Pets coming close to death after ingesting mouse plague poison

"Because of the increase of rat and mouse numbers, from the mouse plague, we are seeing a lot of dogs come in with rat bait poisoning," said operations manager at the Bega and Cobargo Veterinary Hospitals, Raelene Flower.

Over the last two weeks Ms Flower has reportedly seen at least 15 cases at the veterinary clinic of dogs with various stages of poisoning.

One of those cases was 12-month-old mini-dachshund Dash who was taken to Bega and Cobargo Veterinary Hospital on Monday after he started coughing up blood.

His owner Sue Alcock lives on a beef hobby farm in Bemboka and had been using bait to combat the growing mice problem plaguing her farm like many others in regional NSW.

"You can't say don't poison because the mice and the rats are everywhere, we have got wiring all over the place because of our solar system.

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"We don't know how he got into the tins as they are nailed up off the ground. We don't know whether it was an empty container or some that had split."

In Australia, most rat and mouse baits used are anticoagulants, which means they work by preventing the blood from clotting in the poisoned animal.

Ms Flowers said that all the affected animals she had seen at the clinic are mostly dogs that have eaten the bait directly.

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"Some pets owners may see their pet eat rat bait and because it doesn't make them immediately sick, so they don't think their pet has been poisoned.

"This is far from the truth! A few days after a toxic dose, affected animals start bleeding internally," said Ms Flower.

Pets would need to ingest a large amount of poised rats or mice for them to be affected but if they swallow any of the bait, the poison will make them sick.

"If you see your pet eat rat bait you must contact a vet immediately, so that we can make your pet vomit the rat bait up and provide you with medication for your pet to ensure their blood continues to clot effectively."

Initial signs that your pet may have eaten rat bait include blue or green dye in vomit, faeces or around the mouth and paws.

Progressive signs that your pet may have eaten rat bait and is bleeding internally include:

Ms Flower said if your pet is showing any of these initial or progressive signs, you must take your pet to the vet immediately.

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"If not treated as pets will bleed internally and in that late stage in can be fatal."

While it was touch and go for little Dash on Monday and Tuesday who was in a critical condition, he is lucky be recovering with his owners after a week at the clinic.

He will need to remain on Vitamin K twice daily to help his blood clot as the poison could remain in his system for up to three weeks.

The vet bill came to $1500 but Ms Alcock said, "It's definitely worth it."

Ms Alcock's advice to other pet owners, "just take them to the vets as soon as you can."