Vets in Royston saved a spaniel's life after she was was poisoned by eating mould from a compost bin.
Three-year-old Cookie, who lives in Melbourn with owners Chris and Lesley Walls, suffered a rare and potentially deadly systemic poisoning called tremorgenic mycotoxicosis.
Chris had taken a mouldy sweetcorn husk off Cookie at around 4pm on Monday, July 22, and an hour and a half later the family's Ukrainian guest Diana found Cookie seriously ill.
Chris said: "Diana found Cookie gasping for air and tremors racking her whole body, legs thrashing, temperature off the chart and she had been sick.
"Diana scooped her up and my wife and I rushed her to the vet.
"We were rushed straight into surgery where five nurses and vets held her and worked on her until 10pm, when her temperature was under control and the right balance was found to control the tremors."
A vet stayed with Cookie overnight, checking and adjusting her dose every 10 minutes, which continued until 5pm on Tuesday.
Chris said: "She came home that evening very groggy. Wednesday morning she checked out OK and it is thought there is no brain, liver or lung damage. We are all very lucky."
According to Royston Veterinary Centre, tremorgenic mycotoxicosis is rare - and head vet Dr David White had only seen one other case.
The neurological condition comes from toxins produced by mouldy food and compost.
Cookie is now recovering from her ordeal, alongside the family's other two dogs - seven-year-old Coco, who is Cookie's mother, and sausage dog Keyt, who arrived with the Ukrainian guests.
Royston Veterinary Centre had previously helped the family during Cookie's birth in lockdown, and recently neutered all three dogs.
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The family is now urging pet owners to be aware of the potential danger if dogs ingest mouldy food or compost.
Chris said: "For 15 years we have composted all our food waste and yes occasionally one of our dogs has dragged something mouldy out of it...a disaster waiting to happen.
"Please secure your compost. We now have sealed ours and we have requested a green wheelie bin from the council."
A spokesperson for Royston Veterinary Centre said: "Tremorgenic Mycotoxocosis (TM), like in Cookie’s case, is one of the many symptoms a dog could get from consuming compost.
"Whilst we see lots of dogs that have ingested inappropriate food, TM, is one of the rarer consequences, we have to go back 13 years since we last saw a case like it.
"Had Mr and Mrs Walls not recognised the distress that Cookie was in this would have been rapidly fatal.
"We are grateful to them for their speedy response and accurate information enabling us to give Cookie the treatment she so desperately needed, to give her a fighting chance.
"The best thing about this case is that Cookie has made a full recovery and is back to her former self."
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