Intoxicação por plantas ornamentais em cães e gatos na Paraíba

Abstract

The present work aimed to build, mainly, a database on the incidence of poisoning cases in dogs and cats by the ingestion of ornamental plants in the state of Paraíba, in order to identify the relevance and danger of the issue raised. To achieve this, veterinarians and dog and car owners were interviewed through two online questionnaires. One was designed to elucidate the prevalence of these cases in veterinary clinics and to assess professionals' knowledge on the subject. The second investigated the predominance of ornamental plants present in the homes of residents of different cities from Paraíba and their relationship with the household pets. A detailed literature review was conducted, comparing reports and statistics with the collected results, in an effort to characterize the epidemiology and clinical aspects associated with the main plant species in the state responsible for these poisoning cases. Poisoning from the ingestion of toxic ornamental plants was found to have a high prevalence in poisoning cases in veterinary clinics for dogs and cats. The medical history (anamnesis) was the main semiological tool responsible for diagnoses. Most cases involved puppies that had ingested the plant Dieffenbachia ("Dumb Cane") and showed mild to moderate gastrointestinal symptoms. For cats, the Lily plant proved to be a significant cause of severe renal issues. It was concluded that knowledge of plants and their toxic properties is the main defense against accidents, as well as awareness by the veterinary community in educating pet owners during routine clinical visits.