cane toads and dogs

[hawaiideborah]

A neighbor lost their dog due to cane toad.
Concerns:
they were told that there was no 24 hour vet in Hilo. Is this true?
If so, what can one do when they have a dog suffering from cane toad symptoms?
Is there an antidote that can be purchased to have in case this happens after hours and no vet is open? sorta like a snake bite kit or bee bite kit for those allergic?
I am concerned as I have seen our dog playing with the toads here.
Thanks for any help.

[macuu222]

Cane or Bufo toads are everywhere on this island. And they are most certainly deadly to dogs and cats. Since they only come out at night time (unless disturbed from their hiding place during the day)...the first thing you can do is just keep your animal inside your house at night like we do.

[lquade]

wash the dogs mouth out with a running hose as quickly as possible. dont stuff it down his throat, but flush flush flush out the mouth. you could keep activated charcoal on hand also to feed your animal, that might also help

[DTisme]

Aloha Vet in Hilo has emergency services. Site says: "Emergency services are available after hours for both clients and non-clients. If an emergency should occur outside of normal business hours, please call 1-888-660-2837 for after hour emergency services. There is a $30.00 fee to speak with a doctor." http://www.alohavetcenter.com/emergencies.html We switched to Aloha months ago for our doggie bc Big Island vet in HPP wasn't available when we needed them. We've been extremely happy with Aloha.

[csgray]

Lquade gives good advice, we have one dog out of three who is fascinated with toads, and has had several close encounters (we refer to her as the toad sucking dog) and her sister hasbegun to alert us when she goes after toads. We had to wash her mouth out until she no longer foamed, generally about 20 minutes, then she lies in a stupor for about 8 hours and is wobbly on her feet for 24. Frankly, I think she really likes the buzz. A good hunter like this dog will find them during the day as well as at night too. The random factor here is that the animal has to bite the toad in the right place and the right way and the toad sends out a stream of poison, so not all toad encounters are deadly.

Carol

[spunky]

East Hawaii Vet also has after hour care available if you are an existing client. Dr. Mina will see dogs any time of night if it is an emergency - if you're a regular.

[David M]

Unfortunately, a couple of our dogs have a toad fascination, 2 quite scary encounters, the latest costing me my 3 month old iphone last summer.
Flushing works IF you get them soon enough (before the foaming). In our experience, if the poison is already in the system, flushing doesn't seem to do much. My understanding is this poison is absorbed via the mucous membranes, not swallowed. We do keep benedryl on hand, both the liquid and pills and administer as soon as possible after the flushing. As it would take us 30 minutes or more to get to the vet, I did discuss this with vet a couple years ago vet said this approach was appropriate as there's not much the vet could do. Maybe the medicine has improved since then, but time would still be a problem for us, especially as they seem to prefer toads at night. One thing that kinda ticks me off, the dogs have a fenced area for nightime use, with small opening chicken wire at the bottom and the d*mn toads still get in. Constant vigilance, as like Carol said, I think some dogs develop a liking for it.

David

Ninole Resident

[Funkstopper]

All my local friends advised us to have the dog drink beer. Forget why it is supposed to work but I do know it helped a friend of ours with there little dog.
Jim

[hawaiideborah]

Thanks for all the advice.
will take suggestions of benedryl on hand and be prepared to do the flush with water. also to really watch them at night.
Thanks for all the helpful suggestions.

BTW: ALOHA VET was the one the neighbor called. They took Visa and charged $30 to take the call. But, they told neighbor they would NOT come into the office. Aloha vet advised that the dog might die, and even with this warning they would not come into the office to help treat the dog. they could have charged the Visa first for after hours, but if the vet actually said the dog may die and there is apparently an antidote the vets have, Aloha vet would not help other than advice to keep dog calm and to describe dog may have convulsions and eventually heart attack. Which is what happened to dog after 6 hours of seizures and no vet help. The Aloha vet said to bring the dog in the morning if she was still alive. Great.
Even if all the vet could do is euthanize, it would have been better than putting my neighbor and the poor dog through hours of suffering.

[Beachboy]

do these toads also cause dog's eyes to turn smoky grey too? If it's not a toad causing it, who is doing this major damage?

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