The DU Lounge
Related: Culture Forums, Support ForumsAll this talk about hydrogen peroxide reminds me of a useful tip I thought I'd share.
Years back our dog--who was clever to the point of being conniving--somehow was able to break into a carton of chocolate covered espresso beans we'd received as a Christmas treat. We thought we'd stored this high enough for her not to reach it, but it's amazing what a Labrador retriever will do when food is involved.
Chocolate of course can be lethal to dogs, and expresso beans are not so great either. Luckily, we caught her just as she was scarfing the last of them down.
To induce vomiting we mixed a couple of tablespoons of hydrogen peroxide with apple sauce, which she thought was a wonderful treat. About a minute later she threw up everything she'd eaten that day. We then rushed her to the vet.
Dosage depends on the dog's weight. Our little fuss-bucket was about fifty pounds.
To finish the story, the vet fed her a charcoal treat and then inserted an IV for distilled water to flush out her kidneys, then kept her for the rest of the day for observation. Other than being VERY hyper for a couple of hours she was fine. She absolutely loved our vet and was always happy to see her, so it all worked out okay.
Just thought I'd share this as a useful tip, if you're ever confronted with a sneaky pet who gets into something not in their best interests.
Best wishes.
MuseRider
(34,060 posts)Thanks.
thucythucy
(7,986 posts)We had another lab--a rescue--who eventually became a lovable clown but came with all sorts of neuroses and phobias (he'd obviously been severely abused as a younger dog).
Among other things he was absolutely terrified when walking up and down stairs, shivering like mad, which was a major pain. The day we picked him up from the rescue people I had to sit with him in the back yard for several hours before he'd even come into the house.
We overcame this by discovering his absolutely all time favorite treat. This took a while with much experimenting. It tells you how frightened a lab is when they turn down all of the usual treats.
His ultimate turn-on: partially defrosted frozen cheese ravioli. Offer him one of these from the top or bottom of the stairs and he'd bound up or down to get one. We repeated this a dozen times over the course of two days along with a prompt --"Check it out!"-- and by the third day all that was needed was the prompt. Good for training, bad for the weight, so we saved this treat for the extra difficult problems.
The boy had such a sweet disposition, even goofy, once we managed to peal away all the layers of post traumatic stress. Our vet sat us down and walked us through all the evidence of past injuries and abuse she'd found. It was heart-breaking. I can't imagine how anyone could mistreat a creature so.
Anyway, most labs will jump through flaming hoops--all you need to do is find that one special treat they can't resist.
MuseRider
(34,060 posts)I have had 3 of them, all wonderful and exactly like you say.
Terrified rescue dogs can be difficult. We have one, not abused as long as yours as he was tossed into the street as a weanling, weaned much too early. Gods what a mess of odd fears and behaviors. It has taken a while and he is still afraid of some things but mostly a goofy, happy and loving young dog. The ravioli is amazing, the fact that you found that and it worked. Here it is simply a ball (def not a lab). He has his favorites but for a ball he would gladly do almost everything....except walk or run past a dust mop.
Thanks for that special story. Makes me smile a lot and also brings me back to being so sad and ashamed that any human could ever treat anything the way these rescues have been treated. Today I will think of this and smile.
targetpractice
(4,919 posts)... Discovered she chewed up a package of xylitol chewing gum. I used a syringe to induce vomiting.
After the drama... I reassembled the pack of gum... It was shredded, but no missing pieces. She hadn't swallowed anything after all.
thucythucy
(7,986 posts)I can't imagine why--I mean, clothes line? Wha??
The owner didn't even know this had happened until Mr. Glutton for Fiber started to produce it out the other end.
Didn't phase the dog at all. It was a rather bizarre spectacle though, but as they say: "This too shall pass."
Can you tell how much I LOVE labs?
mopinko
(69,809 posts)had a rat terrier pup, about 6 mos old at the time. zipper. she was a rly great dog.
we were just letting her be lose in the house when we were gone. went to mil's for xmas eve, and came home to find that zipper had eaten a whole pound of frango mints.
she weighed less than 10 lbs at the time.
he just gave her a drop of apomorphine in her eye, and she puked it all up. she was fine.
i'll remember this, tho. i have a half pryenees mutt that is an epic food thief. mostly i laugh at him when he eats something that makes him sick, but....
getagrip_already
(14,250 posts)There was a trail of wrappers all over. He loved reesies cups, didn't bother with the sour treats.
He never had a problem with it outside of having loose bowel movements, but he was watched carefully.
It wasn't nearly toxic in his case. He was a big boy though.
NH Ethylene
(30,793 posts)She just loved running down to the elementary school a half-mile away to see the kids. The door to the school was often propped open and she would just head right in and have a run at the place. Good fun for her and a frantic phone call from the school for us!
Her neck was wider than her head so she could slip out her collar. We got a chain link kennel for her and she actually chewed the wire enough to create a hole in the door to escape. If I kept her inside when we left she would get mad and do something destructive.
Labs! They are too smart for their own good sometimes.
Ocelot II
(115,280 posts)Sweet, friendly dog, dumb as a bag of hammers, ate underwear off clotheslines.
He also ate rocks.
llashram
(6,265 posts)thank you...