Poisoning by the Christmas star
The Poinsettia or "star of Christmas" (Euphorbia pulcherrima) is a plant very appreciated for its decorative qualities. It does not form part of plants known for their high toxicity as the Oleander or Castor. Nevertheless, its intake in significant quantities by your pet can have serious consequences…
Individuals most affected by these poisonings are young people who like to discover their environment by "chewing" or by ingesting various objects in their environment.
WHAT ARE THE SYMPTOMS ASSOCIATED WITH THE INTAKE OF POINSETTIA?
The toxicity of the Christmas star is related to the presence of various substances in the plant from which the latex. The most toxic parts are the stems and leaves. The mucous membrane contact with toxic substances or ingested in large quantities can cause various symptoms:
– One contact repeated with eyes or skin the animal may cause tosevere irritation :
Eye redness may follow contact, as well as the occurrence of conjunctivitis, swelling of the eyelids, or dilated pupils and vision loss.
The skin contact with latex can also have a significant inflammation with possible appearance of small blisters or edema.
– The symptoms most often noted are digestive disorders :
The latex causes severe irritation to the mouth (the animal suffers big mouth pain, began to salivate a lot and may present oral ulcers, swelling of the lips or swelling of the throat).
It is also responsible for a high gastric irritation which causes vomiting . The animal intoxicated refuses to eat, abdominal pain may show signs of diarrhea and suffer more or less marked.
– In the case ofingestion massive of the plant, animals intoxicated shows signs of agitation, general disorders (pallor, sweating, hypothermia, chills…) and more severe symptoms can occur such as:
. of haematological disorders (destruction of red blood cells),
. of Cardiac disorders (cardiac rhythm disorders, hypotension) or
. of neurological disorders (muscle tremors, dizziness…)
can evolve until the death of the animal.
UNDERTAKE ANY TREATMENT ?
Rinsing eye saline can be achieved in case of contact of the latex with the latter. It is then necessary to take the dog or cat intoxicated as quickly as possible to the vet. Thereof proceed to rinsing zones in contact with the plant, a washing stomach if ingestion is recent and administer the charcoal to minimize absorption of the product and its contact with the gastrointestinal mucosa.
Finally, cardiac activity will be monitored and haematological or neurological disorders will be sought for the development of symptomatic treatment if necessary.
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Like other ornamental plants (yucca, ficus, staphyllum, dieffenbachia…), Christmas star Poinsettia or contains substances that may be responsible for serious irritation and intoxication if the leaves and stems of the plant are chewed or ingested by your pet. Disorders can range from a simple oral irritation to much more serious injury in the event of massive ingestion (heart problems, neurological…). So be sure that this plant remains out of reach of your pet to avoid problems.