Little Lucha ate some onions.

Little Lucha came into the clinic after his owners found him lethargic and unable to stand. He had very pale gums, weakness and abdominal pain. We quickly admitted him to our hospital for supportive care while testing was carried out.

The most significant finding on Lucha's blood panel was low levels of red blood cells (anaemia). At this stage our top differential diagnoses were 'Immune Mediated Haemolytic Anaemia' or a toxicity. To differentiate between these, we needed to send a blood smear off to the pathology lab. We continued to treat Lucha's symptoms while waiting for the results, and covered him for both immune mediated disease and potential toxicity.

The lab results showed tell-tale signs of onion or garlic toxicity. These plant species make red blood cells fragile and prone to rupture. He stayed with us in hospital for three days before heading home for some TLC. Unfortunately for Lucha there is no specific treatment for this, so we continued monitoring his red blood cells to ensure his body was compensating as the toxins cleared. After around one week, Lucha started to turn a corner and the red blood cells began to increase and he slowly, but surely returned to his normal self.

We are so pleased that Lucha had a happy ending to his story. We hope by telling his story it may bring some awareness to how dangerous onions and garlic can be for both dogs and cats. His lovely owners did an amazing job taking care of him while he was unwell, they will be very cautious from now on to make sure he does not scavenge any human food when they're not looking!