A small seed can cause big problems for Yukon pets, says Whitehorse veterinarian

The All Paws Veterinary Clinic in Whitehorse is busy this time of year treating one to two patients a day with foxtail seeds stuck in their ears or tonsils, says veterinarian Candace Stuart.

Foxtails are grasses with seed heads that look bushy, like a fox's tail, in the summer. In Whitehorse, one foxtail grass is wild barley. By this time of year, the seed heads are dried out and easily stick to a pet's fur.

That's dangerous, Stuart said, because the seeds have a barb at one end and can stick to things. If the seed, or awn, is not removed, it can work its way through a dog's skin and into its body.

"Sometimes we've seen them even go up along their bones and into their legs," she said. "[The awns] can sometimes cause some very serious trouble where they end up inside [a] dog's chest or inside their abdomen."

That's when it could be life-threatening or quite serious. Over her career, Stuart said she has seen at least three fatalities due to foxtail.

Foxtail can mean big vet bills

Whitehorse's David Gendron estimates he's spent $700 to $800 on veterinarian bills to remove foxtail from his 14-year-old chocolate labrador retriever, Ulysse.

Gendron said the vet had to sedate Ulysse and then pull the foxtail out with tweezers. Ulysse had foxtail stuck in the back of his mouth three times, he said.

"He's a retriever, so you play ball with him and the ball is full of saliva and it rolls into the bushes and all of a sudden he comes back home with a mouth full of foxtail," said Gendron.

Symptoms to watch for

If the foxtail seeds are not removed, Stuart said pet owners may see some symptoms. Dogs can gag or cough if they swallow or get the foxtail seeds stuck in their mouth.

"Often our pets are restless. Sometimes they'll paw at their mouth. Sometimes they can have trouble swallowing or don't want to eat. Sometimes they'll try to vomit to bring things up."

But she said it's more of a clear, foamy vomit as opposed to a yellow bile vomit.

• Foxtail barley dangerous to dogs, veterinarian warns
• Dog owner says pooches and their humans need to watch out for foxtails

If foxtail seeds are stuck in an animal's ears, Stuart said they are usually shaking their head, scratching their ears or reactive if you try to touch their ear. If foxtail gets in the dog's paw, it may lick the paw or start limping.

Foxtail is not just a problem in late summer and fall. Stuart said she sees a recurrence in the spring when the first heads come up from the melting snow.

But dog owners aren't helpless.

Check Fido over

"I do recommend if [the dogs have] been running through the grass, that owners check them over when they get home," Stuart said. 

"Brush out their coat, make sure they remove any of the seed heads they can find."

Stuart recommends people pay close attention to the bottom of their pet's feet, ears and eyes.

Foxtail looks like "little seeds and often they'll have one long piece of grass," she said.

"Definitely when dogs eat the foxtail grass, they get those little awns stuck in their tonsils or in the back of their mouths."