Brodifacoum poisoning in a dog

Authors: Phillips CA, McSporran KD
Publication: New Zealand Veterinary Journal, Volume 31, Issue 10, pp 185-186, Oct 1983
Publisher: Taylor and Francis

Animal type: Companion animal, Dog
Subject Terms: Parasites - external, Pest/pesticides, Poisoning - chemical, Toxicology
Article class: Correspondence

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Abstract: We have recently encountered a case of brodifacoum poisoning in a farm dog which had access to Talon WB rodenticide. Brodifacoum, a new warfarin-related anticoagulant, acts by depressing the production of factors II, VII, IX, and X in the coagulation cascade. The compound is reported to be less toxic to birds and domestic animals than it is to rats and mice. Few cases of accidental toxicity have been documented in the dog. We wish to draw to the attention of practitioners the possibility of accidental brodifacoum poisoning, despite the relatively high median lethal dose of 24 g of bait per kg of bodyweight for the dog. A four-year-old cross-bred bitch was noticed by her owner to be lethargic and weak on the day following the laying of Talon baits for rat control. She was carried to her kennel where she was found dead the following morning. At necropsy, the thorax was found to contain approximately 1.8 litres of unclotted blood and a single clot approximately 5 cm in diameter adherent to the base of the heart and the intact aorta. An area of bruising was present over the rib cage on one side of the chest. Brodifacoum was present in the liver at a concentration of 0.8 mg/kg. The actual dose of brodifacoum ingested by this bitch is unknown…

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