Bleach Poisoning in Dogs

Many products used around the home like bleach and ammonia contain hazardous chemicals. If your dog happens to ingest any of these products, toxicity could result in complications within the digestive and respiratory systems. It is important to keep all household products hidden from your pet to prevent any accidents. If your pet does experience exposure to bleach, you should seek veterinarian assistance right away and not try to induce vomiting on your own. However, remember to remain calm, moving your dog into a safer area, especially if you notice any convulsion or tremor. In any case, call the veterinarian and explain the situation. This allows the veterinarian to prepare for your dog’s arrival.

Bleach poisoning happens when dogs ingest and absorb a considerable amount of bleach that usually results in a high level of toxicity along with other noticeable symptoms.

When your dog ingests bleach, there are several symptoms that occur. The hair around the dog’s paws and mouths might also be bleached and smell of chlorine. If your pet inhaled the fumes, you could notice signs of coughing, pulmonary irritation, and gasping. Other symptoms include:

• Coughing
• Lethargy
• Stomach pain
• Vomiting
• Sore throat
• Low blood pressure
• Coma
• Drooling
• Shock
• Burn
• Paw discoloration
• Diarrhea
• Agitation
• Nausea
• Weakened limbs
• Tremors
• Ulcerations on the paws or in the mouth
• Seizures

Types

There are various kinds of household products that contain bleach, acids, hydrocarbons and alkalis. These include:

• Paint thinner
• Toilet cleaner
• Gasoline
• Bleach
• Laundry detergent
• Drain cleaner
• Dishwashing liquid
• Kerosene
• Furniture polish
• Oven cleaner
• Paint remover
• Floor polish
• Caustic soda
• Lye
• Shoe polish
• Chlorine

Your dog is no different from other dogs that love to chew on plastic toys and think that they can put whatever they want in their mouths. Unfortunately, though, this only makes your dog prone to ingesting toxic materials, most of which could result in terrible side effects and sometimes, fatal results, if not immediately treated. 

Poisoning due to inhalation of fumes or ingestion of bleach can cause effects such as aspiration pneumonia, blood serum changes, kidney damage, corrosivity of the gastrointestinal tract, and blood coagulation abnormalities.

Once you take your dog to the veterinarian, you can expect that the goal is to immediately identify the poison in order to assess the contents. To do this, the veterinarian may induce vomiting and collect a sample of it in a plastic bag. If you administered any medication to your dog, you should take that along with you so the veterinarian can read the labels to see what is contained in it. If your dog has received burns to the mouth, it might take several hours to notice this. The stomach or esophagus may also be burned by the bleach. This may not be visible until an internal examination is done.

When you take the dog to the clinic or emergency hospital, your veterinarian may induce vomiting, or the stomach may be pumped using a method known as gastric lavage. 

 Activated charcoal may be administered as a way to bind the toxins.

After this, there are several ways that your veterinarian will introduce treatment. The immediate treatment is to flush the area that is most exposed. Your veterinarian may also administer fluid therapy, ulcer medication for possible stomach burn and of course, supportive care for other symptoms. 

Your veterinarian will use water to wash out the excess bleach from the mouth and fur. Even though this might seem simple, the veterinarian may also administer milk to soothe the stomach and dilute the ingested bleach.

After treatment, the dog is monitored for a few hours to a few days before being released. This allows the veterinarian to ensure that the dog does not have any further complications such as skin reactions or more vomiting. After the dog goes home, it is the pet’s owner’s responsibility to continue to monitor the situation, but also to make changes around the home such as crate training or putting the dog in a kennel. The pet owner should also adequately pet proof the home by removing all hazardous substances and storing them in a secure place, away from curious noses and paws.