Beautiful But Deadly - Sago Palms the Black Widow of Trees.

          

Sago Palms are beautiful, grow in an array of shapes and sizes and are one of the most popular palm trees in Florida.  They are also highly poisonous to dogs and cats, and ironically, not on any list of toxic trees/shrubs/plants that I have found.  Not even under its scientific name Cycas Revoluta.

So how do I know these trees are toxic?  Well, last October, my husband, daughter and I, along with our new puppy, Maggie moved into a new house that had two large Sagos growing in the backyard.  The first week in our new home, some friends stopped by for a visit and mentioned that the seeds of Sagos are toxic to dogs.  Despite our friend’s warning, we felt Maggie was safe since the seeds were too high off the ground for her to reach. I would like to add that I’ve hated those trees since we moved in and have always been a bit concerned so I’ve kept a close eye on her (I didn’t even like her chewing on the dead branches lying around the base of the tree, which by the way, also pose a threat).  Maggie is a Morkie (Maltese/Yorkie mix) and the sweetest dog you will ever meet. She’s also a tiny little thing so it doesn’t take much to get her sick and she already has a sensitive stomach (gets car sick).  She also loves to chew on sticks, and socks, and underwear, and rocks, and shoes, and my daughter’s toys, and well, you get the picture, she will chew on and eat anything.  

Having the Sagos removed has been on our list of things to do because of where they were located and the fact that the leaves are hard needles that can literally poke your eye out if you’re not careful. But, we hadn’t removed them yet because it wasn’t a priority.  That job quickly moved to the top of our priority list Memorial Day weekend.   

Saturday, I saw Maggie sniffing around the base of our Sagos and then saw her chewing on something green.  That sparked my initial concern because by the time I caught her she had swallowed the greenery.  A few minutes later, I found her with a huge piece of Sago (possibly the root) in her mouth and had to chase her down again to take it away.  My concern now tripled.  I wasn’t sure if it was the root or the seed that was in her mouth.  My ignorance of the tree is obvious but knowing that the seed was toxic and not being sure what piece she had in her mouth, I decided to educate myself and started googling.  I typed in “Sago Palms toxic to dogs”, and several links popped up.  That is when I found out that the entire tree is toxic.  And when I say entire, I mean not only the seeds, but the branches, the leaves, the trunk, the roots, and even the pollen.  Everything associated with this tree is toxic and not just to dogs but to cats, horses and even humans.  And when I say toxic, I mean the poison may cause liver damage and even liver failure if not treated, which means death.  The chance of survival is about 50%.

 We’ve had Maggie less than a year. As a matter of fact, her 1^st birthday is May 31^st and I’m sure you can imagine how I felt after reading the statistics.  I also read up on what signs to look for if a Sago had been ingested…vomiting, diarrhea and lethargy being the top three on the list. Since she already has a sensitive stomach, I knew that, if indeed, she had ingested the tree, she’d throw up soon.  According to the information online, between 15 minutes and several hours, symptoms will appear.  For Maggie it was only a matter of minutes. 

I found her in my bedroom, lying in a spot she doesn’t normally lay.  So, I sat on the floor and picked her up.  She looked at me with those big sweet brown eyes and tried to lick me.  She also appeared to be licking her lips or smacking in a way that we do when we’re thirsty or have cotton mouth or, better yet, about to throw up.  I put her down and noticed how she lowered her head like she was going to get sick, but didn’t.  I got up and went into the kitchen but watched her from afar.  My daughter was also in my bedroom (on my bed watching T.V.), so I was trying to be discreet but needed to keep an eye on Maggie, who had now crawled under my bed.  I squatted down and watched her.  Within a minute, she threw up.  I stood, walked quickly into the other room where my husband was, closed the door so my daughter couldn’t hear, and told him we needed to take Maggie to the vet and why.  I then walked out, grabbed my cell phone and walked outside to my pool where my daughter couldn’t hear the conversation I was about to have.  I knew my vet was closed (being that it was Saturday afternoon and Memorial Day weekend no less) but also knew he listed an emergency number on his website.  (Thank God for google and smart phones). I had taken a pen and paper outside with me and jotted down the number and address, then called the emergency veterinary hospital. When the nurse answered the phone, I was choked up and started to cry but somehow managed to tell her what had happened.  By now my husband had scooped up the vomit (with his hand) and brought it out to me.  I told him to put it in a baggy and to bring it with us for the doctor to see. I couldn’t stop crying as I made my way back up to the house and inside.  I knew I needed to compose myself for fear my daughter would get upset (at this point, she had not been informed).  I grabbed Maggie’s crate and put it in my car.  My husband asked if I wanted him to distract my daughter while I ran out with the dog, but I said no, it was time she knew.  So we told her that we needed to take Maggie to the vet to make sure she was ok, and left it at that. 

I drove (fast) down Centerville and in less than 10 minutes arrived at the hospital.  They were ready for her when we got there and quickly took her back.  Within 5 - 10 minutes they had induced vomiting and she had diarrhea.  She had definitely ingested the tree.  From the time she ate the Sago to the time we arrived at the hospital, 1 hour had passed.   

           

After filling out paperwork, we were taken back to an examination room.  It wasn’t long before a nurse came in to ask us questions, one of which was if Maggie had ingested the tree sooner, like the night before, because there were seeds or what looked like seeds in her diarrhea.  I was stumped and didn’t know what to say.  Until that moment, I didn’t think Maggie had ever eaten anything from that tree.  Now I wasn’t so sure.  But what I was sure of was that she quickly got sick after I caught her with a piece in her mouth. 

The Sagos were gone by the time we got home from the hospital Saturday evening, thanks to our yard guy, who was also kind enough to come back on Sunday to remove the roots as well.   On Sunday, we cleaned up any debris still lying around the yard that Maggie could get a hold of once she came home.

Maggie spent 28 hours in the hospital and I wasn’t entirely convinced that we should bring her home Sunday night.  However, when we stopped by the hospital to visit her, she started barking when she heard me talking to the vet.  He was even surprised at how excited she was to see us and that she would eat when we fed her but not for them.  We were given a prescription and instructions of what to do and what to look for in her behavior (good signs and bad), and were told to follow up with our regular vet in a few days.  All of this is good, but it is just the beginning of her recovery.  Enzymes in her blood indicated that her liver was exposed to toxins and one of the enzymes spiked, although the doctor said that doesn’t necessarily mean she’ll have liver damage. 

During all the commotion I had forgotten to clean up the vomit that had been under my bed.  My husband had gotten part of it, but I wanted to make sure nothing was left.  What I found scared me even more.  A large handful of chunks of Sago remained, which made me wonder if Maggie had ingested them earlier than we thought. It’s hard to believe all that could have been in her stomach from Saturday. 

We’re still a bit paranoid that she’ll find some tiny piece on the ground that we missed and have already agreed not to let her out back without a leash until we know for certain she’s not in danger.  But it’s not just our yard we have to be concerned about.  There are Sagos in almost every yard in my neighborhood and although she does not go out front or on walks without a leash, we have to be mindful of which trees near the road and sidewalks.  It appears we (and Maggie) were lucky, but with a 50% chance of survival, other pets might not be, and could possibly be ingesting these trees without their owner’s knowledge of doing so or of the danger. I know Floridians love their Sagos, but if you own a dog (or cat), do yourself and your pet a favor…get rid of the Sagos.  They may be beautiful, but that beauty comes with a price and that price may be the life or your beloved pet.