# Puppy Ate a Mouse Today



## boon4376 (May 18, 2009)

I was walking my dog in a field today, and he found a mouse and ate it. I'm not sure if it was already dead but it was floppy, and i've caught mice in traps before and they've gone stiff within 12 hours, so i know it was fresh.

I'm not sure if HE killed it though. He was trotting through some tall grass about 10 yards from me, and i saw him start rolling on the ground. I went over and there was a dead mouse laying next to him. I went to reach for him and he picked up the mouse and swallowed it whole!

The closest house is about 300 yards away, but i have a question... Could this mouse have injested poison and run this far before dying, and then my dog ate it, thus my dog would have eaten rat poison....

Could a mouse make it that far after eating poison? 
Could the amount of poison a mouse eats be enough to harm my dog? (mouse a little smaller than 2 golf balls next to each other. Small enough to swallow whole) I'm really just afraid that the mouse ran out into the field and died of poison right before my dog ate it.

Hes pooped twice since he ate it about 11 hours ago, it was too dark for me to check and see if a mouse came out  *gross.... And hes been acting normal.

Anyone have suggestions? I was at the vet today for his rabies shot, and told her he ate a mouse whole today, and she said hed be fine as long as there wasnt any poison in it... and left it at that.


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## Spicy1_VV (Jun 1, 2007)

Mine kill and eat mice all the time, so its possible it was alive and he smelled it and got it in the field before it could get away. 

It is possible for the mouse to have eaten poison. It kills slowly. In dogs it actually can take longer for symptoms to appear. Many times by the time they do it is too late. Depending on the size of the dog and the amount they ate it could take several days. 

It is possible for one animal to eat a poisoned animal and get sick. 

We had 2 dogs poisoned at the same time. One was small about 28-30lbs, died (after much vet care). The other was closer to 50lbs and lived without vet. His gums got pale and he was lethargic for only about a day and he dropped a little weight, then bounced right back. In a couple days he was a little sick to better. Where the other refused food then, act very sick and went to the vet for a stay. I can't be sure that both even ingested the same amount, but it is a horrible slow killer. It kills smaller animals like mice faster of course but it isn't instantaneous they can move around after. 

It is possible for the mouse to have ate the poison in the field/outside and not have to travel far from where it was poisoned. Sometimes people put it outside so the mice will die before coming inside to keep them out and prevent them from dying in their home. Especially to keep them from dying inside walls since they don't die instantly. As it will stink without being able to get them out, they'd just have to wait out the smell. In some instances this is how dogs or cats get poisoned because they find the poison outside that is left for mice but they eat it.


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## boon4376 (May 18, 2009)

Well this isnt just a field, its a city / state land trust managed 180 acre area of wildlife, so people arnt out there sprinkling poison (or i dont think would have a reason to).... I mean i think its hugely unlikely that there was poison in it... I guess i should have attempted to induce vomiting when sooner but the time i read about it it was too late...

what should i expect to come out when he goes poop, as of this morning his poop still looks normal, no giant mouse carcass.


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## FourIsCompany (Apr 18, 2009)

The mouse will likely digest, just like any other food. You might see a lighter color because of the bones.  

My dogs eat mice, birds, rabbits, etc. I wouldn't worry about it. If you recognized the mouse as a mouse, a bird of prey probably dropped it.


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