I got a panicked call, "Kate, my beautiful dog has been in the emergency room all night and she's not improving. The vets don't know what's wrong, but her liver is crashing!"
It seemed to be a mystery until I tuned in and asked Buffy, the dog. She sent me a telepathic picture of her and her person running on wet, short grass. There were puddles all around and the water was splashing up on her chest and belly.
I asked her person, "Sally, were you and Buffy running in a park or by a golf course after it rained?
Sally gasped. "Yes! Two nights ago we ran on the golf course after the rain storm!"
Oh no. I felt my heart sink. "Sally, Buffy has been poisoned by the chemicals running off the golf course and pooling in puddles. Tell the vets to look for poisoning and do all they can to detox Buffy."
The vets were incredulous at first because they were only looking for ingested toxins, but tests conclusively showed chemical poisoning. They flushed Buffy's system and did all they could to cleanse her liver. They almost lost her. Fortunately Buffy survived, but her health was badly damaged.
I referred Sally to Holistic vet to continue detoxing Buffy and helping her rebuild. Together the vet, Sally and I created a healing plan for Buffy which included an organic-only homemade diet with liver and immune supporting supplements. Slowly Buffy recovered. She remained fragile, but with her "healing team," working for her, Buffy lived a happy life.
Take Aways
1) NEVER exercise your dogs or horses on or near a golf course. The chemicals applied to the grass to keep it weed-free are extremely dangerous. They are too easily absorbed by the skin and pads of the feet. And, if your dog licks her feet after a run, there's ingested chemicals as well.
2) Avoid parks and lawns that are sprayed with chemicals or chemical fertilizers. Never use them on your own lawns or gardens (I think that goes without saying, right?).
3) Always wash and dry your dog off after walking in the rain on or near asphalt, lawns, etc., as oil, gas and other chemicals are released after rains or watering (!) and concentrated in puddles.
Remember, I am here to help when only your dog can tell us what happened, but I share this story to help you be aware and careful from now on.
With Love, Your Voice of Animals,
Kate