05/10/2025
โ ๏ธ ๐
๐๐ซ๐ฆ๐๐ซ๐ฌ โ ๐๐ฅ๐๐๐ฌ๐ ๐๐๐๐ฉ ๐๐๐ฅ๐ ๐๐ข๐ฅ๐ค ๐๐๐ฉ๐ฅ๐๐๐๐ซ ๐๐ฐ๐๐ฒ ๐๐ซ๐จ๐ฆ ๐๐จ๐ฎ๐ซ ๐๐จ๐ ๐ฌ! โ ๏ธ
Weโve recently seen several cases of working dogs getting very sick after eating calf milk powder that contains certain additives called ionophores. These are commonly used in livestock feed to help prevent coccidiosis and promote growth, but theyโre highly toxic to dogs and horses.
Dogs can be exposed in several ways โ not just by eating milk powder directly. They can also ingest ionophores by:
โข Eating ๐๐๐ฅ๐ ๐ฉ๐๐ฅ๐ฅ๐๐ญ๐ฌ that contain these additives
โข Drinking ๐ฆ๐๐๐-๐ฎ๐ฉ ๐ฆ๐ข๐ฅ๐ค prepared with milk replacer
โข Consuming ๐๐๐ฅ๐ ๐๐๐๐๐๐ฌ from animals that are receiving ionophores
If a dog eats even a small amount, it can cause serious muscle damage, leading to weakness, trouble walking, and in severe cases, breathing difficulties or even death. Symptoms usually show up within 12 hours.
Thereโs no antidote, so ๐๐๐ซ๐ฅ๐ฒ ๐ญ๐ซ๐๐๐ญ๐ฆ๐๐ง๐ญ ๐ข๐ฌ ๐ฏ๐ข๐ญ๐๐ฅ. If caught within 4 hours and the dog is still breathing normally, vets can induce vomiting and give activated charcoal to reduce absorption. Supportive care like IV fluids, oxygen, and sometimes a respirator (which requires referral to a specialist facility) may be needed. In addition, antioxidant supplementation and physiotherapy are likely to be beneficial for muscle recovery. Recovery can take up to two weeks, and some dogs may not return to full working capacity.
Please check the label on your milk replacer for ingredients like ๐ฆ๐จ๐ง๐๐ง๐ฌ๐ข๐ง, ๐ฅ๐๐ฌ๐๐ฅ๐จ๐๐ข๐, ๐ง๐๐ซ๐๐ฌ๐ข๐ง, ๐ฌ๐๐ฅ๐ข๐ง๐จ๐ฆ๐ฒ๐๐ข๐ง, ๐ฅ๐๐ข๐๐ฅ๐จ๐ฆ๐ฒ๐๐ข๐ง, ๐ฆ๐๐๐ฎ๐ซ๐๐ฆ๐ข๐๐ข๐ง ๐๐ง๐ ๐ฌ๐๐ฆ๐๐ฎ๐ซ๐๐ฆ๐ฒ๐๐ข๐ง. If it contains any of these, store it well out of reach of your dogs and follow the usage instructions carefully.
๐ ๐๐ ๐ฒ๐จ๐ฎ ๐ฌ๐ฎ๐ฌ๐ฉ๐๐๐ญ ๐ฒ๐จ๐ฎ๐ซ ๐๐จ๐ ๐ก๐๐ฌ ๐ข๐ง๐ ๐๐ฌ๐ญ๐๐ ๐๐ง๐ฒ, ๐๐จ๐ง๐ญ๐๐๐ญ ๐ฒ๐จ๐ฎ๐ซ ๐ฅ๐จ๐๐๐ฅ ๐๐ฅ๐ข๐ง๐ข๐ ๐ข๐ฆ๐ฆ๐๐๐ข๐๐ญ๐๐ฅ๐ฒ โ ๐ญ๐ข๐ฆ๐ ๐ข๐ฌ ๐๐ซ๐ข๐ญ๐ข๐๐๐ฅ.
