Many dog breeds eat anything, no matter what it looks like and how disgusting it is. Has your dog ever gotten into the trash and eaten moldy food? When that happens, of course, you as the owner are now panicking over what to do for your dog. Let me help you by telling you exactly what will happen and what you need to do if your dog eats moldy food.
What Happens When a Dog Eats Moldy Food?
If your dog eats something with mold on it, there is a good chance that your dog could become ill and show some severe symptoms. The fungus that mold is made up of has neurotoxins inside it, which makes your dog feel sick.
Sometimes a dog may have eaten something moldy and doesn’t receive any of the symptoms below, then you can consider yourself and your dog lucky. However, if your dog does get sick, then symptoms can last between twenty-four to forty-eight hours. Therefore, if you do not get your dog treated by a health professional right away, it could be life-threatening.
Symptoms of Mycotoxin Poisoning
Below are the symptoms that you will notice in your dog if it does have mycotoxin poisoning:
- Diarrhea
- Vomiting
- Tremors
- Loss of Balance
- Jaundice looking color
- Fever
- Pain
- Sometimes Seizures
These symptoms can start as early as thirty minutes after your dog was exposed or ingested the mold. However, most dogs can recover through medical treatment between 24 to 48 hours.
Pro Tip: If your dog is vomiting or having extreme diarrhea, you need to keep offering your dogs fluids. Your dog can get dehydrated easily, and fluids are essential to your dog’s recovery and survival.
What Can You Give Your Dog If It Ate Moldy Food?
If your dog is experiencing minor symptoms of mycotoxin poisoning, you will need to monitor your dog closely. If your dog is hungry, you should stick to a bland diet or also known as the B.R.A.T, which stands for bananas, rice, applesauce, and toast. You can feed your dog any of these foods to try to heal its upset stomach.
Chicken that has been boiled or cooked mildly without spices may be another option to get your dog’s stomach settled. This might also entice your dog to eat, especially if it doesn’t get fresh chicken all the time.
Obviously, if your dog doesn’t respond well to that treatment and continues to worsen, it will be best to take your dog to the veterinarian and let them know your dog ate moldy food.
Your veterinarian may tell you to do a variety of things to help your dog. Some of these things may include medicines, steroids, and even staying overnight to be closely monitored.
Will Moldy Dog Food Hurt my Dog?
Possibly, I am not sure how much you have fed your dog of the moldy dog food, but it is important to stop when you realize it has gone bad. Unfortunately, sometimes this happens with dry and wet dog food, and it is important that you throw away or go return that dog food that you purchased that is unusable.
This will also let the retailer know that there is an issue with the dog food manufacturer, and they can look into it. If this happens to you often and you always seem to get moldy dog food, I suggest switching over to making your own homemade dog food.
Can Dogs Eat Moldy Cheese?
No, you should not feed your dog cheese that appears to have mold on it. However, if your dog has eaten a piece of cheese with mold on it, you should be on the lookout for various symptoms that your dog may develop. Even a lack of appetite can be a major sign that your dog has mold poisoning.
Can Moldy Water Make Dogs Sick?
Yes, some standing water can actually have a type of water mold inside of it. This can be very hard to detect, and if your dog drinks, it can become very sick. This may also be hard for your veterinarian to treat properly. Your dog may have some of the other symptoms along with some new ones like:
- Blood in stool
- Abdominal mass
- Lethargy
Can Dogs Eat Moldy Bread?
No, dogs should not be given moldy bread to eat. Sometimes even when you are not actively giving your dog moldy bread, they find a way to sneak it out of the trash or find a small piece outside on the ground somewhere. If you see this happening, it is important to take the bread away from the bread or try your best to keep your dog away from it.
Dogs can get very sick from ingesting and even just smelling mold. In the worst cases, some dogs have died, so it is imperative not to feed your dog moldy bread on purpose. If your dog experiences the symptoms above, it is important to have a veterinarian see your dog.
Overall
I cannot stress this enough that you need to pay close attention to your dog’s symptoms if it ate moldy food. If you neglect this, it is possible for your dog to die from mold toxicity. Keep an eye on the symptoms above and call your veterinarian if you suspect your dog ate mold. Leave me a comment letting me know your experience when this happened to your dog.
