Toxin Alert

[A Nonny Moose 8,261]

If you have a dog... PLEASE read this and send it on. If you don't have a dog, please pass along to friends who do.

Written by: Laurinda Morris, DVM
Danville Veterinary Clinic
Danville , Ohio

This week I had the first case in history of raisin toxicity ever seen at MedVet. My patient was a 56-pound, 5 yr old male neutered lab mix that ate half a canister of raisins sometime between 7:30 AM and 4:30 PM on Tuesday. He started with vomiting, diarrhea and shaking about 1AM on Wednesday but the owner didn't call my emergency service until 7AM.

I had heard somewhere about raisins AND grapes causing acute Renal failure but hadn't seen any formal paper on the subject. We had her bring the dog in immediately. In the meantime, I called the ER service at MedVet, and the doctor there was like me - had heard something about it, but.... Anyway, we contacted the ASPCA National Animal Poison Control Center and they said to give I V fluids at 1 1/2 times maintainance and watch the kidney values for
the next 48-72 hours. 

The dog's BUN (blood urea nitrogen level) was already at 32 (normal less than 27) and creatinine! over 5 ( 1.9 is the high end of normal). Both are monitors of kidney function in the bloodstream. We placed an IV catheter and started the fluids. Rechecked the renal values at 5 PM and the BUN was over 40 and creatinine over 7 with no urine production after a liter of fluids. At the point I felt the dog was in acute renal failure and sent him on to MedVet for a urinary catheter to monitor urine output overnight as well as overnight care.

He started vomiting again overnight at MedVet and his renal values have continued to increase daily. He produced urine when given lasix^* as a diuretic. He was on 3 different anti-vomiting medications and they still couldn't control his vomiting. Today his urine output decreased again, his BUN was over 120, his creatinine was at 10, his phosphorus was very elevated and his blood pressure, which had been staying around 150, skyrocketed to 220.. He
continued to vomit and the owners elected to euthanize.

This is a very sad case - great dog, great owners who had no idea raisins could be a toxin. Please alert everyone you know who has a dog of this very serious risk. Poison control said as few as 7 raisins or grapes could be toxic. Many people I know give their dogs grapes or raisins as treats including our ex-handler's. Any exposure should give rise to immediate concern.

Even if you don't have a dog, you might have friends who do. This is worth passing on to them.

{Ed. Note.]  Lasix is one of the most powerful diuretics.

[bbfan02 23]

Wow, I will definately pass this on...

[coolotter88 2]

yeah, but if you only give like, 10 raisins, it isn't half a canister.

[octaves 4]

coolotter88: They gotta start eating them sometime...better be safe than sorry.

I'll be sure to send this on, quite frightening actually...

[A Nonny Moose 8,261]

Originally posted by: coolotter88 yeah, but if you only give like, 10 raisins, it isn't half a canister.quote>

I don't think the lethal dose has been determined.  I don't feed toxins to my dog (well, except a very little chocolate, which he loves.  Dogs get high on chocolate, but it will kill them, so be very careful.)

[Duke87 1,070]

Well, see this is the problem. Different animals respond differently to different things. Deer and whatnot eat all kinds of wild plants completely safely and healthfully. Many of them would poison you if you tried to eat them. It goes the other way, too. Something which is perfectly harmless to humans can be poisonous to other animals. This is why it's never safe to assume. Don't feed your pet (dog or otherwise) anything but pet food unless you know it's safe.

[jacqulina 162]

omg thats terrible, i didnt realise that either. i will pass it on to.

[Boggy1 45]

Didn't you get told this when you first bought your dog/had it checked in the vets/neutered/whatever?

Even though my dog was bought from a friend informally, when we went to have him examined for lice etcetera, we were given all of this information.

[ShortStraw 1]

I've been around dogs most of my life and didn't know about grapes and raisins.  I guess I just never had a dog that seemed to want fruit .  I knew chocolate was bad but I didn't know it got dogs high.  Again though, I don't think I ever actually fed a dog chocolate.

Thanks for the information though.  I'm gonna pass this along, though I'm probably the last to know anyway, heh.

[Jazzmaster 716]

That's...very...serious. My dog has eaten several toxic things without any side effects but this sounds horrible. I think we've given her grapes or something before but she turned it away...thank god...this is something to be conerned about no doubt. Thanks for passing it on!

-Yoshiisland

[Hahayoudied 3]

I think I remember once I saw a little kid ran off feed raisins(  a LARGE container of raisins) to a stray and hungry dog( the ribs was showing). A day later, I saw that same dog on the side of the highway and there vomit( I think) beside the dog, I can't remember when, but I knew that I was on a vacation and  my family and I was visiting another  state. That was a long  time ago.

[Tropod 144]

ate half a canister of raisinsquote>

Feed an animal or person to much of anything and it can be fatal. Even chocolate.

[A Nonny Moose 8,261]

Originally posted by: Tropod

ate half a canister of raisinsquote>

Feed an animal or person to much of anything and it can be fatal. Even chocolate.quote>

Since the result was kidney failure, I suspect it was really an overdose of iron.  This will do it even to humans.

It is true that drinking too much water will kill you.  You die of electolyte imbalance.

[GingerBlokey 30]

Wow, I never knew that.

My dog loves grapes.

Ive got to stop that.

Thanks for the advice.