Ratsak

[samoyedman]

If a dog has swallowed Ratsak, how long would it take for sympotms (ie vomiting or whatever) to show?

Does anyone know what the symptoms would look like?

[moosepup]

I don't know but if I had suspected that my dog may have eaten Ratsak I would be down at the vets in a flash. :rolleyes: I believe the quicker it is a vomited up the better...?

Hope it's a false alarm!

Edited July 18, 2010 by moosepup

[gillbear]

Rat poisoning is deadly, if it is suspected then you need to take fast action.

http://petcare.suite101.com/article.cfm/ho...aten_rat_poison

edit. not as fast acting as I thought, but by the time there are symptoms then the animal is likely to be in critical condition.

Edited July 18, 2010 by gillbear

[moosepup]

edit. not as fast acting as I thought, but by the time there are symptoms then the animal is likely to be in critical condition.

Yep, I think the main problem is that whilst there might not be any external signs for a few days, the internal damage could be significant.

SM - do you suspect your dog has eaten some??

[Cockerlover]

If u have the slightest suspision ,get to a vets NOW ..By the time symptons of being lathargic & generally off color show ,its probally to late !!

[persephone]

Ratsak takes some time to work, sam man. It works , not as a 'poison'- with stomach cramps etc.. but by enabling thinned blood to easily seep thru capillaries etc ..and any knock etc causes bleeding . ..this needs to be discussed with a vet!

Vit K can be given to help stop the blood thinning .

There are NO tests you can do to see if ratsak has been eaten, and as said- by teh time you notice your dog is sick- it may be in a very bad way... :p You need to visit a vet.

Edited July 18, 2010 by persephone

[oakway]

If you slightly suspect Ratsak get the dog to a vet and get the dog vomiting.

[OSoSwift]

Definately get him to a vet and so he can vomit it out - if it is in his stomach!

Ratsack works by binding up the vitamin K in the blood stream. So your dog starts bleeding. This can take from a couple of days to about 5 or so depending on how much the dog has eaten. They do not fit or collapse or any of the other things you would assume from a poisoning. Ratsack and equivilents are silent killers.

They can bleed into their internal organs, they can have blood in their poo or if they vomit. They can also bleed under the skin if they have had a pat, they can bleed into the whites of the eyes. Sometimes people will notice it because they have blood around gums, or in the whites of their eyes.

A friend of mine had a dog who had a massive nose bleed and collapsed, I know of another who bled into her brain.

The reason Vitamin K is give is because that is what is bound up, Vit K is needed for clotting. Dogs can have a lethal dose and no amount of Vit K can halt the symptoms if that is the case. Many need blood transfusions, sometime multiple ones. Your vet can do a clotting time test on his blood, but at that point in time it may not have a clotting problem that could show up in a couple of day

I hope he hasn't eaten it and all is okay, but a vet visit is definately required - good luck

Edited July 19, 2010 by Rommi n Lewis

[Nekhbet]

the active ingredient is warfarin. It doesnt bind up vitamin K it actually prevents an enzyme working that recycles spent vitamin K to a more useful form again. Vitamin K is a cofactor used to help turn blood proteins into useful forms in order to clot.

The reason vitamin K therapy can then not be effective is because the dog has severe internal bleeding which has damaged other areas, or clots formed now with Vit K can kill the animal through embolisms or stroke.

It can take up to 3 days for warfarin overdose to take effect, by then your dog will be bleeding out. You need to get to a vet ASAP for fluid and Vit K therapy even if the dog looks OK. They can either turn very ill or just drop dead.

Edited July 19, 2010 by Nekhbet

[casowner]

I had 2 episodes of Donkey my goat breaking into things (including a house) and eating large quantities of ratsak, both times he was given Vit K injections within a couple of hours and suffered no ill affects, so I agree if you have any suspicion get veterinary treatment immediately

[Golden Rules]

Hope everything is OK.

[kirst_goldens]

as mentioned above there probably wont be many symptoms and will take 4-7 days to kill - we sadly had a cocker come to us and she had eaten ratsac at home whilst visiing the neighbours... came to stay at the kennels and nobody knew she had eaten it (they suspected but she didnt look sick) sadly on saturday she threw up but was ok still runnign around like her crazy self then sunday she was critical they tried to save her with transfusions but it was too late :'( I will never forget my baby girl. It was horrible my boss had to call her owners who were at a business conference in sydney they cried themselves o sleep that night... get the dog to the VET ASAP DO NOT WAIT IT WILL BE TOO LATE.

