Many purchases made these days – from grabbing a burger at a fast food drive through to paying for a gallon of paint at the hardware store are cashless. It is far quicker to pull out a debit card or credit card and insert or tap to complete the purchase than to fumble in your front pocket or wallet for paper bills and coins and wait for change back.
Coins Can Kill
But I am betting that many people continue to drop loose change in jars with the goal of eventually buying something special from that accumulation of quarters, dimes, nickels and pennies. Many people still empty their pockets and drop coins into bowls or counter tops.
I bring this up because thanks to steady alerts from veterinarians and pet organizations, pet parents are very aware of the dangers of their dogs or cats ingesting dark chocolate that contains theobromine or sugar-free peanut butter made with the artificial sweetener called xylitol (also called birch sugar). But are you aware that a penny is powerful enough to trigger zinc poisoning – and even death – in some dogs?
A Penny Could Cost You and Your Dog More Than Think
A penny? Yep. Specifically, pennies minted after 1982 contain about 98 percent zinc and about 2 percent with a copper coating. Zinc is no friend to dogs. In fact, this metal is highly toxic if ingested by your canine pal.
Zinc inside your dog’s body will break down his red blood cells, causing anemia. The dog’s gums will pale in color. Your energetic dog may act weak or lethargic. The whites in the eyes may begin to sport a yellow hue. You may notice that your dog’s poop has changed from brown to orange in color. Unchecked, the zinc poisoning will impair the liver and kidneys and can cause death.
According to veterinarian toxicologists, more than 4,000 cases of toxicity have occurred in dogs swallowing these zinc-ladened pennies every year. They also point out that the numbers may actually be higher due to unreported cases in which the cause of death was not determined.
Yikes!
Zinc
You may not realize that zinc is a common ingredient found in human moisturizing lotions and ointments as well as in sunscreens. Do not let your dog lick your arm after you applied sunscreen. By nature, dogs tend to investigate by sniffing and sometimes swallowing items. So, be aware that your home may harbor other items containing zinc. These include zippers, jewelry, staples, nuts, bolts and batteries.
If your dog swallowed a penny or ingested zinc cream, you need to alert your veterinarian pronto. Or, if it is after hours, reach out to an emergency veterinary hospital or phone one of the two animal poison centers staffed 24-7 by boarded veterinary toxicologists. These centers do charge consultation fees. Keep these names and numbers handy:
- Pet Poison Helpline – (855) 764-7661 and www.petpoisonhelpline.com
- ASPCA Poison Control Center – (888) 426-4435 and www.aspca.org/pet-care/animal-poison-control
An x-ray will confirm the presence of this dangerous zinc in your dog. If your dog swallowed a penny, it may be found in the intestines or the stomach. Depending on the severity of the zinc presence, a veterinarian may give your dog anti-nausea and anti-diarrhea medications along with subcutaneous fluids. If the zinc is due to swallowing a penny, your dog may undergo an endoscopic procedure to remove the penny, or if necessary, require surgery to remove it.
The Takeaways
The takeaways? Get into the habit of regularly doing a room-by-room inspection to look for and remove any dangers to your dog, especially pennies. Keep those coin jars out of paw’s reach and always with a tight-fitting lid. Always pay attention to your dog’s potty habits and make sure the stools are brown in color and the urine is yellow.
By practicing common sense, you can reduce the risk of your dog ingesting zinc.
Learn More
You can learn more on ways to keep your cats and dogs safe by visiting http://www.propethero.com. Consider taking our veterinarian-approved online pet first aid/CPR course. Enter this code: CPR – ARDEN MOORE and receive a 10 percent discount! And, if you are interested in becoming a Pro Pet Hero instructor, please click on the BECOME AN INSTRUCTOR button on the home page for more details.