DOG POISONING ON THE RISE

APN’s poison packs consist of salt, activated charcoal, a syringe, sample bag, surgical gloves and an instruction pamphlet.

When you suspect your dog has been poisoned, do not waste precious minutes by phoning around, get to the vet as soon as possible.

Dog poisoning is on the increase in the Alberton area and is expected to escalate over the festive season.

In the past week, APN received a number of complaints and notifications on APN WhatsApp groups about dogs being poisoned.

Some residents were able to save their pets, but others were not so lucky.

Dog poisoning is on the rise

According to APN member Di Hingley, a national news agency reported that there are over 1 000 dogs poisoned each week in South Africa.

Di explained that the most commonly used poison is Aldicarb or its given street name, Two-Step, which is sold illegally.

“Poisoning is a method used by criminals to rid a home of dogs thus making access to the home easier.  “We have all said when we hear of dog poisoning that the home will be broken into in the next few days. It is also important to report dog poisoning incidents to your local SAPS.”

APN members responded to an incident of dog poisoning earlier this month where they picked up a dog who was poisoned and they took him to the vet, but sadly he didn’t make it.

“We deal with at least one poisoning every couple of days. It is, however, important to note that your dog’s life depends on minutes so don’t waste time with phone calls, get the dog to the vet as soon as possible.”

Symptoms of Aldicarb poisoning

Di said that Aldicarb poisoning will kill a small dog in about five minutes and a large dog in about 20 minutes and for members to respond to the scene takes time, which plays a big role when a dog is poisoned.

“For us to get to a scene wastes precious minutes, so we will always advise pet owners to go to the nearest vet.”

Symptoms include consistent signs of muscle tremors (main sign), excessive salivation, slow heart rate, seizures followed by vomiting, difficulty breathing and diarrhoea.

“Some of the symptoms are, but not limited to, confusion, excessive salivation, vomiting, rapid breathing, difficulty in breathing, convulsions. People should note that any unusual symptoms in your dog may indicate poisoning.”

Poison packs

“We started putting together poison packs for pet owners to keep in their homes as you never know when you might need it.”

APN’s poison packs consist of salt, activated charcoal, a syringe, sample bag, surgical gloves and an instruction pamphlet.

“When you suspect poisoning the first step is putting on surgical gloves, you can be poisoned through your skin if you touch any of the poison or vomit. In the case of Aldicarb poisoning you induce vomiting, using a salt and water solution,” Di explained.

When the dog has vomited you then use the activated charcoal to help absorb most of the remaining poison.

“This is not a fail-proof treatment for poisoning but a method to give you a few precious minutes to get your dog to the vet,” she said.

“If you are able to, scoop some of the poison, vomit or saliva into the sample bag so the vet can test to confirm what poison was used.”