Dog Drank Mop Water

What To Do If Your Dog Drinks Bleach From The Mop Bucket

July 2021: I’m editing this post to move what to do if your dog drinks from a mop bucket to the top of the post; the sooner you get the help, the better. I get a lot of traffic to this post and so it seems like a lot of dogs drink bleach!! Eeeek!!

You can read what happened when my dog drank mop water with bleach in it further down this post, but here is the important stuff first – what you should do if your dog drinks bleach.

First, you need to know what’s in the bucket – just water? Bleach? Disinfectant? Floor cleaner? What??

Second, are you sure your dog drank mop water? Could they have just been sniffing it? (Assume they have drunk it.)

How strong was the solution when your dog drank out of the mop bucket? Was it watered down or straight bleach?

If it’s just straight bleach – get to a vet asap.

If it’s bleach added to water, then take a few minutes to check your dog over first.

If they have drank floor cleaner or bleach – don’t make them be sick.

See if you can get them to drink some clean water, they might refuse as they are already full or feeling ill.

Don’t give your dog any food – just in case it makes them feel worse or the vet needs to put them under anesthetic.

Check to see if they’ve been sick anywhere.

Do they seem their normal self or a bit off?

Try and keep calm – almost impossible, I know!

Keep your dog calm and resting if you can, the less they move around the less sick they will be.

Look out for any unusual behavior, excessive drooling, rashes, and large amounts of sick.

Call your vet – or any vet you can get on the phone. Tell them everything. They should give advice over the phone but may ask you to come in. Prepare to pay an out-of-hours call-out fee when you are there.

If you need to take your dog to the vet, get there asap but stay calm.

If your dog keeps refusing food, try not to worry too much if they are drinking. Keep trying to give them clean water – if they refuse to drink, go back to the vets and tell them.

If your dog starts to drool more than usual, is still being sick, or seems disorientated or faint – get back to the vets as soon as you can.

Most dogs are perfectly fine if they drink a diluted form of bleach, floor cleaner or disinfectant. They usually just feel sorry for themselves, sick and tired for a few days. Hopefully, this will be the case for your dog too.

For the next few days, keep them as quiet as you can, let them rest. Keep trying food and plenty of water. Give them a lighter type of food for a week – maybe something for puppies or a weight loss type of food.

If your dog eats raw food like ours, give them cooked chicken and plain, boiled rice for a couple of days. Then slowly reduce the cooked chicken and add in some raw food instead, Eventually, get back to full raw and no rice.

Follow the vet’s advice – I know this post might not be as much help as you were looking for, but honestly, the best people to ask are the vets. They know their shit. If you’re unsure at any time, or doubtful of what the vet advises just ask them to explain it to you or even try someone else.

Try not to beat yourself up too much about it, it happens – unfortunately! Give yourself a break, dogs are like kids and you can’t keep your eyes on them 24/7 even if you try.

Please consider sharing this post on your social media, it might just help another dog parent one day!

A lot of dogs drink bleach. Why? No idea. Luckily though, according to the experts, our household bleach isn’t too corrosive and won’t erode the dog’s stomach lining. If the mop water has diluted bleach, your dog has an even better chance of getting well quicker.

I know from personal experience (read below!) that it’s a scary thing, when my dog drank bleach water I was really scared – when she drank it another time I was petrified thinking she would die! She was fine after a few days. Luckily.

It’s obvious, and I’m honestly not telling you what to do, but try to keep bleach out of your (dumb) dog’s way. I try my best now to only add the bleach to the water when I’m going to actually start mopping. Then I empty the bucket again.

Sometimes though, like when we have new puppies, we need to keep the bucket with bleach water in because of following a peeing puppy around the house! So I try and keep the mop bucket in another room away from the dogs. I have been known to keep my mop bucket in the dining room, front room, or hidden behind the kitchen bin before now. Not ideal and I’m never happy about it, but I’d prefer that to another dog getting ill from bleach!

I also try to use more disinfectant now rather than bleach. I like to use Fabulosa, Zoflora Pet Disinfectant or these dog-friendly disinfectants from Amazon.

If I do use bleach in the water, I only add a small amount, much less than I did before – it still cleans the same.

I really hope this post has helped you if your dog has drunk bleach from a mop bucket. Even if it’s just to reassure you a little, or to know that you aren’t the only one it’s happened to!

What is Mop Water with Bleach?

Mop water with bleach is usually a bucket of water, to which someone has added some bleach. Bleach is a product that’s used to help clean and disinfect both hard and soft surfaces. It’s used to sterilize and disinfect a wide range of things.

For instance, bleach may be added to the laundry to disinfect towels. It may also be used to clean the bathroom after someone is sick. Bleach is also commonly used to clean and disinfect floors by adding it to mop water.

The most commonly used type of bleach in homes is chlorine bleach. Chlorine is a powerful disinfectant, which can be extremely dangerous to inhale or ingest.

But what about dogs? Can mop water with bleach make a dog sick?

Treatment of Household Cleaners Poisoning in Dogs

Treatment will vary greatly depending on the type of household cleaner and the way the poison affected your dog (dermal, inhalation, ingestion). If your dog hasingested a cleaning agent orally, the veterinary team will work to stabilize him by the administration of fluids, pain medication, anti-inflammatories, and if needed, antibiotics. The veterinary team will also monitor renal function. In severe cases, where a household cleaner has cause extensive damage to the stomach, the veterinarian may decide that a tube should be inserted into the wall of the stomach to enable healing while allowing for nutritional needs.

If your pet’s eyes were injured by a cleaning product, the eyes will be flushed with a saline solution. The veterinarian will also examine the eyes, specifically the cornea, and treat as needed for ocular damage. Topical ointments will be prescribed for burns to the skin. For inhalation injury, respiratory therapy will be needed, and in some cases, fluid in the lungs or aspiration pneumonia could be consequences that will require attention.

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FAQ

What should I do if my dog drinks mop water?

What happens if a dog drinks mop water with Pine Sol?

What happens if my dog drinks floor cleaner?

What happens if my dog drinks bleach mop water?