How Mr Toad can be a danger to your dog!

BEWARE all dog owners because toads are on the move! That seems an odd comment to make but read on and all will be explained.

The problem came back to me last week as there by the front door was a huge toad that was ungainly clambering along even as I looked at it. I decide to move it from that part of the garden but it certainly was not happy about this and was difficult to hold. Eventually I put it into some vegetation and left it.

Then I noticed both my hands were covered with a mucus, although it did not smell. It reminded me of a similar incident many years ago when I was studying a large colony of toads in a pond. The first night I handled a large number of the toads was to measure them and after an hour or so I decided to have a break and eat a sandwich. Within a few minutes I was ill and vomiting as I had not worn gloves and the mucus had been digested with the bread.

The incident was long forgotten until a few autumns ago when I was called out to a garden near Strathpeffer. The lady had been gardening and had moved a large stone and there underneath was a very large newt of a type she had never seen before. I guessed it would be a great crested newt and so it turned out to be. I picked the newt up and turned it over to show the lady the superb colour patterns of the underside and then carefully put it back under the stone. I returned the stone to exactly the same position as before which is most important as the newt may well hibernate there for the whole winter.

I was then kindly offered tea and a cake and we discussed the importance of the adjacent curling pond as the likely breeding place for the newts. A mile or so down the road on the way back I rubbed my eyes and within minutes had to pull over into a lay-by. The mucus from the newt had gone into my eyes and it took me well over half an hour stoppage before I could drive on.

So, readers may ask, what has this got to do with dogs? It all started innocently enough when two of the five dachshunds were being walked down the road near the house. When one of the dogs was brought back it was in a very sorry state as there was a pale grey foam all over its mouth and head. We wiped it off but the dog was obviously in distress so we worked out what had happened. She had picked up a toad off the road and only had it in her mouth for a few seconds. I could only think the toad had been injured in some way and the mucus had intensified because of this.

We telephoned the local vet who promised to get back in touch soon. When they rang back it was to say they had never come across this before but the advice was to wipe off the foam and wash the dog’s mouth out.

A word of warning was to not let any of the foam into the dog’s digestive system.

Now how do you wash a dachshund’s mouth out without it swallowing water? Further advice was that if the dog was alright after an hour, there should be not problem. The dog was alright but that is why I had moved the toad in the garden last week as it was in the exercise area for the dogs.

As for why the toads are on the move now, it is because the weather conditions are just right with rain overnight so they have left their breeding site and will move out to feed and then hibernate in holes in the ground.

So if you do have to handle toads, for whatever reason, put on a pair of gloves and keep your dog away from them.

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