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With all the rain around parts of the country this time of year, mushrooms are sprouting in yards overnight.
Anne Smith of Denver, Colorado, hopes that by sharing the news of her 5-lb Chihuahua Bailey’s death, other pet parents will be more diligent in checking their yards for mushrooms before letting dogs outside to explore.
“We were out enjoying that gorgeous weather, and the dogs were having a heck of a time wandering around the yard, sniffing things,” Smith explained to 9 News. “Bailey was always one who explored things with her mouth and that was her thing.”
Within 5 minutes of bringing Bailey back inside the house, Smith knew something was terribly wrong. Her eyes began to water, she began trembling, and eventually collapsed. Smith rushed her tiny dog to an emergency veterinarian, but it was too late.
Veterinarian Luke Rump reports two to three such cases a month at times of the year when mushrooms are growing in yards.
“Usually, it’s intestinal problems,” Rump said. “The dog is vomiting, has diarrhea, doesn’t feel good and just wants to lay around. Some of the dogs have liver failure which can be really serious. Some of them cause neurological problems. That would be tremors, shaking and sometimes seizures.”
Though a majority of the thousands of varieties of mushrooms are not poisonous, it’s best to err on the side of caution and simply remove them all from your yard. Mushrooms grow very quickly, often overnight, especially after heavy rainfall.
Dr. Rump recommends checking your yard regularly, not just for mushrooms, but for anything that can be a danger to your dog – sticks, fallen fruit, broken objects – anything that could be poisonous or cause an obstruction should be removed from your dog’s reach.
