Puppy dies after suspected of eating poisonous mushroom

A Southbank woman has been left heartbroken after her beloved one-year-old Cavalier King Charles died after being suspected of eating a poisonous mushroom.

Misty’s owner said the pair had taken a leisurely stroll at the Royal Botanic Gardens during a Saturday afternoon on May 13, where Misty was “quite happy to run around”.

“We had a good time, we came back home and spent a normal night, dinner and sat on my lap while I was watching TV,” Misty’s owner said, who asked not to be named as she struggled to come to terms with her pet’s death.

While Misty acted a little out of character that night, her health deteriorated as she suffered diarrhoea and vomiting overnight.   

“Since it was on Sunday, I called an online vet to get some advice, and I was told to try to give her chicken soup to prevent dehydration and try to give her chicken and rice.”

After her condition worsened, she took Misty to the vet clinic where a blood test later confirmed there was “something toxic” in her liver and she underwent extensive treatment.

“She fought to live as much as she could, but her little body couldn’t let her keep going. She passed away on May 17, 10.30pm.”

She added: “I feel devastated. If I knew what I know now, I wouldn’t take her to the area”.

Dr Camille Truong, a mycology research scientist at the Royal Botanic Gardens Victoria (RBGV), warned pet owners to be vigilant as the mushroom season continued with the cold and wet weather.

Dr Truong said the RBGV was “fully aware of the presence of wild mushrooms” at the gardens including the death cap and the yellow-staining mushrooms.

“Symptoms after death cap ingestion in dogs are similar to those in humans, with initial gastrointestinal symptoms and then a delay before organ failure,” she said.

“Death cap mushrooms are carefully monitored and removed by RBGV staff and signs are in place to warn the public about them.”

“RBGV mycologists are working in close collaboration with the Victorian Poison Information Centre (13 11 26), which can be contacted 24/7 in case of suspected mushroom poisoning case in Victoria.”

The City of Melbourne said it had received one report this year about toxic mushrooms potentially growing at the Alexandra Gardens on May 17, in which an A-frame was placed around the reported site.

A letter to Misty’s owner from the council said it had put signage and posted messages on its social media pages to make the public aware of the dangers. 

Misty’s owner said she wanted to share her story to make other owners aware of poisonous mushrooms.

“Even just simply mentioning the toxic mushroom issue, I thought it might save some dogs’ lives,” she said.

“She [Misty] had a lovely personality; kids were coming to her, and she was always friendly and happy to have people around her.” •