Learn more about the diagnosis and treatment of grass seeds and awns.
Grass awns dogs.
Grass seeds and awns are plant fibers that can penetrate your dog s skin and migrate into the tissues.
Should you spot the grass awn make sure to remove it as quickly as you can.
Grass awns otherwise known as foxtails are created by certain types of grasses that are in the seeding stage.
Why are grass awns dangerous to dogs.
One of the most common minor emergencies we see during the summer in the mid southare grass awn foreign bodies.
Grass awns are deadly dangerous for your dog.
Grass awns or foxtails are shaped like arrows and they can get attached to the skin of animals or your beloved pet and therefore they can spread among animals in your h.
Not only can these burrow into the skin but these seeds have the.
Grass awns are grass seeds which are sharp sometimes barbed and have the capability to burrow into the skin of our dogs.
Grass awns can be inhaled swallowed and even penetrate the dog s skin.
The height of many dogs lines up well with the location of the seed pods on the grasses and contact with the grass allows the sharp lightweight grass awns to stick to the dog.
Dogs are especially at risk if they have longer coats with a thick undercoat although any animal can be at risk.
If grass awns are not removed in a timely fashion they will lead to the formation of painful abscesses which need regular drainage of fluids.
Grass awns and plant material are thought to enter the mouth or nose when a dog is breathing hard as it runs through a field.
It is when they are not quickly removed by the owner or expelled by the animal that they become problematic.
The most common presentation is a draining tract between the toes.
These seeds or grass awns can become lodged in pet ears between toes and under the skin.
The plant material can migrate through the respiratory or gastrointestinal tract or other tissues or it can penetrate through the skin and migrate elsewhere.
Pretty much any contact a dog has with grass awns is potentially hazardous.
Grass with sharp hygroscopic seeds are common in sa with many grasses producing these so called awns during summer and early winter.
The problem with grass awns is that they are difficult to be located.
