Foxtail warning
 

I just thought I would remind everyone how dangerous foxtails (the little weeds)are to dogs. I don't know if they grow everywhere but they are a problem where I live in the spring and summer. Last year Brandy came in violently sneezing after being let out to go potty. I picked her up and saw the long thin end of a foxtail sticking out of her nose and before I could get my hands on it she sucked it the rest of the way in. I rushed her to the vet and she had to be put under general anesthesia to get it removed ($350.00). She was fine with no residual problems but foxtails are really bad news. They only move forward and can burrow through anything but bone. By the time I got Brandy to the vet she had stopped sneezing (I assume because it was farther up her sinuses and not in her nose anymore). That foxtail could have continued moving and caused all sorts of problems if I had not witnessed the sneezing attack. There have been cases of foxtails lodging in dogs spines or internal organs and causing absesses and paralysis.

So anyway...keep the grasses mowed down low so the foxtails are on the ground and not up where our babies can sniff them up. Oh, and check between their toes too. Yorkies are pretty little so it might not be as much of a problem but bigger dogs often get them imbedded in their feet and armpits.

Foxtails...
 

Can invade many parts of the body.
Sometimes people have their dog's feet shaved if foxtails are a problem.

Dawn...good thread! I had never heard of foxtails and the danger to dogs until someone on here got one on their dog. I then did some searching and read all about it. It's great of you to warn people!

Claire, the link you gave was very interesting. Not only did it talk about the danger of foxtails, but also toads and mushrooms! I've been following one link to another reading about all this. The mushrooms...boy oh boy, I'm going to be scoping the yard daily for mushrooms. I almost wonder if Maddie got into a mushroom last summer when she became so violently sick! They're always popping up in our yard...in the summer! Thanks for that link! One thing to note, you YT'rs that live in California in the San Francisco Bay area, the Death Cap mushroom is commonly found there! Go here if you'd like to read up on it... http://americanmushrooms.com/deathcap.htm#ecology

:goodpost: everyone needs to read this. thanks.

Dangers to our furbabies!
 

Great post. :thumbup: I had never heard of this or the mushrooms. As I sit and overlook the backyard, I do see a large mushroom. That sucker is history! Luckily the furbabies don't romp out there. We have them in a secure area safe from hawks, skunks and foxes that roam.:thumbs up

It's good to be reminded of these things every once in awhile.

A picture of the foxtail grass:

Great another thing to worry about! I'll tell ya, I am getting burned out! However, I do thank you for the warning.