My 13 week old Cairn Terrier has been licking up spilled Washing powder and is now throwing up she had 2/3 licks before we managed to remove her from it. What should do now? In typical puppy style she then tried to eat the vomit afterwards before we stopped her too.

Puppies!!!!!!! :-)

I would want to speak to the vet about this, washing powder contains all sorts of undesirable things totally unsuitable for eating.

I would be taking pup to vet pronto.  At 13 weeks, I wouldn't risk a pup not being examined by a vet.

Ditto, vet, money well spent to put your mind at rest. With some things making them vomit does more harm than good so I would be on the phone speking to the emergency vet for advice.

Good luck, let us know how you get on, bet the little monkey wont get the washing powder again!!!

I'd be down the vet too immediately as some washing powders contain bleaching agents too.

Well she vomited within about a minute of eating the washing powder (this was an automatic reaction not assisted by us) and since then has been a right as rain.  I don't think she can have taken much in. She's eaten and drunk normally tonight and has been playing happily with our other dog (makes a change).
I'll keep an eye on her tomorrow and call the vet on Monday and see what they say.
Thanx for all your posts,

A

Well I hope she has not ingested any as if she has Monday may well be too late.

> Well I hope she has not ingested any as if she has Monday may well be too late.

As a dog owner I'm far from experienced and always on the cautious side and would want to know now rather than later. An out of hours phone call to a vet is a small inconvenience than to find out that there are delayed side effects that could have been delt with earlier.

Huuumm I don't think Id be waiting until Monday the pup is so young, I always err on the side of caution with our dogs and take them to the vets for anything im unsure about, Id rather look like a numpty then have a very sick pup.

She's been fine over the weekend and today, no problems at all. The fact that she vomited straight away after only 2/3 licks made the difference to my pup and to my decision. I spoke to my Brother-in-law who is a GP yesterday & he agreed it wouldn't have had chance to get into her system.

Thanks for all your replies & your concern,

Andi

I am pleased you are confident that in the case of your pup there is no problem but just in case there are those who would be inclined to follow your example let me tell you a sad tale.

This family owned an adult in a popular gundog breed and had added a puppy to the household, at the time of the incident their pup was about 4 months. The couple went shopping for a matter of 3 or so hours and when they returned they found they had not shut the bedroom door and the dogs had been sampling medication that was on the bedside table. They did not know which dog or if it was both but as there was an amount of vomit they thought it was ok, the dogs seemed fine that day and indeed for some days to follow but then the pup showed signs of being unwell. the product taken contained paracetamol and it had irrevocably damaged the pups system. So the moral is if your dog has ingested drugs or chemicals then prompt attention from a vet is needed and take the packet so the vet can ring and find out exactly what they are dealing with.

> I spoke to my Brother-in-law who is a GP yesterday & he agreed it wouldn't have had chance to get into her system.

Not knocking at you here just making an observation and giving my opinion.......most cleaning products dont need to get into the system to cause damage, for example swollowing bleach (i know this is a harsh one but the first one that comes to mind) a lot of damage will be done to the throat etc so "getting into the system" is not the be all and end all for damage to be done.

Whilest not ideal I don't think the pup taking a small amount of washing powder would be a problem. In the past I have been told by a vet to use a couple of pinches of washing powder to induce vomiting when a friends dog raided my handbag and munched on my prescription meds. Speed was essential to prevent the pills being absorbed and I have to say the effect was very quick. 
K

Just a passing question I dropped a paracetamol yesterday while picking it up i was concerned that the dogs should nt get find it first. I know cats cant have asprin and dogs can does the same apply to parcetamol ?
I wasnt thinking of using it just curious  and yes although I know washingsoda is used to make dogs vomit which I guess is similar except powder ihas other things in it including bleach. I too would prefer a converstaion with my vet. I have rung them at odd times oohrs as well when things havnt looked right and they have always been really helpful.

> most cleaning products dont need to get into the system to cause damage,

Your right there, back some 20+ years ago a GSD we had whilst a puppy got into a cupboard and chewed up a washing powder box which still had some powder in. Her lips were affected ...had cracked & got sore...she was probably sick at the time I can't remeber but deffinately remember her poor lips.

As to having paracetemol tablets, a bitch of ours, who is now nearly 13, got hold of a packet of Nurofen some 7 or 8 years ago & swollowed 6 or 8 of them!!! She didnt have any ill affects at the time, although she does like to keep going out to wee but that could be just her age...we dont know..I think we were just lucky.

I have been told by one person that dogs can have paracetamol but not asprin and by another they can have asprin but not paracetamol anyone know which is right?  Not sure what you would give either for or dosage though so any info helpful.  Would always go to vets if concerned but I suppose in an emergency it could be useful to know.

