What to do if your dog gets poisoned

1. Assess your dog's condition

Firstly, determine your dog's condition and then decide on the next course of action. If your dog's mental state is relatively normal and the time of toxic substance ingestion is short, it is recommended to induce vomiting in time to reduce the absorption of toxic substances and treat the ingested toxic substances with detoxifying agents.

2. Longer ingestion time and clinical symptoms

If your dog has eaten toxic substances for a long time and has developed symptoms such as seizures, froth at the mouth, and stiffness in the four limbs, it indicates that the toxic substances have entered the bloodstream. At this point, inducing vomiting is no longer necessary, and it's urgent to take your dog to a pet hospital as soon as possible. Through fluid administration, the body's metabolism can be enhanced.

• If the ingestion time is short:

If your dog's mental state is normal and the toxic substance was ingested recently, you can consider gastric lavage or induced vomiting, followed by treatment based on the examination results. Concentrations of 1% to 2% sulfuric acid solution are generally used for oral administration, or strong salt water and mild soap water can be used to induce vomiting. If your dog has started to vomit and seizure, you should not perform gastric lavage or induced vomiting, as it may lead to shock. Within 2-4 hours after poisoning, thorough gastric lavage is the most effective method.

However, this method cannot detoxify the poison but only inhibit excessive toxins from entering the dog's body. After induced vomiting, take your dog to a pet hospital for further examination and treatment promptly. Do not delay treatment thinking that your dog will get better on its own, as this could make the condition worse.

• If the ingestion time is long and clinical symptoms appear:

If your dog has eaten toxic substances for a long time and has developed poisoning symptoms such as vomiting, diarrhea, seizures, incoordination, drooling, etc., take your dog to a pet hospital for emergency treatment. When taking your dog to the hospital, it's best to inform the doctor about the dose of the toxic substance ingested, the time of ingestion, and any emergency measures taken, so that the doctor can investigate the cause in the first place.

Note: If you discover that your dog has accidentally eaten a toxic substance at home, you can use soap water to induce vomiting. However, it's still necessary to take your dog to a pet hospital promptly, allowing professional doctors to detoxify and treat your dog accordingly, which is the most effective measure.