05/17/2018
A good friend just told me that she almost lost her dog because a foxtail had made its way into the lung. It took 5 hours of exploratory surgery and a partial removal of one lung to save her pup. Be vigilant around foxtails and avoid them all together if you can!
Foxtails are the barbed seed heads of wild grasses (the foxtail- shaped tip of the grass blade containing the seeds). Foxtails have razor-sharp needles that are extremely dangerous to our fur kids. Nature designed them to move in one direction—burrowing relentlessly forward.
Foxtails easily attach themselves to adventurous and curious fur kids, digging deeper and deeper inside with each movement. Foxtails love paws and can easily become embedded (and hidden) between toes. They can work their way into ANY part of the body, from the nose to the ears, eyes, and mouth.
Foxtails that go up the nose can migrate to the brain. Inhaled foxtails can puncture a lung. Foxtails that go unnoticed can require surgery to be removed. Embedded foxtails can cause discharge, abscesses, swelling, pain, and death.
SAFETY TIPS: Stay away from areas with foxtails and make sure you remove them from your yard. If your pet has mingled with foxtails, make sure to do a thorough inspection afterward: Brush coat, feel every part of the body with your hands, and look closely at ears, nose, eyes, underbelly, between toe pads, underneath collars and don't forget those private areas! Also check inside mouth and around lips. Any pet can get assaulted by foxtails, but animals with long fur, long ears, and curly fur can be especially prone to foxtail problems.
BE AWARE OF THESE FOXTAIL SYMPTOMS: Continuous sneezing, pawing at and licking an infected area, violent shaking of head, frequently tilting head to the side, scratching at an ear incessantly, sores or abscesses, swelling, discharge, coughing, and limping.
Foxtail Facts you should know:
Foxtails tends to grow in grassland areas, prairies, meadows, and are common along roadsides and trails. I have them right next to my sidewalk in West Hollywood!
As foxtails dry they become brittle and more dangerous. They break off easily into tiny segments. Each segment is loaded with infinite tiny barbs that dig into hair/skin and float their way into openings.
Once attached to your pet foxtails can disappear into the body QUICKLY, so checking them over immediately is key.
“If foxtails get deep into the nasal passages, they can continue to travel into the brain and cause seizures or death,” Randy Acker, DVM, author of Field Guide to Dog First Aid: Emergency Care for the Outdoor Dog
Once a foxtails is inside your pet, they continue to burrow inward. If not found and removed quickly, they can literally disappear, because they won’t show up on an x-ray.
Most common foxtail issues vets see: a foxtail in the nose, ear, or paw.
"Foxtails cannot be absorbed by the body, nor can they be broken down or digested", says Catherine Dyer, DVM, "although if an awn is swallowed and reaches the stomach, it will probably just pass through."
