If your dog ate Epsom salts, you have to watch out for possible signs of metabolic alkalosis and
. This is especially likely if your dog has ingested a large amount of magnesium sulfate, either directly through eating the salt or by drinking a large amount of salty bath water.
What is Epsom Salt?
Epsom salt, also called magnesium sulfate, is a chemical substance that consists of oxygen, magnesium, and sulfur. This amazing home remedy takes its name from the town of Epsom in Surrey, England. This is the place Epsom salt was first discovered.
While the name of this home remedy contains the word “salt,” Epsom salt is completely different from table salt. Unlike table salt, Epsom salt has a bitter taste that humans don’t like. It does look very similar to table salt and can be dissolved in water (such as a bath). You may sometimes hear Epsom salt referred to as “bath salt.”
Epsom salt has been used for hundreds of years to treat everything from constipation, insomnia, and arthritis, and more. The active ingredient in bath salt is magnesium.
What’s more, Epsom salt is easy to find. Just head over to your local grocery store, drug store, or department store, and you’ll most likely find Epsom salt for sale.
Humans continue to use Epsom salt to this day. And it’s also used to treat animals! However, what happens if a dog licks Epsom salt?
What happens if my dog drinks Epsom salt water?
Consuming large amounts of salt water, however, can be fatal. When a dog ingests salt water, the excess salt draws water from the blood into the intestines, leading to diarrhea, vomiting, and dehydration.
Will Epsom Salt Hurt Dogs?
Epsom salt can hurt dogs, if they happen to ingest it. It can lead to salt poisoning, which even has the potential to kill a dog.
But Epsom salt won’t hurt dogs if they happen to, say, soak in Epsom salt baths. That distinction is important.
Thus when someone poses the will Epsom salt hurt dogs question, it is necessary for them to be more specific.
They should be more specific about the context within which they are asking the will Epsom salt hurt dogs question.
Are they asking the will Epsom salt hurt dogs question within the Epsom salt baths context? In that case, the Epsom salt baths are unlikely to harm dogs (if the dogs soak in the Epsom salt baths).
But one may be asking the will Epsom salt hurt dogs question within the Epsom salt ingestion context. In that case, the Epsom salt can hurt the dog greatly (if the dog happens to ingest it).
Thus that sort of clarity when answering the will Epsom salt hurt dogs question is critical.
Epsom salt bath for dogs fleas problems can be an effective solution.
Similarly, Epsom salt baths for dogs arthritis, stiffness and general pain problems can provide some relief.
But then again, some of the purported uses of Epsom salts for dog problems are questionable. Using Epsom salt for dog yeast infection is questionable.
So is using Epsom salt for dogs constipation problems or using Epsom salt for dog cyst problems.
Epsom salt dog wound treatments and using Epsom salt for dogs ears problems is questionable too.
But for things like arthritis pain, stiffness and certain injuries’ pain relief, Epsom salts are proven to be quite effective.
FAQ
What happens when a dog eats Epsom salt?
Salt poisoning in dogs and cats results in signs of vomiting, diarrhea, decreased appetite, lethargy, incoordination, excessive thirst or urination. In severe cases, tremors, seizures, coma, and even death are possible.
Can Epsom salt hurt a dog?
What happens if a dog drinks Epsom salt water?
Are Epsom salts toxic to ingest?