A vet has issued a chilling warning as a seemingly normal autumn walk nearly proved fatal for an adorable dog.
Kind-hearted Rachel and Cory, who adopted the pup from an animal rescue centre in San Antonio, Texas, wrestled international bureaucracy to bring Ollie to the UK. They were delighted that their new dog was settling into his new life - but three months in disaster struck.
While on a dog walk in a local park, owners Rachel Lake and Cory Smith stopped to talk to someone they knew, at which point four-year-old Border collie-mix Ollie decided to pass the time by munching down on a total of 25 acorns.
Not knowing acorns were poisonous to dogs, the owners didn't think too much of it straight away - but Ollie could have died.
Rachel told The Mirror: "We must have been stood there for 20 minutes or so then, just as we were finishing up, out of the corner of my eye I saw Ollie chewing up an acorn and swallowing it. We didn't think too much about it because acorns look so harmless, but it began playing on our minds a bit.
"Then we did some Googling and discovered that acorns are not harmless at all and are in fact poisonous for dogs because of the tannins they contain. At this stage we had no idea how many acorns he'd eaten, and Ollie didn't show any signs of being ill.
"It was quite the reverse – he was actually looking very pleased with himself! Cory and I debated it back and forth for a bit then decided we really did need to get him checked over – and we are mightily relieved that we did."
Ollie was admitted to Vets Now's Reading pet emergency clinic straight away. After being checked over he was given a medicine to make him sick - and they were astonished when they saw he produced no less than 25 acorns.
Luckily, after a few hours at the clinic, Ollie was well enough to head home with business analyst Rachel and Cory, who works in cyber security. Rachel said: "It was really frightening for us – even the thought of losing Ollie was incredibly upsetting. We think of him as part of our family.
"The whole team at Vets Now were brilliant with Ollie and very kind with us as well and we are really grateful to them. But in the nicest possible way we're hoping that we and Ollie don't need to see them again for quite a while!"
Now the dog parents are keen to warn others of the dangers of acorns, especially as autumn is coming. Emergency Vet Dave Leicester, head of telehealth at Vets Now, has issued an urgent warning to pet owners who might not think too much about letting their dogs pick up an acorn - but they can cause serious complications if ingested.
He said: "Acorns look small and unthreatening, but they really are very dangerous to dogs if consumed in large quantities. The tannins in acorns are a type of chemical that is toxic for dogs and can lead to fatal liver and kidney failure. They also pose the potential risk of causing an intestinal blockage."
If your dog has eaten acorns, or you think they may have, it's important to contact your vet immediately, or out-of-hours clinic immediately so they can receive treatment as soon as possible.
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