Grass Awn Dog Nose

Cats have issues with foreign bodies much less frequently.

Grass awn dog nose.

An owner can attempt to remove a plant awn from their dog s nose but i don t suggest doing so says dr. These dangers are usually called awn timothy foxtails cheat grass june grass downy brome or any other colloquial names but for your dog it is all trouble. The dog sneezes paws at the nose and experiences nasal discharge gums tongue mouth. Further motion enables the grass awn to migrate.

The signs associated with grass seeds and awns depend upon the location of the grass seed. If the seeds are just tangled in the fur only matting of the hair coat may be seen. Hi there that is a very common happening and a real pain because the only way to get it out is to deeply anesthetize the dog and look up the nostril with a scope and then go after the grass awn with an alligator forcep. Foreign object in nose symptoms and treatments in dogs and cats dogs who spend time outside often get foreign objects stuck in their noses.

Foxtails and other plant awns typically have barbs hooks that firmly grasp any fabric or tissue with which they come into contact. An awn is a hairy like bristle or appendage from the ear or flower of barley rye or many other types of growing grass. On occasion the dog will snuffle them back in the naso pharynx and swallow them. If swallowed grass awns may stick to the back of the throat near the tonsils and cause inflammation and swelling.

Movement from the dog allows the grass awn to pierce the dog s skin becoming embedded due to the barbs. The height of many dogs lines up well with the location of the seed pods on the grasses and contact with the grass allows the sharp lightweight grass awns to stick to the dog. Her owner said that she only started sneezing when she went outside and he was worried about her having a grass seed lodged inside her nose as she is an inquisitive dog and she has had grass seeds lodged in her nose before. But if the seeds have penetrated the skin or have been inhaled or ingested usually pain inflammation and swelling will result.

But removing an awn from a dog s nose can go beyond tricky. Tia came to our clinic shortly after she started sneezing that day. I have taken out hundreds because 99 of the time that is what has to be done. The barbed seed heads of the foxtail plant can work their way into any part of your dog or cat from the nose to between the toes and inside the ears eyes and mouth they can even simply dig themselves directly into a patch of skin.