Yesterday, I was reminded that it’s late summer and we need to be very careful of foxtail and other seeds that can make their way into our dog’s ears, eyes, coat and skin causing irritations and even infections.
This article has some very good information on why these pesky seeds can be so dangerous to our pets.
As we were enjoying our morning walk yesterday, Rocco went into a sneezing fit, I got a bit worried but assumed he just sniffed up some dirt. After a while he stopped sneezing and I didn’t give it a second thought. When we got home he sat in front of me waiting for a treat, that’s when I noticed a hair stuck on his nose. I went to wipe it away…when I realized it’s actually not a hair and it’s stuck inside his nose! I gently pulled on it and this is what came out:
The seed itself was barbed and only about 1cm of its tail was sticking out. I found a second one in his eye. I’m not sure what kind of grass this is – if anyone knows please leave me a comment! But it’s certainly one that could have caused a nasty infection, if gone unnoticed!
Oh my! I will definitely be on the lookout for that kinds of stuff. Good thing you were able to see it and get it out.
Hi Dawn, I know! That thing was definitely nasty.
OMG – thank you so much for sharing. I don’t know if we have these in our area so I’ll have to Google it and see what we need to watch out for. We live on 5 acres bordeded by wooded areas and hiking trails that our dogs love to explore.
I appreciate the heads up. Our trio will get a once over tonight.
Kimberly
Hi Kimberly, it’s mostly a problem in the Western part of USA and Canada, but you would have to look up the exact distribution. We’re on the Pacific Coast and the foxtails are everywhere!