10/14/2026
⚠️ A heartbreaking warning from our clinic family: Please reconsider rodenticide this fall.
As temperatures drop, mice and rodents naturally look for warm places to nest. While we understand the urge to manage pests, we are sharing a painful, real-life story to show why mouse and rat poison is never the answer.
Recently, our Practice Manager, Sam, went through every pet owner’s worst nightmare. Her dog, Leroy, ingested rodenticide — despite Sam having zero poison on her property.
Rodenticide doesn’t stay contained where it is placed. It spreads into neighboring yards, onto trails, and travels through dead or dying rodents.
Leroy was rushed to Red River Animal Emergency Hospital and Referral Center in Fargo, where he spent 3 grueling days hospitalized fighting for his life. Because anticoagulant poisons stop the blood from clotting—causing severe internal bleeding and extensive bruising (he would have bled to death without intervention)—Leroy’s treatment was intensive:
💉Plasma transfusions
🩸Blood transfusions
💉A continuous fentanyl infusion (CRI) for pain
💊 Oral Gabapentin for pain
💊High-dose oral Vitamin K (which he must continue for a full 30 days before follow-up blood panels to ensure his clotting factors have recovered).
Leroy is lucky to be alive, but many animals don’t survive.
The "Toxic Ripple" Goes Far Beyond Mice!
Rodenticide does not stop once a rodent eats it.
💀Direct Ingestion: Even a tiny bite of bait can kill a large dog or curious cat.
🐀 Secondary Poisoning: When a rodent consumes poison, it becomes weak and easy prey. Any dog, cat, owl, hawk, fox, or scavenger that catches or eats a poisoned carcass will also absorb the toxic load and suffer the same agonizing fate.
‼️Complex Treatments: Different rodenticides kill through different mechanisms (internal hemorrhage, neurological swelling, organ calcification), meaning treatment must be immediate, highly specialized, and specific to the toxin involved.
💔 Nothing deserves to die this way.
Please, as you prep your garages, sheds, and homes for cooler weather: choose safe, non-toxic alternatives. Use mechanical snap traps, humane live-catch traps, exclusion methods (sealing entry holes with steel wool and expanding foam), and natural deterrents.
Keep your pets safe, protect local wildlife, and please share this post to help save a life. ❤️🐾
If you suspect your pet has eaten rodent bait or a poisoned carcass, do not wait for symptoms like lethargy or bruising to appear. Contact the Pet Poison Helpline at 1-855-764-7661, your local Veterinarian, us at Animal Care Clinic at 218-444-2222, or your nearest Emergency Hospital immediately!
