Salmon Poisoning Can Kill Dogs

Warning to steelhead and salmon anglers: Sharing your catch with your dog can be an act of kindness that kills. Salmon Poisoning Disease is a potentially fatal illness seen in dogs that eat the flesh or entrails of raw ocean-going fish such as steelhead and salmon. Characterized by parasites infected with a rickettsial organism that attack the dog's digestive system, salmon poisoning can mimic gastrointestinal illnesses. Symptoms usually appear within six days and include nausea, vomiting, lack of appetite, diarrhea, dehydration and weakness. If untreated, the poisoning is generally fatal within 14 days. About 90 percent of dogs showing symptoms die if they are not treated. Caught early enough, however, salmon poisoning can easily be treated with an antibiotic and de-wormer to kill the parasite and rickettsial organism. "With a healthy steelhead run now in our rivers and a strong salmon run predicted, dog owners should really watch their pets closely," said Lucas Swanson, conservation officer for Idaho Department of Fish and Game. Several local dog owners have recently lost their dogs to salmon poisoning because they just thought their dogs had a stomach ache, Swanson said. "If your dog is not its usual chipper self and its temperature is above 101, head for your local veterinarian as soon as possible," he said. And it's not just dogs taken on fishing trips that are at risk. "If you have a dog that wanders or raids garbage cans and you are unsure of what it has eaten, consider the possibility of salmon poisoning," he said.