If you have a dog who loves a good day at the beach, you need to stop what you’re doing and read this right now. A dog owner has left the most heartbreaking warning about the dangers of saltwater, and even though this is a tough story to read, it’s extremely important to be aware of.
University of Florida student Chris Taylor lost his six-year-old black lab, O.G., after a seemingly innocent trip to the beach, and he’s using the experience to warn others that it could happen to anyone. On Monday, July 9th, Taylor took O.G. to Honeymoon Island State Park Dog Beach for a day of relaxing fun. Everything was fine until the end of the day, when he noticed O.G. wasn’t feeling well. Taylor told Fox13, “Towards the end of the evening, he was obviously tired and little wobbly after a long day at the beach. We took him to the car. He had a little bit of diarrhea, he didn’t feel that well.”
That night, O.G. had stomach issues with diarrhea and vomiting. On Tuesday, he was lethargic and wouldn’t eat. By Wednesday, Taylor noticed that O.G. had stopped eating and even stopped responding when Taylor called his name. He rushed him to the animal hospital and unfortunately, O.G.’s brain started swelling shortly after arriving due to high levels of sodium. Then his body stopped responding to medicine, and Taylor was forced to put him down.
So what had gone wrong?
O.G. had slowly died from saltwater poisoning. WFLA says he was severely dehydrated and had suffered brain damage. Taylor was devastated. He said, “They told me, there’s nothing we can do right now. I thought, this is my son. I don’t have children of my own.”
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He added, “It still feels surreal. It doesn’t feel like reality. I [have] to get a grip on that and realize that it is real and he’s gone.”
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Even though taking your dog to the beach is a popular activity for pet owners, veterinarians say that saltwater can be highly toxic to animals. When dogs ingest large amounts of saltwater, it can cause life-threatening conditions — like what happened to O.G. Longtime veterinarian Dr. Katy Meyer from Tampa Bay Emergency Veterinary Services told WFLA she sees these cases a lot, and warns that most pet owners don’t realize what’s happening until it’s too late.
So does this mean you shouldn’t take your pup to the beach any more?
Dr. Meyer says that you can, but you should limit the trip to two hours, take breaks every thirty minutes, and make sure your dog is drinking plenty of fresh water throughout their time there. If you notice later on that your dog is sick, bring them to the vet or animal hospital immediately.
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This isn’t only something that can happen with ocean water. Dr. Judy Morgan told Good Housekeeping that salt poisoning in dogs can occur from pool water, salt dough ornaments, paintballs, table salt in large quantities, rock salt, or homemade play dough. Watch your dog closely — no one deserves this kind of tragedy.