I wasnt planning on giving either just wondered how much to panic as I had lost one ! Anyway found it later so i suppose it doesnt matter now

Do not think that one tablet of either would cause any harm except perhaps to a young pup of one of the smallest breeds, like us the damage is done by an overdose. However tables are designed to be taken, household chemicals are not so any dose of something not designed to be ingested should be of concern however small the amount because the liver or kidneys could be damaged and some chemicals like petrol will damage on the way down and if vomited on the way back as well - anti-freeze is almost always fatal but has, apparently, a sweet taste so extra care in storage should be taken.

Does anyone know about screenwash as opposed to pure antifreeze? I have no idea what's in ready mixed screenwash, but shouted at hubby this morning for tipping out what was admittedly only the last 2 or 3 drops from the bottle onto the front driveway, in case either our dogs or the neighbours cats should drink it. For an intelligent and knowledgeable man I was shocked to discover that in spite of owning dogs with me for more than 8 years, he had no idea antifreeze was poisonous, or that it tasted sweet and attractive to animals! But I don't know about screenwash?

I don't know either Lucy but if in doubt don't dump it.

> household chemicals are not so any dose of something not designed to be ingested should be of concern however small the amount because the liver or kidneys could be damaged

This would be my number one worry if a dog ingested something out of the ordinary.  Liver and/or kidney damage would be the first thing to come to mind.

The dogs trust quote this, i didn't realise about screenwash either

Antifreeze poisoning

Antifreeze, screen-wash and some de-icers may contain Ethylene glycol - a substance fatal to dogs and cats. Antifreeze is available as a liquid to be added to the water in your car engine radiators to prevent freezing. Even small quantities spilt can be life threatening.

There is an anti freeze that doesn't contain the bad ingredients.  ?Does anyone know what's called or which other brands might not have it in.  I never thought abought spraying my windows until the other year.

>She's been fine over the weekend and today, no problems at all. The fact that she vomited straight away after only 2/3 licks made the difference to my pup and to my decision.

You have been extremely lucky, although you do not know what long term harm (if any) this may have done to your dog. We would recommend that anyone reading this thread DOES seek veterinary advice. Even if it is decided no further action is needed PLEASE contact your vet.

Having been made seriously ill by 'inhaling' washing powder myself I can tell you from personal experience that it is truly awful. I only inhaled a tiny amount (the box lid sprung up as I was opening it, at the same time I breathed in what must have been a miniscule amount). However, the result was instantaneous. Within seconds it was burning inside my nose, then throat and 'bubbles' formed which made it impossible to swallow and breath. I was violently sick. I stupidly(?!) drank several pints of water in the bid to remove the stuff from my throat, which did eventually do the trick after making the initial situtation worse. However, the taste remained in my throat and nose for several hours afterwards. My throat was raw and I was still feeling ill several hours later. With 12 hours, the trunk of my body was covered in open sores and what was not 'open' was covered in what looked like cracking eczema. I saw my doctor the following morning and they ran numerous tests and he gave me strong anti-histamine. He said there was nothing else he could do but I should have contacted them IMMEDIATELY and not waited. For the next 6 weeks, the open sore spread from chest and back, all down my arms and legs and up my neck. I have a high pain freshold but I was in agony if I am honest. My skin has never recovered and I have the scars to prove it. I would not wish that on anyone and all of that was simply caused by inhaling a tiny amount of washing powder.

Needless to say, I don't allow my dogs anywhere near me now when I am sorting washing out!

What an awful experience I didnt realise the stuff was so potent shall be more careful in future

Dreadful experience Admin.  Just makes us realise what awful chemicals we expose the largest organ of our body, the skin, to! :(

I was a rep for Lever Brothers when they first bought out Biological Persil.  It was a nightmare at the Ideal Home Exhibition with a constant flow of people showing me their serious skin problems.......  Partly that experience working for a chemical company and my time working for a drug company that makes me so careful about what I use and put into my body these days. :( :(

Re the anti-freeze - don't forget that car radiators can leak anti-freeze into puddles. Some years ago, a friend of a friend lost two dogs who had drunk water from a puddle outside their house - where neighbours parked their cars :( :(

Daisy

Thanks. It was literally only 2 or 3 drops, but I yelled at him anyway!

Oh my gosh Admin, how awful :(

> We would recommend that anyone reading this thread DOES seek veterinary advice. Even if it is decided no further action is needed PLEASE contact your vet.

Definately.

This seems like a good place to remind all of possible dog poisons, this list states that urgent vet treatment should be sought in the event of ingesting detergents.

Also, as parecetomal has been mentioned here - again seek the advice of a vet in case a dog eats any. "Dogs (particularly small dogs) are also susceptible to significant tissue damage from as little as two regular strength Panadol or Paracetamol" from here, a list of dog toxins.

Thanks very much for those lists very useful to have a copy of.

It was usful except it told you to plunge/dowse  a dog in cold water if heat stroke is affecting them.

Some good stuff on though and explains the chocolate.