My 6 year old Sheltie, Mendi, had a normal day, I fed
her and her sister at 5pm, and at 5:30 let them outside. Fifteen minutes
later they came in, and Mendi started throwing up violently, one after
the other. Her breathing was hard and labored. I noticed her ruff was
full of saliva, and it was just rolling out of her mouth. I called her
vet, just then realizing she couldn't swallow.
The vet told me to pick up my keys and my dog and get
her to the Emergency Hospital, now. Before the end of the call, she was
in shock. At the hospital, they started IV's and X-rays for foreign
objects, which were negative. The blood test results indicated a toxin,
and her liver was shutting down, with all other body functions failing
as well. Toxins and poisons like arsenic, etc. had all been ruled out.
Mendi by now was vomiting blood and had blood gushing from her rectum. I
went home to check the yard, the weather had changed from warm rains of
the last few days to sleet.
I found nothing in the yard. Mendi continued losing
blood, and blood test results became more grim. My husband in a
conference call with me, the hospital and her vet, said what about
mushrooms? I rushed home to look, and found one small mushroom that was
now frozen. The vet began calling University docs, CDC, and poison
control. They all said yes, the way her case presented, it was very
possibly caused by poison mushrooms. They made recommendations for
treatment. For the next 76 hours, there was no improvement, and she
continued to vomit blood and her intestines were still bleeding out from
the rectum. The vet continued to consult all over, and was on-line to
VIN network. A vet in Maryland recommended she start on Milk Thistle (an
herb), and SAME, an antioxidant. At that point there were no more
options.
She was started on those, and within 24 hours showed
some slight improvement in one test. The next 48 hours were touch and
go, then finally, after 6 days, she lifted her head, although she still
did not respond to my voice. On the seventh day she suddenly got better,
and they kept her on IV's and treatment.
Late that night I was able to bring her home, and now,
two days later, she is eating and going out although she is weak.
Now...the mushrooms. They were the kind that shoots up suddenly in your
grass after rains. Being overprotective, I had for many years checked
for them at least twice a day, and removed them. The day it happened was
very stormy, and I hadn't checked. It seems that 80% of the time, those
mushrooms are very poisonous. The ordeal was a total nightmare....please
warn other pet owners.
Go on to Soynog,
Vegan Eggnog
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