First, how urgent is this?
Go now
- Any suspected poisoning.
- Chocolate, grapes or raisins, onion, garlic, or gum and sugar-free sweets containing xylitol.
- Human painkillers (paracetamol, ibuprofen) or cold medicine.
- Vomiting, drooling, a seizure or very low energy after eating it.
- A seizure or sudden collapse.
Contact your vet today
- Even a confirmed lick of the wrapper with nothing swallowed: call the vet with the amount and the time.
- Vomiting, diarrhoea or falling appetite in the day or two afterwards.
- Other pets in the house may have got to it too, and need the same call.
Record and observe
- Already under vet care: record the substance, the amount, the time and any change in signs, and bring it to the next visit.
Before you set off
- The wrapper, the ingredient list, or what is left of it: take the whole packet.
- How much was eaten: photos, and the weight on the packet.
- When it was eaten, and whether there has been vomiting.
- The dog's weight and age.
- Signs now: drooling, seizures, energy, heart rate.
- Do not make the dog vomit, and do not give milk, salt water or charcoal; with sharp or corrosive material, vomiting causes a second injury.
What your vet may ask and do
- Ask: what substance, how much, and when.
- Ask: any vomiting, seizure or change in behaviour.
- Do: weight and a clinical assessment, to work out the exposure.
- Do: blood tests (liver and kidney values, electrolytes, glucose).
- Do: the vet decides whether vomiting should be induced or the stomach washed.
- Do: charcoal, fluids and supportive care, with admission where needed.
- Do: monitor for liver and kidney damage that only shows up days later.
Where to go in Hong Kong
- Hong Kong 24-hour vet list
- 24-hour emergency, Hong Kong Island
- 24-hour emergency, Kowloon
- 24-hour emergency, New Territories
- Clinics with inpatient care
- Clinics with blood transfusion
- What emergency and test fees look like
Call the clinic before you drive over, to confirm tonight's arrangements and the location.