07/11/2025
Watch out for Bufo toads! ⚠️🐸
This is the third Bufo (or Cane) toad Dr. Bob has found in his yard in the last 18 months. He found this one lounging in a fountain in the garden, but more often you will find them somewhat burrowed into the ground under solid materials like boards and overturned boats.
These toads are invasive and can be deadly to pets. They secrete a toxic gel from large glands behind their eyes. While the toxin doesn’t absorb well through skin, it’s quickly absorbed through the mucous membranes of the mouth, causing rapid-onset neurologic and cardiac symptoms like seizures and arrhythmias.
🔎How to identify a Bufo toad:
• 4–6 inches (can reach 9”)
• Large, triangular poison glands behind the eyes
• Bony ridge around each eye
In contrast, naive and harmless Southern toads are smaller (1.5–3 inches), with smaller oval glands and horn-like crests on their heads.
The safest and most humane way to dispose of them when you find one, is by catching them with a small net or suitably sized container, then dropping them into a box or bucket lined with a heavy duty trash bag. Then tie the bag closed and place them in a freezer. The lowering temperature causes them to go into a hibernation-like state before they freeze.
👉If your pet may have mouthed one:
• Quickly wipe the inside of their mouth with a paper towel or rag
• Flush their mouth with water, angled forward so they don’t swallow
• Get them to the nearest veterinary hospital immediately — every minute counts.
