Roscoe Ate Rat Poison, and I Know How He Feels

Several months ago when the weather was still warm, one particular Saturday was very windy.  It was around 11:30 a.m.  The wind blew some rat poison off the shelf from the garage, and Roscoe grabbed it up before we could do anything.   He went running through the yard, with Ole Boy chasing him.    By the time he caught the silly dog, Roscoe had ingested a few pellets of the poison, and there were pellets strewn about the back yard.   We spent a few hours going over the yard with a fine tooth rake making sure we got them all.  

I called our vet.   They told me the doctor had already left for the day, and gave me the number for a veterinary hospital, the same group where we used to take Peppy.   I called them, but since they closed at noon, they didn’t want to see him, and referred me to the ER veterinary hospital.  The lady also told me to give him hydrogen peroxide to make him throw up.   I called the ER vet, and the receptionist went into a long spiel about all the charges I would incur just for bringing him in on a Saturday (around $400, not including what it would cost to treat him).

I knew that he’d only eaten a few pellets, so we waited to see what the hydrogen peroxide would do.  Normally it wouldn’t be easy to get a dog to drink hydrogen peroxide, but Roscoe is still young enough to drink first, and ask questions later.   I sat a little bowl of it down, and he got a good long drink (he needed at least ¼ cup).    He then realized he didn’t like it at all!  He ran out in the yard, threw himself on the ground and began to wallow.   I knew it must be bubbling, and I felt so sorry for him.  But to be sure he had enough, we poured a little more down him…which was not an easy task.  He did throw up…repeatedly.   Poor thing, but he threw up all the pellets, and never suffered any consequences.

I know how he feels because I caught the stomach bug that’s going around, and I’ve violently tossed my cookies so many times that my rib cage is sore!   I feel as if I’ve eaten rat poison.