ETA she hemorraged internally...

Edited July 19, 2010 by kirst_goldens

[JulesP]

Is doggy OK SamMan? I keep checking in to see if there is an update.

[samoyedman]

Thanks for feedback and concern.

I'm 99.9% sure he hasn't eaten any Ratsak and I've been watching him like a hawk in the last 24 hours.

No signs of redness anywhere (eyes etc.), poo all clear and he's as energetic and playful as ever. The Ratsak itself he probably couldn't get at. None of it was spilled and had he of eaten it he probably would have eaten all of the small amount there.

if I see anything like the slightest change in behaviour or any symptoms presented I'll be at the vet ASAP.

[cavNrott]

There is a test that can be done before the dog shows any symptoms. It's a test called ACT. This test is to see how long (in seconds) it takes for the blood to clot. This test can and should be done prior to any evidence of symptoms if you suspect your dog has ingested rat poison.

We had a wild storm in Vic last March. The next evening I went around to the side of the house and found a half empty, small throw pack of what I suspected was rat poison that had blown in with the wind. The label had worn off so I wasn't sure. I also saw a few green pellets that had washed in under the fence with soil from my neighbours garden. I asked my neighbour if he was using rat bait. He said he was and I asked him to check the ingredients on the packet. He informed me it was a 'One Shot' bait. It was Brodifacoum, which is deadly and faster acting than Wafarin. It's a second generation rat poison.

I had both dogs to the vet first thing next morning and they both had an ACT blood clotting test. The result gave us reason to suspect my male had ingested some bait. The girl's test was normal and she needed no treatment. My boy was given injections of Vit K and was on 4 tablets a day for 3 weeks after which another ACT coagulation test was done which returned a normal result.

My dog showed absolutely no symptoms at all and had I not found the open throw pack I would not have known he ingested the ratsak and I would probably have lost him. He was energetic, good appetite, acting normally in every way.

Don't wait for symptoms. If you only suspect your dog has eaten rat bait take him straight to the vet for the ACT test. By the time symptoms are evident it can be too late.

[samoyedman]

I think for peace of mind I'll pop him up to the vet tomorrow morning (ie. this morning).

[jm266]

Probably a good idea.

I lost a cat about 10 years ago, suspected that she had ingested a poisoned rat. I didn't know at the time, just took her to the vet because she was unwell.

Absolutely horrible experience, the vets threw everything at her and it looked like she was going to survive, then she died, it was shattering.

[samoyedman]

He's be put on a 3 week course of vitamin K pills.

Vet checked him thoroughly and said physically he was fine.

[OSoSwift]

Excellent, better to be safe than sorry.

[matilda1]

There is a test that can be done before the dog shows any symptoms. It's a test called ACT. This test is to see how long (in seconds) it takes for the blood to clot. This test can and should be done prior to any evidence of symptoms if you suspect your dog has ingested rat poison.

We had a wild storm in Vic last March. The next evening I went around to the side of the house and found a half empty, small throw pack of what I suspected was rat poison that had blown in with the wind. The label had worn off so I wasn't sure. I also saw a few green pellets that had washed in under the fence with soil from my neighbours garden. I asked my neighbour if he was using rat bait. He said he was and I asked him to check the ingredients on the packet. He informed me it was a 'One Shot' bait. It was Brodifacoum, which is deadly and faster acting than Wafarin. It's a second generation rat poison.

I had both dogs to the vet first thing next morning and they both had an ACT blood clotting test. The result gave us reason to suspect my male had ingested some bait. The girl's test was normal and she needed no treatment. My boy was given injections of Vit K and was on 4 tablets a day for 3 weeks after which another ACT coagulation test was done which returned a normal result.

My dog showed absolutely no symptoms at all and had I not found the open throw pack I would not have known he ingested the ratsak and I would probably have lost him. He was energetic, good appetite, acting normally in every way.

Don't wait for symptoms. If you only suspect your dog has eaten rat bait take him straight to the vet for the ACT test. By the time symptoms are evident it can be too late.

By the time you have a prolonged Activated Clotting Time (ACT) you are already in deep deep trouble.

this stuff is designed to kill, and that's exactly what it does.

The best treatment is getting the dog to the vet ASAP, worst case scenario, vomiting is induced and no traces of poison found..and then you can go home and stop worrying about it.

Once this stuff starts to work in the way it is designed to you're in BIG trouble.