A unique hobby that thrill-seekers love is paintballing. It’s a great workout, promotes teamwork, and can even be a stress reliever. While paintballing could be your next interest, you need to think twice if you have a dog. If you’re not careful, paintballs can pose a health hazard to dogs if they consume them. Paintball toxicity is not common, but if it happens it’s certainly severe.
The Threat of Paintballs
Active ingredients found in paintballs include glycerol, propylene glycol, polythene glycol, wax, dyes, gelatin, and much more. The components found in paintballs are osmotically active, which means they pull free water into the intestinal tract. This causes severe salt and electrolyte imbalances that can be fatal if not treated. Paintballs can cause a false positive blood test for the life-threatening poison, antifreeze, so it is vital that your veterinarian knows that your dog ingested paintballs. Dogs can eat paintballs if the container is left open, not properly stored away, or if they chew through the container.
Paintball Toxicity
Paintball poisoning is severe and could put your pup in critical condition. Potential signs of paintball ingestion include:
- Vomiting
- Diarrhea
- Walking drunk
- Tremors
- Seizures
- Decreased level of consciousness
Treatment
If your dog has ingested paintballs, you must act immediately. Call your veterinarian and Pet Poison Helpline at (855) 764-7661 for life-saving advice. Take your dog to the veterinary clinic for professional treatment. If the ingestion was recent, your veterinarian may induce vomiting to remove the excess toxins. Your veterinarian will administer IV fluids to balance and monitor their electrolyte levels. Warm water enemas will help the chemicals move through your dog’s system. If your dog is suffering from seizures or tremors medications will be provided. If you do not seek treatment for your dog in a timely manner, death can follow.