Dog/battery problem

ocallagh

My cocker spaniel (6 months old) might have eaten 2 AA sized batteries. I'm not sure when she ate them, it could be as long as 2 days ago. I only found the chewed up remote control an horu ago. Can batteries poison a dog? They were regular duracel batteries and had only been replaced 1 month ago.

Also, does anyone know of an outside hours Vet service in the Dublin area, or at least one that might be open on New Years eve?

Any help much appreciated

FranknFurter

Search the house for the battery, be as sure as you can.

The direct number for emergency vets, is:
1890 564 036

MAKE SURE you tell them its been 2 days.
Do not feed the dog.
DO NOT try to make the dog vomit.
Is she showing any symptoms?
Battery ingestion may not be obvious or symptomatic until harmful conditions suddenly develop.
Swallowed batteries can corrode through an intestine in a very short space of time, gastric acid may break the seal of an ingested battery.

If they say its ok to wait till morning, ring your local vet and he / she will either be open or will have left an emergency contact number on the answering machine.
Get her to a vet first thing in the morning.

Buy strong tape to put on battery compartments and try to keep them out of reach of animals (and children).

I hope shes ok, please let us know.

B

ocallagh

Thanks FranknFurter, She is fine.

I forgot to mention my concern got worse when she got sick and revealed a large bunde of chewed up cable which she must have found at the same time as the remote control. Anyway, I got through to the UCD emergency Vetinary and they took her in straight away. An xray showed no sign of batteries which was a huge relief. They said she more thn likely "stole" the batteries and hid them in the garden somewhere. They got all of the chewed cable out. I'm heading up to collect her now and afterwards gonna remove ALL wires and remote controls from the room...

Thanks again for the number and advice.

FranknFurter

Might also be an idea to coat any wires or eatable things with somthing nasty-tasting (but non-toxic!).
She needs that behaviour modified, it could easilly kill her. It is that serious.

I often suggest spraying somthing like clove oil or one of those muscle cramp heat sprays (ralgex etc) on things, but if its this bad it would make your life unbearable with the stink.

There are many "anti-chew" sprays available in pet shops, but these wont bother the truly obsessive dog.
IMO, distraction may be your best bet. Get her plenty (PLENTY) of chew toys, and importantly, a Kong and everytime she goes to chew somthing distract her with the "good chews" as opposed to your cable tv.

To be honest, and Im not trying to criticize, but it sounds to me like you need to be giving her more attention and watching her like a hawk. See, if you were there she wouldnt have the chance to chew. She is likely very bored and taking it out on these things as a source of amusment.
Lavish attention on her, and be with her as her companion for as much of the day as you can (and when you are not there, arrange for somone to "puppysit"). This alone may stop the behaviour. Puppies are like children, Take your eyes off them and they will hurt themselves or somthing else. That is part of responsible puppy ownership.

Just as it is not safe to leave a child alone, it is not safe to leave an untrained puppy alone.

B

ocallagh

Thanks for the advice. I've removed any potential threats and the only thing left to chew are the couches!:) She hadn't chewed anything in a few months and we just got lazy leaving things lying around I guess. We have two dogs and they get more than their fair share of attention. They get two walks a day (if u ever go to sandymount or dollymount beach you'd know them!) and they get plenty of affection, we've had dogs all our lives so we're used to it! Given the nature of cocker spaniels they will chew things occasionaly. She doesn't do it very often, actually apart from a couple of shoes/socks and the corner of our couch she hasn't chewed anything else. The other dog (wheaton terrier) is also 6 months old and he is much more relaxed and probably a good influence on her. Anyway don't worry they are both fine and thanks again for your concern and advice!

Oh, by the way - the vet in UCD gave me two syringes full of a clear sticky solution. It has no label and I am to give her 3mls of it with every feed. I forgot to ask what it was, do you have any idea what it might be? I am guessing some sort of glucose solution or maybe a laxative or something to balance the acid in her stomach?

FranknFurter

Good to hear that, so many people dont realise that dogs need company, ours or their own
No idea tbh, I would guess at it being a mild laxative, prolly worried there may be small items they have missed and wants to be sure.
But im sure your vet would know if you phone him.

B

Interceptor

I was changing a headlight bulb in my car last Saturday and my parents springer spaniel took the new bulb (still in its box) off the workbench in the shed and chewed it all to bits, broken glass everywhere but no sign of blood or cuts in her mouth. Bloody new bulb cost a tenner. This dog is constantly in contact with people, gets walked five miles a day and is perfectly happy but is just chewy. Some breeds are chewy and you just have to put up with it.

'cptr