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 Mouse and Rat Bait
Poisoning
One of the most common poisonings we see
in dogs and cats is from the ingestion of mouse
and rat baits. Fortunately, there is a treatment,
but it must be administered in time!
What should you do if your dog or cat eats mouse bait? The first thing to do is to call me! Mouse and rat bait poisoning can be deadly if not treated quickly. If you know or suspect that your pet has eaten mouse or rat bait, it is an emergency situation. Call us at 523-2513 immediately and we will tell you what to do.
The first step is to bring your pet in to the clinic. It will be very helpful if you will bring the box the poison came in as well. There are many different poisons, and it will help us a lot to know which one it was. When to come in? The sooner you come in the more likely we are to be able to avoid serious complications.
The second step is decontamination. This means we will try to remove as much of the poison as possible. We do this by inducing vomiting. This is usually successful in removing a large amount of the poison if we can get the patient here within an hour or so of ingestion. Sooner is better. If it has been a while since the patient ate the poison, we often will give activated charcoal as well. Activated charcoal absorbs poisons from the gut, preventing it from being absorbed.
The third step is to start the antidote. Most mouse and rat baits cause death by preventing the blood from clotting. They do this by destroying an enzyme that activates Vitamin K1. This results in thje deactivation of four clotting factors that depend on vitamin K1 in order to function correctly. Blood clotting is an extremely complex process, but suffice it to say that clotting factors are elements in the blood that make it clot properly. No clotting factors, no blood clotting. No blood clotting, you bleed to death internally.
By giving vitamin K1, we are able to overcome the effects of the mouse baits. The new vitamin K1 allows the clotting factors to work properly, which allows the blood to clot normally. It's not a one-time deal, though. The newer mouse and rat baits last a long time, and so we need to continue treatment for up to four or even six weeks in some cases.
Can your pet be poisoned by eating mice that have been poisoned? Not likely. The modern baits are designed to prevent this type of secondary poisoning. If your pet's diet consists of nearly 100% mice, it might happen, but under ordinarfy circumstances there is not much to worry about.
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