84 Saber Tails Winter 2016
Petit Basset Griffon Vendéen Club of America
might show no adverse signs after toxic plant ingestion at all. However, there are a
handful of plants that make sense to remove at any cost and should
NEVER
be al-
lowed in a yard where a dog lives. One such plant common here in Texas is the sago
palm. If you have a sago palm, tear it out of the ground right now! The palm itself
contains a poison called cyacin, but it’s the seeds that are really deadly. They look a
lot like a pecan or almond in the shell only they’re bigger. We removed one from the
front yard when we moved into our house. I spent weeks searching the ground for
seed pods and found hundreds of them.
A
ccording to an article published by “Veterinary Information Network News Service
titled Sago Palm Poisoning Cases Increase, “a pet can die within hours of ingesting the plant.” The death rate is an
alarming 30% of ingestion cases with more pets dying prematurely due to acute liver damage from
surviving the episode years before. One veterinarian quoted in the article stated: “It’s amazing how
many owners are unaware just how toxic the plants in their yard or house can be. I saw a patient
(dog) last year with acute liver failure 36 hours after the owner had been playing fetch with the
patient using a sago palm seed instead of a ball. He didn’t make it. Very sad case.”
U
nfortunately, sago palms are increasingly available across the nation as they are a hardy variety
and have been picked up for sale as potted plants at chain stores such as Home Depot, Lowes,
Target and IKEA. Be careful buying any small or ornamental palm
trees as these are often sold under the generic name ‘PALM’ with no
identifiable variety information.
Resources are widely available online to help you determine what plants are toxic and
the potential outcome of ingestion.
H
ere is a partial list of common back yard plants that are toxic :
• Allium - drooling, vomiting, abdominal pain, diarrhea, lethargy, jaundice, liver
failure
• Aloe Vera – vomiting, depression, diarrhea, hypoglycemia, tremors, change in
urine color
• American Mandrake – vomiting diarrhea, lethargy, panting, coma (rare), dermal
redness & skin ulcers
• American Yew – tremors, difficulty breathing, vomiting, seizures, acute heart fail-
ure, sudden death
• Azalea/Rhododendron – vomiting, diarrhea, drooling, weakness, coma, hypo-
tenstion, loss of coordination, leg paralysis, acute heart failure, sudden death
• Caster Bean – contains RICIN, violent vomiting, bloody diarrhea, weakness, sali-
vation, trembling, incoordination -
DO NOT HAVE THIS IN YOUR YARD!
• Crocus – thirst, difficulty swallowing, abdominal pain, vomiting, weakness,
shock, respiratory failure
• Cyclamen - drooling, vomiting, diarrhea, cardiac ar-
rhthmia, seizures, death (in large doses)
• Foxglove – vomiting, bloody diarrhea, frequent urina-
tion, irregular/slow pulse, tremors, convulsions
• Hemlock – dilated pupils, staggering, slow pulse, irregu-
lar breathing, respiratory failure, death
• Jimson weed – weak pulse, rapid heart rate, dilated pupils, dry mouth, incoordina-
tion, convulsions, coma
• Larkspur - drooling, constipation, tremors, seizures, arrhythmia, paralysis, heart and
lung failure, death
We grow vincas in the front yard
and have never had a problem
with the dogs eating them
Cyclamen is very popu-
lar at Valentine’s Day
Caster Bean should NOT be in
your yard
Milkweed is a common butterfly
attractant
Yew berries look good, don’t eat them!
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