Peer-reviewed veterinary case report
Fatal caffeine intoxication in a dog
- Journal:
- Brazilian Journal of Veterinary Pathology
- Year:
- 2017
- Authors:
- Hensel, Martha et al.
- Species:
- dog
Plain-English summary
An 8-month-old male Yorkshire terrier accidentally ingested 800 mg of a caffeine supplement, which is a dangerous amount for dogs. He showed severe symptoms like a very fast heartbeat, twitching of his face, and was in a state of coma or extreme drowsiness. Despite attempts to treat him, he did not improve, and the decision was made to humanely euthanize him. Examination of his brain and heart tissue revealed serious damage caused by the caffeine. Unfortunately, the treatment did not work, and the dog passed away.
Abstract
An 8-month-old male Yorkshire terrier was presented for ingestion of 800 mg of an over-the-counter caffeine supplement. Clinical signs included extreme tachycardia, facial fasciculation, coma/stupor and flailing. Due to the lack of response to medical therapies, humane euthanasia was elected. Microscopically, necrotic neurons were scattered throughout the hippocampus, olfactory cortex, pyriform lobe, amygdala, and basal nuclei, with relative sparing of the caudate nuclei. In addition, mild skeletal myocyte necrosis and mural necrosis of cardiac arterioles in the left and right ventricles were noted. This is the first report of the microscopic lesions associated with caffeine intoxication in a dog.
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Search related cases →Original publication: https://doi.org/10.24070/bjvp.1983-0246.v10i2p65-68