Recently, a San Francisco dog owner declared their pooch overdosed after consuming human feces laced with trace quantities of drugs.
As the city fights a drug crisis and compound usage stays front of mind for lots of San Franciscans, some family pet owners are questioning if their pups deal with an increased danger of unexpected overdoses—from consuming human poo.
The Standard talked with vets at San Francisco Animal Care and Control and the city’s Society for the Prevention of Cruelty to Animals branch about this problem; the organizations treat countless city family pets annually. Here’s what they said.
Yes, It’s Possible
Some family pets like to consume whatever—consisting of things that are plainly not food.
“It is possible for our dogs and animals to get into things when they’re out and about, like in dog parks, in areas that are highly trafficked by other individuals,” said Lindsey Meyer, an associate vet at the San Francisco SPCA. “It’s always hard for us to really say where a dog’s ingestion came from, like what specifically caused them to throw up?”
When it concerns overdoses, veterinarians said dogs can overdose or enter into poisonous shock if they’ve consumed an opioid or other compounds, including marijuana or cold medication.
“This is, of course, difficult to definitively prove since guardians don’t often know exactly what their dog may have gotten into, [the dog] may have been unsupervised or off-leash and the effects may take several hours,” said Shari O’Neill, primary vet at SF Animal Care and Control. “There’s often no specific testing done in these cases, and the toxicity is treated with supportive care.”
Though O’Neill and Meyer state family pet health centers can typically look for drug toxicity through basic tests, the tests can be unreliable.
No, It’s Not That Common
One dog owner, interviewed by ABC7said their veterinarian witnesses dog drug toxicity “a few times a week,” though the source did not name the vet in ABC7’s coverage.
But both experts The Standard interviewed said they hadn’t personally witnessed an animal overdose on an opioid or drug in San Francisco, specifically from ingesting human feces.
“I do feel like I had a case in private practice that fits this scenario some years ago,” said O’Neill, describing her time working beyond the city local shelter. “Guardian witnessed a dog ingest what they thought to be human feces on the beach, and the dog began to show signs of toxicity an hour or so later.”
And Meyer, who has actually invested the last 5 years on the SPCA’s staff, said the problem is maybe not as common as reports make it appear—a minimum of not for opioids.
“I wouldn’t necessarily say it’s like a severe threat for, specifically, dogs in San Francisco, but I definitely think it’s something that people just need to be aware of,” Meyer said. “If you take your dog out to the park and then you’re home 30 minutes later, and they’re acting abnormal, act on that sooner rather than later.”
Maybe Just Keep an Eye on Your Pet
So what can you do if you’re worried your family pet entered into something unpleasant or possibly hazardous?
For beginners, Meyer says you can call a toxin control hotline or go to an emergency situation family pet healthcare facility. But aside from that, it’s more about seeing your family pet, being in advance with your veterinarian and making certain your family pets aren’t left without supervision on hectic streets or parks.
“Some dogs just love food, and if it is like a brownie with marijuana in it, it makes it more likely that they’re going to try to eat it,” Meyer said. “The sooner we can figure out what’s wrong or intervene, the more positive the end result will be.”
