Kaiser gave us a scare tonight. Dog owners beware!
Feb 6th, 2008 by Admin 1
I realize others have experienced this before but I really had no idea what to think when we ran into a little issue with the dog this evening! My wife and I went on our nightly walk through the neighborhood with Kaiser our dog. We had a great little walk and when we got back to the house Kaiser was happy as could be and pouncing around the front yard.
All of a sudden he sees and quickly lunges for a lump of some kind in the grass. He always has a piece of bark or toy or something he’s chewing on out there so we didn’t think much of it until he backed away and started snorting, flinching and foaming at the mouth!
We rushed over and quickly realized what had happened. A frog had used one of its only defense mechanisms and spewed some toxic something or other into Kaisers mouth. We quickly grabbed the computer and checked to see what the procedure should be for something like this and to try to correctly identify the type of frog that it was.
It turned out that it was a Bufo Toad also known as a Cane Toad which was originally introduced as a means to control insects in Florida and are now an endemic in South Florida. These toads produce toxins from their parotoid glands which are behind their head. The toxins released include high concentrations of bufotoxins, adrenalin and hormones. If a dog injests these toxins it can affect the cardiovascular and nervous systems.
If your dog shows signs of toxicity like foaming at the mouth,(with Kaiser instantly) tremors, vomiting, drooling, stumbling, pawing at their mouths, and is not yet seizing run garden hose or faucet along side of the dogs mouth for 3-5 minutes about 3 times.
Take your dog immediately to the vet if the dog is seizing!
Bufo toads can be found all over as long as they can exist on geographic conditions. Please keep an eye for these either at home which was our situation and while hiking and camping with your dog. Unfortunately, it doesn’t appear like a fluke. The kids and I saw another bigger one in a stream that runs down through the woods behind the house.
The bufo toads we have seen here are large but nowhere near the one I found online which I have posted below. I just wanted to show you how freakishly big one this one was.
Parents also beware! According to various sources, the Bufo Toad venom is also toxic to humans. There are actually people out there who lick toads to get high and have died in the process.
The venom must be injested or get in the eyes in order to cause harm so make sure that child of yours that likes to catch garden critters washes their little hands before eating or rubbing their eyes.
whoa, thats scary.
that guy looks like he is going to eat that thing
Yeah, I hope he’s not one of the afore mentioned “Toad Lickers”.
I’m pretty sure that one would kill him.
Yeah, now that you mention it I can picture the guy saying something off camera like: ” Did you take the picture yet? Okay good “, as he pulls out a knife that lay behind his back and then says in a sinister voice, “lets gut this thing, cook it up, and eat it!”
he is posing like its a trophy. maybe he will stuff the head and hang it on his wall
Where did this picture come from anyway. Admin?! Is he your friend?!
K
Jen,
Ahhh yes, a magnificent trophy for a proud and worthy hunter!
K,
He is now since he caught that giant toad!
No, really I found the picture while googling bufo toads. Poor guy doesn’t know he is the source for our jokes, sorry guy. For what its worth, it’s a great picture. You kinda have to expect it when you have your head in between the crotch of a giant mythical like frog creature.
Wow! That toad looks like it could swallow a small dog. Glad Kaiser is OK. Should be a good learning experience.
I think maybe you misunderstood! That is my dog the guy is holding upside down. Why you don’t like em’? Just kidding.
that toad is so cool! can I have it?
whatz it’s name?
Penelope
and yes you may have it. If you wake up one day and there is a large dog travel crate sitting on your doorstep with something hissing toxins out the opening, you’ll know that is her, thats our Penelope Picklebutt.
Ladies and gentlemen, toad meat is extremely delicious!!! no kidding
they taste just like chicken but since their bones are not as strong as that of chicken, they are yummy!
Peace!
yea i used to live in mirimar, S florida for college. being broke and usually with too many beers in me, my buddy and i would try catching the biggest one while fishing in the back lake behind the complex. we had these tournaments suprisingly often. it was tough to catch them so it felt rewarding to get the biggest one. they really do get that big and the thing is nothing will eat them. no to say that i would haha but its unfortunate for the native species.
Explorer,
More meat Kowalski! What do you want to drink Kowalski? Meat. ( old Ren and Stimpy reference) Seriously, meat good! chicken good!
It is unfortunate. The tournaments sound fun though. someone may have mentioned this earlier but I have heard that they have this issue in Australia and the children are paid to hunt these things because of the problems the over-population has caused. Don’t know about the source for that though. (True) - (Not True)? anybody?
That is sooo cool. not about the dog but the toad itself! I have pet toads that i have caught locally in texas but that toad is the ultamate toad! i would love to keep it and take care of it safely if there is a way to stay out of harm!!! OMG that rocks my world!
my toads names are fatso and chunky. Do you know how to tell the sexes of your toads? cuz i would kill to know which one of mine is a girl or a boy…
anyway cool pic
Nicole, thanks for the comments. Hopefully you can hunt one down there in Texas. Unfortunately, I can’t take credit for the picture and that is not me holding it. This is a picture I came across when doing research on these toads the night my dog had a run-in with one.
As far as telling the sexes, you’ve got me curious and I am going to look around for information to see what I can find. Find any info on it let me know.
WOW OMG that is HHUUGGEE.
Haa idiots.. nobody licks Toads to get high it doesn’t work like that.
Takes it seriously!
Wow!!!! I live in Texas too and I catch the frogs. I was wondering at night they live under my ventalation(sp) and come out because of me watering my garden and when I catch them They make a cute funny noise? is that normal
Throats can tell the sex of them. White is Female and Darkish, spotted black/brown is Male, Also Females are the larger ones.
Hi,
I started off looking to Identify animal droppings and found this site and others regarding Bufotoxin. I live in Bothwell Utah and since living here my dog has had a couple of seizures I at first could not figure out why we were ready to put her out of her misery it was so bad. The vet said she might be having epileptic fits and that I could medicate her but the pills were expensive. The first time she had one there was a dead frog close by I thought it was a snake bite before I saw the frog. In the mornings I noticed droppings outside on the concrete I asked my husband what kind of dropping it was and he said a frog I said cant be so I looked it up this morning and came across your site and others. I won’t shoot her next time just clean her mouth out really good. Thanks for the information.
hey i live in florida and i was wondering if u were selling that frog if u still have it cuz i run a frog and toad resque and i am looking for a show toad for our disney fair and i am willing to pay under 200 dollers! thanks ! e-mail me back
Kayla,
Sorry, I have had a busy summer and have been on the road for a while. No, unfortunately we do not have the frog.
Roz,
Wow, yeah glad we could help if even a little. Sounds like you went through way more than we had to. Good to hear it worked out for you guys. Drop us a line if you come up with anymore info on this topic, we would love to hear from you.
Lexy,
Thanks for all the insight and great info!
OMFG that is so massive that is poisanus word lol bye
I once had a randy good time with a toad. My dad also beats me.
You should steer clear of these toads in Fla. However, don’t just randomly start offing amphibians, as Fla has many native toads and even some that are endangered. If you are unsure about the I.D. of the toad, leave it alone until you are sure.
tekmet,
All jokes aside, we actually did let the toad go. I don’t know that it’s necessary to kill any toads. I know Fla has a lot, but unless your area is plagued with them, I’d suggest removing them from your yard if you have dogs or kids rather than killing them. Thanks for the comment!
Ryne,
Glad your experience with the toad was better than mine. Sorry your dad sucks.
thats looks really heavy…….