My 14 year old Husky died in the wee hours of this morning, after 1am to be sure. He suffered from epilepsy and hip displasia with the hip pain increasing the last two weeks. In addition to the pain, my Husky, Bear was acting very strange this week acting fearful of me and pacing a lot. I discovered him dead this morning. The odd thing I noticed while digging the enormous grave was the strong smell of amonia. I am concerned that he may have been poisoned. Does anyone have any input on the subject. Where does the amonia smell come from?
2006-09-16 16:34:24 · 10 answers · asked by Leisha D 1 in Pets ➔ Dogs
Unlikely that he would have been poisoned from ammonia directly. It's not impossible that he was poisoned, though.
Ammonia is a natural by-product of the decay of proteins. But......ordinarily you wouldn't notice it in a body due to all of the other rancid smells like mercaptans.
It sounds to me like your dog died partly from kidney failure. That would cause ammonia to accumulate in his system. As to what caused the kidney failure, I could not possibly know that.
2006-09-16 16:44:48 · answer #1 · answered by Anonymous · 1⤊ 1⤋
The dog probably wouldn't have eaten anything with ammonia in it. Also you said he had been acting strange all week. If he were poisoned he probably wouldn't have lived that long. Maybe he had some kind of bladder problem and you were smelling the ammonia from his urine. That's just a guess though. I'm not a dead dog smell expert or an expert on dog poisoning. You could have taken him to the vet and had an autopsy done but you all ready buried him so that's kind of out of the question now. Sorry about your loss.
2006-09-16 16:39:58 · answer #2 · answered by Boober Fraggle 5 · 1⤊ 0⤋
I can't add much at this point, but knowing that your cat is a male, I have some advice for you for his future care. From my blog: CATS AND URINARY ISSUES This is not my area of expertise, but this has been my experience: As a kitten, Poppy developed both a weight problem and a UTI. My vet told me to start feeding her special food which he happily sold me *gulp*. Poppy refused to eat it. Back then I was less aware of how to get cats to eat new foods, so I just said the hell with it and bought Purina's urinary health food, mixed with weight management. She ate that from then until she was 2 years old. She never had another UTI, so that tells me that the overpriced CRAP the vets sell you are typically unnecessary. The grocery store crap is just as good. For various reasons, I soon thereafter began researching cat nutrition. I learned about the benefits of wet food, and found that in many cases, that's all that's required to prevent future UTI's. Even the crappy brands like Friskies would be better than dry food! I don't claim to be a vet, vet tech, vet student or anything like that. But I know how to research and examine results. I've read a bit on this topic which is how I've reached the conclusions I have. At the very least, were I to have another cat with urinary problems, I'd sooner try them on a GOOD QUALITY canned food before shelling out the dough for a "prescription" dry food (or even their canned varieties). That's because I believe that good nutrition and species appropriate food is much more likely to keep a cat healthy than something designed to change their chemical composition.
2016-03-27 04:43:33 · answer #3 · answered by Mary 4 · 0⤊ 0⤋
I agree with whoever said it might have been a bladder problem. I also am not a vet, maybe ask a vet if you really want to know what the smell might have been, but I would let Bear rest in peace. Sorry for your loss.
2006-09-16 16:45:01 · answer #4 · answered by GAB & R 2 · 2⤊ 0⤋
I have to agree with the others about the smell of ammonia being from his urine. As for his strange behavior, that might have been the result of some sort of damage to his brain from having epilepsy. I just want to say how sorry I am for you, and my prayers are with you. Take care.
2006-09-16 16:59:28 · answer #5 · answered by sciteach9 2 · 1⤊ 1⤋
Sorry to hear about the loss of your dog. The smell you noticed was probably from when his kidneys let go after he died.
2006-09-16 16:51:23 · answer #6 · answered by spnky 2 · 2⤊ 0⤋
I dont have an answer to your question... but I am very sorry for your loss. It's terribly painful to lose a pet and my heart goes out to you. Hope you find an answer!
2006-09-16 16:44:17 · answer #7 · answered by Anonymous · 1⤊ 1⤋
i'm sorry for the loss of your Bear. i know how terribly painful it is to lose a furbaby.
2006-09-16 17:02:01 · answer #8 · answered by purple_euphoria 4 · 1⤊ 1⤋
Sorry to hear 'bout your dog.:(
The oder was probobly from when his bladder let go.
2006-09-16 16:43:39 · answer #9 · answered by S.A.M. Gunner 7212 6 · 1⤊ 0⤋
bad kidneys - that would account for the smell - or if he wet himself at death.
2006-09-16 16:43:30 · answer #10 · answered by chris 5 · 1⤊ 0⤋