and manpower to effectively monitor and regulate the dog food industry. You can’t trust the dog food industry to watch out for your dog and the government is not your answer either.
This is unfortunate. The dog food industry was born in postwar America to meet a need….the need of business interests to recycle slaughterhouse and industrial waste. This refuse had potential uses as fertilizer, landfill and such, but a more profitable horizon existed in the packaging and selling this “junk” as food to unsuspecting dog owners. It is now a common misconception that your dog can not maintain a healthy life unless he is fed commercial dog food. Nothing could be further from the truth.
====================================== number plates Marine corps Gifts
toby my lab drinks that algae water everytime i take him pheasant hunting in certain area.he is hot and goes for dive and then drinks it.
so far i have not had him sick,i guess very lucky.he also drinks water from ground with gas in it from gas fields here in clinton county, pa.gas bubbles up thru ground into water laying in puddles.
What can poison your dog in the field...
