wexcellent
Just born
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- May 1, 2011
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I'm new to the whole sheep scene. I picked up two feeder lambs 3 weeks ago, put up some fencing (we have an acre) and cut them loose.
Last Friday morning I saw one of them tugging on a Rodie in the morning. I didn't think anything of it and I left to run errands. I came back at 1 pm and he was foaming at the mouth and not being his usual loud self. I called the guy I bought them from and he confirmed that yes, Rhododendron are poisonous and no, he didn't have any experience with it. I did a frantic internet search and at 2 pm gave him activated charcoal, olive oil, sugar, and whipping cream ( I wanted him to eat the charcoal). At 4 pm he was doing worse and I gave him Milk of Magnesia with the remaining earlier concoction. I finally managed to talk to a vet and at 5:30 pm gave him 8 oz of the following: 2 TBS molasses, 1 tsp powdered ginger, 1 tsp baking soda, 1 tsp salt, 1 quart warm water. The vet said typically you would add Epsom Salts too to flush their system but since Id already given Milk of Magnesia to leave it out. She said the ginger was the "antidote" and that the baking soda and salt were for electrolytes. She told me to try and give him 1/2 to start and then half two hours later. At 5:30 pm when I went out hed taken a big dump and was just laying there groaning and grinding his teeth. Came back at 9 pm and he was doing much better and pooping a lot. I didn't even try and give him the rest. He bleated some and wanted to eat grain though he was unable (the vet said just grass at first but he would eat the grass and I wanted to see if he would actually eat the grain). In getting in and out of his pen with my young daughter he made a dash and managed to escape his pen and started grazing, I just let him be. In the morning on Saturday he had a little foam at the corner of his mouth and wasnt eating at first and didnt really want grain. Within an hour or so though he seemed normal and was grazing. In the afternoon he had some grain and seems fully recovered. Sunday he seems back to his normal noisy self.
I don't know how much Rodie he actually ate, looking at the bush I don't think it was much. The vet said the prognosis was usually pretty good with Rodies.
I don't really know how to get sheep to drink something you don't want them to. I had to gently hold him down and I took a large syringe and just stuck it in the corner of his mouth and kept squirting some in. It took time but it seemed like he was drinking a lot (1/2 or more) of what I was giving him.
Anyway, hope no one else has to experience their animal being poisoned like that. I felt so sorry for the little guy! Fortunately something I gave him, or maybe all of it, helped him out.
Steve
Last Friday morning I saw one of them tugging on a Rodie in the morning. I didn't think anything of it and I left to run errands. I came back at 1 pm and he was foaming at the mouth and not being his usual loud self. I called the guy I bought them from and he confirmed that yes, Rhododendron are poisonous and no, he didn't have any experience with it. I did a frantic internet search and at 2 pm gave him activated charcoal, olive oil, sugar, and whipping cream ( I wanted him to eat the charcoal). At 4 pm he was doing worse and I gave him Milk of Magnesia with the remaining earlier concoction. I finally managed to talk to a vet and at 5:30 pm gave him 8 oz of the following: 2 TBS molasses, 1 tsp powdered ginger, 1 tsp baking soda, 1 tsp salt, 1 quart warm water. The vet said typically you would add Epsom Salts too to flush their system but since Id already given Milk of Magnesia to leave it out. She said the ginger was the "antidote" and that the baking soda and salt were for electrolytes. She told me to try and give him 1/2 to start and then half two hours later. At 5:30 pm when I went out hed taken a big dump and was just laying there groaning and grinding his teeth. Came back at 9 pm and he was doing much better and pooping a lot. I didn't even try and give him the rest. He bleated some and wanted to eat grain though he was unable (the vet said just grass at first but he would eat the grass and I wanted to see if he would actually eat the grain). In getting in and out of his pen with my young daughter he made a dash and managed to escape his pen and started grazing, I just let him be. In the morning on Saturday he had a little foam at the corner of his mouth and wasnt eating at first and didnt really want grain. Within an hour or so though he seemed normal and was grazing. In the afternoon he had some grain and seems fully recovered. Sunday he seems back to his normal noisy self.
I don't know how much Rodie he actually ate, looking at the bush I don't think it was much. The vet said the prognosis was usually pretty good with Rodies.
I don't really know how to get sheep to drink something you don't want them to. I had to gently hold him down and I took a large syringe and just stuck it in the corner of his mouth and kept squirting some in. It took time but it seemed like he was drinking a lot (1/2 or more) of what I was giving him.
Anyway, hope no one else has to experience their animal being poisoned like that. I felt so sorry for the little guy! Fortunately something I gave him, or maybe all of it, helped him out.
Steve
